ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020: Five Indians to watch out for
The Women's T20 World Cup, starting February 21, is a fresh challenge for a side that has all ends covered; spotlight is on youngster Shafali Verma.
Published : Feb 19, 2020 08:24 IST
On July 20, 2017, many didn’t know that the Indian women’s cricket team was playing Australia in a World Cup semifinal. Harmanpreet Kaur’s bat made the noise for people to stop outside electronic stores while returning from work, surf live scores on their phones and count the number of boundaries. She hit 20 that day. The unbeaten 171 off 115 balls beat stereotypical perspectives that only men can do the hitting. It transformed how the stakeholders – spectators, broadcasters, sponsors – looked at women’s cricket. The girls have been unlucky at World Cups. The ICC World T20, starting February 21 in Australia, is a fresh challenge for a side that has all ends covered.
Shafali Verma
Seven years ago, when Sachin Tendulkar played his farewell Ranji Trophy innings, against Haryana at Lahli, a young Shafali had sneaked in. Scoring a crucial 79 not out, the legendary batsman took Mumbai home; what the youngster carried back to her study table was inspiration.
Every day, she would wait outside Tendulkar’s guest house for a chance to meet him.
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Incidentally, at 15 years and 285 days, she scored her maiden T20I fifty (73 off 49 balls) against West Indies and broke Tendulkar’s record of being the youngest to register a half-century in international cricket. The former India captain had scored his maiden Test fifty at 16 years and 214 days.READ|
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The Sangli girl, who won the Sportswoman of the Year (Cricket) at the Aces Awards for two years in a row, will have Shafali as her opening partner. Jemimah Rodrigues Before cricket came calling, Jemimah was selected for the U-17 Maharashtra hockey team at the age of nine. Even though her parents run a science and maths tutorial in Bandra in Mumbai, there is no added pressure on her to stand out academically. The 19-year-old is a complete T20 cricketer. She can score 70 runs by smashing a quick 50 and saving 20 while fielding. The multi-sports discipline and training – hockey and cricket – turned her into an electric athlete. The boundary line catch against South Africa in 2019 is a validation of her supreme fitness.
Harmanpreet Kaur
Moga in Punjab is known for the wrestling and bodybuilding culture. Harmanpreet may not lift heavyweights or topple human beings on a mat but she derived her power from the surroundings. The World Cup semifinal century, 171 off 115, followed by the World T20 ton two years ago, 103 off 51 against New Zealand, stamps the class of the skipper. She had scored 183 runs in five outings in the last edition; she will be hungry for more this time around. Harmanpreet is the fulcrum and the mode of inspiration for all the youngsters in the side. The 30-year-old – around for a decade – is the most seasoned campaigner in the side. Not to forget the right-arm off-breaks which can be quite handy in the middle overs. She was the first woman from India to land a Big Bash League contract in 2016.