If there’s one country in the world where cricket is popular, it’s India. And not only does cricket rank highly in the popularity stakes, but the men’s team is one of the best on the planet. The women’s team isn’t bad either and is quickly making up ground, with some excellent female cricketers starring for India over the years.
Mithali Raj
Mithali Raj, in the eyes of many, is the greatest female batter of all time. Betting on cricket matches has never been more popular, and there has been a notable increase in interest in the women’s game, which was largely driven by Raj’s performances at the crease. Over the course of her impressive career, the former India captain hit more than 9,000 international runs, which is some going.
Anjum Chopra
Anjum Chopra started playing cricket at the age of nine, and things snowballed from there until she became an all-time great of Indian cricket. Chopra proved to be a great all-rounder, as she excelled on both sides of the wicket and was often the pick to open the innings, especially in major competitions. Chopra was integral in India winning a third straight Asia Cup and went on to win the prestigious Arjuna award in 2006.
Harmanpreet Kaur
Like Chopra, Harmanpreet Kaur is another women cricketer out of India who performed brilliantly with the bat and the ball. Many would describe Kaur as being able to do everything well, which is a feat in itself. For Kaur, achievements have been the name of the game, and she became the first Indian women’s player to score a century in a Women’s Twenty20 International game. 2019 saw her become the first Indian player to play in 100 Twenty20 matches.
Smriti Mandhana
Smriti Mandhana’s father and siblings played cricket, and they were her inspiration to start playing the game herself when she was nine. At nine, she starred for the under-15s and at eleven, the under-19s. She was always destined for the top and, like Kaur, received multiple accolades throughout her career, such as being named the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year in 2022. It will come as no surprise that in February 2023, Royal Challengers Bangalore made a record high big for her.
Shikha Pandey
We wanted to include Shikha Pandey in this list of the best women cricketers India has produced because her rise to the top has been remarkable. After playing cricket with young men in Goa, Pandey embarked on a career which saw her become an officer in the Indian Air Force. But cricket was always Pandey’s passion, and the self-confessed cricket geek represents her country at international level, while also starring for Goa Women and Delhi Capitals.
We could extend this list further because there have been and continue to be some excellent female cricketers out of India, but the five above represent the past, present and future. There have already been some superb cricketing achievements made by the above, and it will be interesting to see the greats that will establish themselves in the coming years.
