When Shafali Verma featured in a boys’ tournament and ended up being Player of the Series

Explosive India Women’s opener Shafali Verma is known as a maverick on the cricket field. But being unconventional is not something new to the batter. Once when Shafali’s brother Sahil fell ill during an U-12 boys’ tournament, Shafali impersonated her brother and played the match wearing his jersey. She ended up winning the Man of the Match award and was named Man of the Series too!

Interestingly, because there was no cricket academy in Rohtak for girls, the youngster’s father disguised her as a boy by cutting her hair to get her enrolled. Shafali developed a love for batting when she watched Sachin Tendulkar play his last Ranji Trophy match in Rohtak in 2013 as a nine-year-old in the crowd.

The aggressive batter, who was signed by Delhi Capitals (DC) for Rs 2 crore at the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2023 auction, played her first T20I against South Africa in September 2019, when she was only 15.

She was subsequently picked for the West Indies tour as well. In her first T20I against West Indies, she smashed six fours and four sixes to end up scoring 73 runs off just 49 balls. With this knock, she became the youngest Indian to score an international half-century, breaking Tendulkar’s 30-year-old record. It was an incredible moment for Shafali, who broke the record of the cricketer who made her fall in love with batting in 2013.

Shafali was part of the Indian team for the 2020 T20 World Cup. She finished as India’s leading run-getter in the tournament. In five matches, she scored 163 runs at a strike rate of 158.25. She was even named Player of the Match twice.

Swashbuckling Shafali’s career stats

In her overall T20I career, the 19-year-old has featured in 56 matches, scoring 1333 runs at an average of 24.23 and a strike rate of 132.11, with five half-centuries. She has also occupied the No. 1 spot in the ICC Women’s T20I ranking for batters.

The right-handed batter has an impressive record in ODIs as well. In 21 matches in the format, she has scored 531 runs at an average of 26.55, with four half-centuries. Shafali has also played two Tests for India, scoring 242 runs at an average of 60.50, with three fifties.

Recently, she led the India Women’s U-19 team to victory in the U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa.