5 best female cricketers of all-time

Until recently, women's cricket was never too exciting for the viewers but the perception has totally changed in the last few years as the game has grown by leaps and bounds. The players have become stronger and can hit the ball as good as any man in the game.

The fielding standards cannot be overlooked either and their ability to score runs quickly has made the game worth watching. In the previous Women's World Cup, Harmanpreet Kaur's brutal knock of 171* in just 115 deliveries was a prime example of how women's cricket has evolved. The introduction of the Women's Big Bash League has certainly raised the competitiveness among the woman cricketers.

Here, we look at the 5 best women cricketers of all time:

#5 Stafanie Taylor

The current captain of the West Indian women's cricket team and the only player to achieve the rare feat of topping the ICC batting and bowling rankings at the same time, Stafanie Taylor has been a stalwart of West Indian cricket.

She is often lauded for her aggressive stroke play at the start of the innings and her skill in deceiving the batswoman with her smart off-break bowling. The youngest batswoman to 1000 ODI runs, Taylor's hunger to score runs and her discipline with both bat and ball has made her one of the leading all-rounders in the game.

She has a terrific bowling average of 19 in ODIs and 16 in T20I cricket and an excellent batting average of 43 in ODIs and 37 in T20Is.

Taylor has tasted success as a captain, winning the World T20 title in 2016, a tournament in which she was also adjudged the Player of the Series.

#4 Jhulan Goswami

From being inspired to take up cricket after watching Belinda Clark's lap of honour after Australia won the World Cup in 1997, to featuring in the list along with her idol, Jhulan Goswami has come a long way. The leading wicket-taker in ODI cricket, Goswami has spearheaded India's bowling attack for years.

Her bowling average of 16 in Tests and a little over 20 in the shorter formats of the game speak volumes of her talent and ability. Apart from this, Goswami is also a handy lower-middle order batswoman with the ability to strike a long ball.

#3 Belinda Clark

The highest run-scorer in Australian women's cricket, Belinda Clark, made her debut in 1991. Six years later, in 1997, she became the first ever cricketer to score a double century. Her 229 came off just 155 balls in a World Cup game against Denmark.

Clark was hailed for her aggressive stroke play and the ability to rotate strike as well. She captained Australia for eleven long years and led her team to the World Cup finals twice. After losing the World Cup finals in 2001, Clark led Australia to the World Cup trophy in 2005.

She finished her career with a spine-chilling average of 45+ in both the formats and will go down as one of the all-time greats.

#2 Mithali Raj

The stalwart and the face of women's cricket in India – Mithali Raj is one of the greatest cricketers to ever play the game. Hailing from Hyderabad in India, the aggressive batswoman shot into the limelight when she scored a staggering 214 against England in 2002.

She is often lauded for her resilience at the crease and her ability to adapt to all conditions. Mithali led her team to the World Cup final in 2005 and 2017 but ended up, unfortunately, losing to Australia and England respectively.

She is revered for her level-headedness on the field, leading India to four consecutive Asia Cup titles. She is the reason for the meteoric rise of women's cricket in India.

#1 Charlotte Edwards

When people look back at the glorious cricket played by the England Women's team a few years ago, the name that flashes across everyone's mind is the genius from Huntingdon, Charlotte Edwards.

Captaining the English side for almost a decade in her 20-year career, Edwards left no stone unturned. From winning the Ashes thrice (2008, 2013, 2014) to lifting World Cup, Edwards achieved it all.

Debuting for the side at the tender age of 16, Edwards stole the limelight as she amassed 12 centuries in the year 1997 with her consistent batting performances. A career filled with crests and troughs, this all-time great holds the record for the fastest to 2500 runs (across genders), showing her domination in the shortest format of the game. Edwards called it a day in 2015, finishing with a career average of 44 in Tests and 38 in ODIs.