Shafali Verma

The youngest female player to play T20I cricket for India, Shafali Verma rose to fame during the women's exhibition match which was played at the end of IPL 2019. Batting at the top order, this 15-year-old performed admirably and her confidence and clarity in shot selection impressed everyone. Shafali also shone in the women's T20 challenge which took place later in the year and as a result was selected for the national team in the home’s T20I against South Africa. Shafali's greatest strength is her fearless nature of the gameplay, and she can be the ideal successor to Smriti Mandhana. Many people do not know that Shafali had to disguise as a boy to be trained in childhood as there was no academy for girls in her native place Rohtak. Shafali’s father reluctantly agreed to the plan despite the apparent fear of being caught. Her attacking style of play as an opener is clearly a result of Virender Sehwag's legacy.

Here are some of her career achievements:-

• In September 2019, Shafali was selected in India's Women's T20 International (WT20I) squad for the series against South Africa. She made her WT20I debut for India against South Africa on 24 September 2019.
• Shafali was the youngest woman to play for India in a T20I match. She became the youngest woman in India to score a half-century in international cricket against Windies in November 2019. Against the West Indies, she scored 158 runs in five matches and was named the "Player of the Series".
• Shafali was named in India's squad for the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Australia and was awarded a central contract by the BCCI in January 2020.