Women’s Day 2025 Special: Shafali Verma’s fearless journey to redefining Indian women’s cricket

Born in Rohtak, Haryana, Shafali Verma is a trailblazer in Indian women’s cricket, who from a young age, she exhibited an innate passion for the sport, often practising with her father and brother. However, her journey was fraught with challenges, particularly due to the lack of prominent names or facilities for women’s cricket, which would help her to look up to during her formative years.

“I fell in love with the game, so playing cricket was easy, but trying to pursue it professionaly was extremely challeneging. There were hardly any cricket academies for girls, access to the net or the ground was also difficult. I used to wait for boys to leave and then practice in the nets with my father or my brother.”

At just 21 now, Shafali’s fearless batting style, reminiscent of her idol Virender Sehwag, often drew criticism from traditional coaches who advised her to play grounded shots. However, her father’s encouragement to “be different” empowered her to embrace her natural game. She shared, “There were coaches who told me to hit grounded shots. They didn’t want me to hit in the air. But the belief came when I got out playing according to them. Then my father told me to be different. He said be different so that you bring something that no one else brings on that table,” she recalls.

Making her international debut in 2019 at just 15, Shafali quickly became a pivotal figure in the Indian women’s cricket team. Her aggressive batting approach provided the team with explosive starts, challenging traditional norms and inspiring a new generation of female cricketers. She observes, “It’s a good thing that it is getting popular. When I go back to the academy, there are so many girls who are coming to the academy. When girls come up to me and ask for help, and I know what they feel or are curious about, and I feel really blessed to be able to talk to them.”

Shafali’s advice to budding cricketers emphasizes authenticity and self-belief. She cautions against mimicking others, saying, “I tell them to focus on their game, not to change their game. If you are grounded, don’t be like Sehwag ki mujhe upar marna hai. I never tell to change that, not to follow anyone else. Sometimes when we want to be like someone, we lose our game in that process. I just tell them to focus on their game and focus on improving your own game.”

Reflecting on the evolution of women’s cricket, Shafali acknowledges the significant strides made since her debut and talks fondly about Womens Premier League and her current team Delhi Capitals. She notes, “I made my debut in 2019, and since then things have improved remarkably. I don’t want to know how things were before that, but in these 5-6 years, the amount of popularity women’s cricket has achieved is a really good thing, and I am sure it will only go up from here.”