Mithali Raj becomes the first woman cricketer to play ODI cricket for 22 years & we’re proud!
Indian captain Mithali Raj became the first woman cricketer to complete 22 years in the sport. Here’s all we need to know about her journey.
When Mithali Raj took the field on Sunday, June 27, against England, she wasn’t only representing her country but also setting a record as she became the first woman cricketer with a career spanning 22 years. She is the only cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar across men’s and women’s cricket. Tendulkar played for a total of 22 years and 91 days.
In her glorious career, Mithali Dorai Raj has played 241 ODIs, where she scored 7,098 runs with seven centuries and 55 half-centuries. Raj began playing cricket in school along with her elder brother. She started her domestic career with the Railways women’s cricket team and then with Air India. She was one among the probables for the 1997 women’s world cup when she was 14, but she didn’t make the final squad. The 38-year-old, who hails from Jodhpur made her debut on June 26, 1999, at Milton Keynes against Ireland. She was only 16 back then and led India to win by 10 wickets, with 114 runs and 258-run first-wicket partnership with fellow opener Reshma Gandhi. India got a star that day that is shining to date, and we’re hoping will continue to do so for many years to come.
On the eve of the ODI against England, she said, “Feels nice to get up to messages congratulating me on my career….If I have to give a message to a 16-year-old, I would say enjoy getting on to the ground, first time representing your country, which clearly at that time… the expectation was so heavy on my shoulders that I didn’t get the opportunity to understand the importance of wearing the blue jersey and playing for the country, that is something I would say to the 16-year-old Mithali,” she added, as quoted by the India TV News.
She is the 1st Indian and 5th woman cricketer overall to score over 1,000 World Cup runs. At 19, she was the youngest to score a double century in a test. The legendary cricketer has several accolades to her name in the past years, including Padma Shri and Arjuna Award for Cricket, and she has no plans of hanging the blue jersey anytime soon. She is going to set a new record as she breaks Tendulkar’s.
The excitement the world shows for women’s cricket is not even half that of men’s cricket. We barely know the names of our own female cricket players, let alone those of other countries. But when cricketers like Mithali Raj achieve new heights, we are filled with pride. This makes us ponder on the fact that why don’t we give equal importance to women’s cricket. But we guess that’s a discussion for another day.
Raj is called the “Lady Tendulkar of Indian Women’s cricket,” for being the all-time leading run-scorer for India in all formats, including Tests, ODIs, and T20Is, a name we think is not right as it downplays her own achievements. For us, she is the “Mithali Raj of Indian Cricket.” She is an inspiration to thousands of girls who wish to make a career in the sport. Her journey has been nothing but incredible. We, at Fuzia, congratulate her for her extraordinary career and wish her luck for the future.
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