India women cricket team’s teen sensation Shafali Verma is all set to feature in the inaugural The Hundred tournament in England. Shafali is the fifth Indian women star to join the 100-overs tournament after T20I skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, vice-captain Smriti Mandhana, batter Jemimah Rodrigues and all-rounder, Deepti Sharma.
Shafali, the swashbuckling opener, will ply her trade for Birmingham Phoenix under the leadership of veteran White Ferns all-rounder Sophie Devine. While speaking to ANI, the source has confirmed that the Rohtak-born has been given a No Objection Certificate (NOC) by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
“It is a delightful news not just for Shafali but for Indian women’s cricket that there will be five Indian players in the inaugural edition of The Hundred. She will reunite with her Sydney Sixers coach Ben Sawyer, and the experience should help her grow further in what has already been a very positive road forward for the youngster,” the source said.
The men’s and women’s tournament of The Hundred will take place at the same time, beginning on July 21.
The young Indian opening batter has so far played 22 T20I matches, scoring 617 runs at a brilliant strike rate of 148.3 with three half-centuries. She has smashed 73 fours and 29 sixes in the shortest format of the game.
Not so long ago, Shafali has revealed how she trained with the Haryana men’s team to improve her game.
“The reason behind the fast foot movement is when I spent with the Haryana men’s team ahead of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. I cannot thank the Haryana Cricket Association enough for allowing me to train with the team. “
“What it did was that it helped my decision-making power at the crease as I was facing fast bowlers who were touching close to the 140kph mark. So, I had that extra second to decide if I wanted to go back or play off the front foot when I played the T20I series,” Shefali had told ANI.
