All the award-winning women cricketers in India

Whether one follows cricket or not, all of us know the names of all the prominent male cricketers in the country. The female sport-persons in the country, however, even those who play cricket, do not receive the same level of fame and fortune.

Wisden India lists all the award-winning women cricketers of India.

Diana Edulji

A left-arm spinner, Edulji was also a member of the pioneering women’s Test team and the first woman cricketer to receive a Padma Shree. She is India’s highest wicket-taker in Tests and is third on the all-time list, having taken 63 wickets in 20 matches. She is originally from Mumbai and as Western Railway’s senior sports officer has helped increase the employment opportunities for women cricketers in the country.

Shanta Rangaswamy

One of the pioneering women cricketers in the country, Rangaswamy hails from Bangalore and was considered an all-rounder. She captained the country in 12 of the 16 Tests she played, and 16 of the 19 One-Day Internationals. According to report by Wisden India in a playing career that spanned 14 years, she took 750 runs and 21 wickets in 16 matches.

Sandhya Agarwal

Hailing from Indore, Sandhya has the second most number of centuries in women’s Tests after England’s Janette Brittin.  Playing for the Indian Railways team for most of her career, she now works with the women’s wing of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association.

Jhulan Goswami

Jhulan Goswami has taken 167 wickets and is second on the all-time ODI wicket-takers list. Along with the Arjuna Award and the Padma Shree, she also became the only woman recipient of the ICC Cricketer of the Year award in 2007. She led the country in 42 internationals and gave India a third-place finish in the 2009 Women’s World Cup.

Shubhangi Kulkarni

After Diana Edulji, Kulkarni is India’s second-highest wicket-taker, with 60 wickets in 19 Tests. She was secretary of the Women’s Cricket Association of India in 2005, when India registered their best-ever performance in a World Cup, finishing runners up in South Africa, according to the report by Wisden India. She was a strong administrator and helped the women’s team to get sponsorships from the best.

Anju Jain

Anju Jain, who originally belongs from Delhi, took India to the finals of the 2005 World Cup in South Africa. She was also an important part of the successful Air India team on the domestic circuit. Today she is the coach of the Assam Cricket Association women’s team.

Mithali Raj

She is probably the most popular woman in this list. She was the first woman in 16 years to win the Arjuna award in 2003. She was also in the news recently when she was chosen over Virat Kohli tobe given the prestigious Padma Shree award. Having played 1267 runs in 47 matches, she is India’s highest T20 run-scorer- ahead of all male cricketers.

Anjum Chopra

Hailing from Delhi, Anjum Chopra is India’s second-highest run-getter with 2856 ODI runs. She is also a television commentator for both women’s and men’s international games. According to the report, she is “Another Air India stalwart, her fluent batting style and safe hands in the slips were prominent features of her career.”

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Wisden India

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