Indian sensation Shafali Verma has been handed a No Objection Certificate by the BCCI as she becomes the fifth Indian player to be a part of The Hundred. She’ll now be joining Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Deepti Sharma at the inaugural season of The Hundred.
There was news of the 17-year-old star being on the radar as a potential player to play at The Hundred, last week. By playing just 22 international matches, she has gained international recognition with her performance, especially after the 2020 World Cup and this will be her first-ever overseas T20I competition.
“It is 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. The experience should help her grow further in what has already been a very positive road forward for the youngster,” a source in the know of the details was quoted as per ANI.
Verma’s performance in the recently concluded South Africa series was terrific as she played an international T20 game first time after the World Cup 2020 finals. She had also revealed in one of her interviews that how she trained with the Haryana men’s team during the pandemic and faced male bowlers who bowled over the speed of 140kph, which thereby helped her improve her game. Her training paid off when she hit South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail, one of the fastest women bowlers, for back-to-back boundaries.
All the five players of the Indian contingent will be playing for five different teams. Verma will be a part of the Birmingham Phoenix, Kaur will be representing the Manchester Originals, and Mandhana will be representing the Southern Brave while Sharma and Rodrigues will be seen playing for London Spirit and Northern Superchargers respectively.
All five players of the Indian contingent will continue to stay in the UK after the completion of the one-off Test, T20I, and ODI series against England, ending July 15th. As for the England tour, the Indian squad hasn’t been announced yet, and the head coach will also be appointed soon. Details about the team traveling to England are to be worked out as the hosts have suspended all flights from India due to the surge of Covid-19 cases in the country. But as per reports, the team will have to report on 27th May.
The Hundred will kick start with a women’s tournament this year, after being canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first match will be played between Manchester Originals and Oval Invincibles in London on July 21, followed by the Birmingham Phoenix locking horns with London Spirit at Edgbaston on July 23.
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