About Saika Ishaque:
Name: Saika Ishaque
DOB: October 08, 1995
Bowling style: Right arm off break
Batting style: Left-hand bat
Place of Birth – Kolkata, India
Role: Bowler
Teams- India Green Women, India Women, Mumbai Indians Women, Trailblazers
Bio:
In the conservative and marginalized environment of Park Circus in Kolkata, especially for women, it is nothing short of remarkable that one of the neighborhood’s own, Saika Ishaque, picked up cricket at a young age. What’s more, the “ziddi” (headstrong) player from Park Circus went on to become one of Indian cricket’s breakout stars. She was the only Indian spinner to be among the top 10 wicket-takers of the league with 15 wickets in 10 matches.
Ishaque made her debut for Bengal in 2013 and has been a regular member of the team since then. The bowling all-rounder has been a part of the Indian domestic circuit. But, it was April 2022, when she gained the limelight. In the Senior Women’s T20 fixture against Punjab, the skillful spinner dismissed keeper Taniya Bhatia and the experienced Harmanpreet Kaur in successive balls. Her performance helped Bengal to win the game by 43 runs. In five games of the 2021/22 edition of the Women’s Senior One Day Trophy, Ishaque scalped six wickets in five games. Playing for India A in the Senior Women’s T20 Challenger Trophy, she bagged three wickets in two appearances in November 2022.
In the inaugural season of WPL, she was picked by the Mumbai Indians franchise who completed a title-winning campaign & made her debut for India in the same year (2023) against England. Saika’s first brush with cricket came on the streets of Park Circus. In her debut series against England, she finished with five wickets in the three-match series, three of which came in the third T20 which India won. In December 2023, Ishaque was selected for India’s ODI and T20I series against Australia. In May 2024, she was named in India’s Test squad for the series against South Africa. In the second edition of the Women’s Premier League, the left-arm spinner grabbed nine wickets for Mumbai Indians.
As Saika continues her cricketing journey, she remains a promising prospect for Indian cricket, with the potential to make a lasting impact on the sport.