Mithali Raj turns 35 today, She is the first woman cricketer worldwide to score in excess of 6000 ODI runs; she broke the record of Charlotte Edwards of England Women during the match against Australia Women this year in ICC Women’s World Cup 2017. She played the knock 69 runs to become the highest run scorer in ODIs.
Wishing one of India's finest athletes a very happy birthday. @M_Raj03, you've already inspired millions of girls to take up sport and I'm sure will do so for many more to come. Have a great year ahead! #playitHERway pic.twitter.com/t70gDTFST0
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) December 3, 2017
Happy Birthday @M_Raj03, who inspired girls to both pick up a cricket bat and get reading at #WWC17! pic.twitter.com/N2aKfNyeQu
— ICC Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) December 3, 2017
This year Mithali’s team fell short by just 9 runs to England in the final at Lord’s. But it was an inspiring show from a side who weren’t favorites to even reach the finals. The India’s women team skipper Mithali led from the front. Even though they lost, Mithali still became the only Indian to have led the national side to the final of a cricket World Cup twice.
On June 26, 1999, She made her ODI debut at the age of 17 and was become an integral part of Women’s playing XI. At 19, she stole the headlines with a blustery 217 in a Test match in England
She said that a big change has come in Women’s Cricket because I think nobody knows that India women has played 2005 world cup final also. So this is a triumph and needs to be carried in future also
Mithali Raj Career Statistics
|
|
Mat |
Inns |
NO |
Runs |
Avg |
HS |
100 |
50 |
|
Tests |
10 |
16 |
3 |
663 |
51 |
214 |
1 |
4 |
|
ODIs |
186 |
167 |
47 |
6190 |
51.58 |
114* |
6 |
49 |
|
T20Is |
63 |
61 |
16 |
1708 |
37.95 |
73* |
0 |
10 |
Mitahli Raj ODI Centuries
| Hundreds | Runs | Opponents | Year |
| 1 | 114* | Ireland | 1999 |
| 2 | 108* | Sri Lanka | 2006 |
| 3 | 109* | West Indies | 2011 |
| 4 | 103* | Pakistan | 2013 |
| 5 | 104* | Sri Lanka | 2014 |
| 6 | 109 | New Zealand | 2017 |
Awards
| Padma Shri | 2015 |
| Arjuna Award | 2003 |
This was all not easy for her as story was all different; in an interview to NDTV at Youth Icon award she revealed the she wanted to become a Bharatanatyam dancer and for eight long years, she went for classes. Mithali said that her father wants to play cricket. Further she said that she was very lazy and her father was from air force background and he wants him to wake up early and her dad wants her to play for team India and represent the country and became world’s best cricketer.
She said there were lots of struggle in the starting and it took time to accept herself as a professional cricketer. What’s more she said that the motivation came from her parents only because being from south Indian background it was not an easy for her parents to support her to play cricket in nineties. According to her there was lot of negativity in her family for cricket and her grandparents want her to become classical dancer because they have in their mind if I play cricket than my face skin will became tan and it will be not easy to get married. Mithali said that what she is today just because of her father and all the credit goes to him.
When NDTV reporter asked her how much it was difficult to choose between cricket and bharat natiyam? She smiled and said that cricket was her hobby and it was done just like that but dance is her passion in past, present and will remain in future also. in addition Mithali Raj said that she had to do both dance and cricket side by side and it was really complicated for her dancing teachers as whenever she came with tan face for dance practice it was not easy for them to do makeup on tan skin and one day they told her to choose one from the two and She choose cricket because according to her dance can be learnt any time but not cricket.
