Shafali Verma: The Teen Sensation In Women’s Cricket!

Shafali Verma is an Indian international cricketer who plays for the Indian women’s national cricket team. She was the captain of the Indian team that won the 2023 ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup.

A right-handed batter and right-arm off-spin bowler, Shafali represents the state of Haryana in domestic cricket. In the Indian Premier League (IPL), the cricketer plays for the franchise Delhi Capitals.

Shafali has many records to her credit including the youngest cricketer to represent India in a Women’s Twenty20 International match, the youngest cricketer, male or female, to play for India in all three formats of international cricket, and the youngest cricket player to score 1000 runs in T20 Internationals.

Physical Stats

Shafali Verma Family

Shafali Verma Born on 28th January 2004, Shafali hails from a modest family in Rohtak. Her father Sanjeev runs a small-scale imitation jewelry business and her mother’s name is Parveen Bala. Shafali also has an elder brother Sahil who is also a cricket player and a sister Nancy.

Education

Shafali did her schooling at Mandeep Senior Secondary School, Rohtak. Later, the cricketer joined Shiv Nadar School in Noida. For her 12th board exam, Shafali scored over 80% marks and shared her mark sheet on Instagram.

Controversies

In March 2023, in an IPL match held between Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals, Shafali Verma was declared out following a controversial decision by the umpire. Issy Wong was the bowler and she bowled a full toss to batter Shafali.

Though the Haryana cricketer hit the ball high, it was caught by the fielder Amelia Kerr at the point and Shafali was declared out. However, Shafali and Meg Lanning, her opening partner were quite certain that it was a no-ball, and they went for an appeal. Unfortunately, the third umpire also later declared Shafali out.

It stirred controversy as the replay of the delivery showed that the ball went over Shafali’s waist. Subsequently, Meg Lanning, the captain of Delhi Capitals lost her cool and was seen indulging in a heated argument with the umpire. 

Shafali Verma Profession

Shafali’s father Sanjeev was an ardent cricket fan. During Shafali’s childhood days, he used to take his daughter and son Sahil to watch local cricket tournaments. In 2013, Shafali watched the cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar play his last Ranji Trophy match at the Bansi Lal Stadium in Lahli, Rohtak and thus the small girl got attracted to cricket.

Later, when Shafali was 10 years of age, her cricketer brother Sahil once fell ill while he was playing in an Under-12 all-boys local tournament held in Panipat. Thus, Shafali who had short hair at that time suggested to her dad that she would fill in for her brother under the disguise of a boy.

With a stellar performance, Shafali went on to win both “Man-of-the-Match” and “Man of the Series” awards in that tournament. Those days, it was tough to get admission for a girl in a cricket academy. However, Shafali’s father managed to get one for his daughter to practice.

From 2013 onwards, Shafali went on to play for her state Haryana in the U-16, U-19, and U-23 levels. At the 2018-19 inter-state T20 tournament, the teenager scored a quick 128 runs in 56 balls in the match against Nagaland. It paved the way for Shafali to get selected for the three-team Women’s T20 Challenge. The cricketer also played for Velocity in the Women’s T20 Challenge and scored 34 runs in 31 balls.

The turning point in Shafali’s career happened in September 2019 when she got a call to India’s Women’s Twenty20 International (WT20I) team for their series against South Africa. Subsequently, on 24 September 2019,  the youngster made her debut for the country when she was just 15 years old.

In November 2019, in the series against West Indies, Shafali bagged the record of being the youngest player to score a half-century for India in international cricket. During that time, the cricketer was also ranked as the number-one batter in women’s T20I cricket.  It was followed by Shafali being picked for the 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.

On 16 June 2021, Shafali played her debut test match for India against England and was declared player of the match. Soon, the teenager went on to play her first WODI match for India against England, on 27 June 2021.

The proudest moment for Shafali was India winning the first-ever ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup under her captaincy. In the final match held in Potchefstroom, India beat England for 7 wickets and lifted the cup.  

Shafali’s other achievements in cricket include playing for Sydney Sixers in the 2021 WBBL, getting picked for the 2022 Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand, representing the country in the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham, England, and playing for Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League.

Shafali Verma Net worth

Shafali’s main source of income is from playing for India in international matches and Delhi Capitals in the IPL. As per sources, her net worth stands at Rs.11 crores.

Lesser Known Facts About Shafali Verma

• In an interview, Shafali’s father emotionally recalled those days when Shafali and her brother Sahil used to travel along with him on a bike in the early morning every day just to find a spot to practice cricket.

• Since the time Shafali watched the Hindi movie ‘Dangal’, the climax of that film is etched in her mind. The cricketer says that though the wrestler’s dad was locked in a room at the time of the finals, she made sure that she implemented the tactics taught by him that finally helped her win the medal.   

• According to Shafali’s mother Parveen, their neighbors used to taunt her for letting her girlchild play cricket.

• Shafali’s coach Sandeep says that earlier the teenager tried to hit every ball. It was he who suggested Shafali go after bad balls.

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