Mithali Raj, one of the greatest batters in Indian cricket history, has accomplished many notable feats throughout the course of her illustrious international career, which has lasted more than 20 years.
The only significant distinction that the current ODI captain lacks is the title of World Cup winner despite being the player with the most runs in the game and the only Indian captain, to have guided the team to two 50-over World Cup finals.
Mithali Raj, who last captained the team in the format during the 2016 T20 World Cup at home, retired from Twenty20 Internationals in September 2019 as India’s leading run-scorer. She is the only player in ODI history to score seven straight fifties. She holds the ODI record for having the most 50s.
She became the first Indian player to reach 2000 T20 runs and the first female cricketer to attain 2002 T20I runs in 2008. 2019’s series between India and New Zealand marked the first time a woman played 200 ODIs.
Mithali Raj won numerous accolades in 2017, including Wisden Leading Woman Cricketer in the World. She received the Arjuna Award in 2003. She was awarded with the prestigious Padma Shri in 2015.
She bowled right-arm leg breaks and batted in the upper middle order right-handed. As the leading run-scorer in women’s international cricket, she will go down in history as one of the best female cricketers ever. She owns a number of cricketing world records. She is the only female cricket player in Women’s ODI games to achieve 7,000 runs.
READ MORE: With Time In Hand To Decide International Future, Mithali Raj All Set To Play In Senior T20 Trophy
Moreover, Mithali Raj is a character that Taapsee Pannu has portrayed in her film, “Shabaash Mithu.” The venture was a biopic of cricketer Mithali Raj, the captain of India’s women’s team and a player with a long list of accomplishments. Srijit Mukherji is the director of the movie “Shabaash Mithu,” which is made by Viacom18 Studios with Ajit Andhare serving as the creative producer.
Mithali Raj: Birth, Early Life, Family And Education
She was born into a Tamil family on December 3, 1982, in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Her mother is named Leela Raj, and her father is Dorai Raj. Her father served in the Indian Air Force as an airman (warrant officer). She first began playing the game at the age of ten.
She enrolled at Hyderabad’s Keyes High School for Girls. She attended Secunderabad’s Kasturba Gandhi Junior College for Women for her intermediate education. She began playing cricket with her older brother while still enrolled in school. She’s not yet settled down. She twirls Bharatanatyam too, magnificently.
She has also played with prominent cricketers from Air India, including Purnima Rau, Anjum Chopra, and Anju Jain, during her play for the Railways in the domestic competition.
Cricket Career and Records
Mithali Raj made her ODI debut at the mere age of 16 and hit an undefeated 114, quickly cementing her position as India’s batting talisman. Her early talent, which grew under the guidance of her previous coach, the late Sampath Kumar, and a structured upbringing in an army household were the foundations of her copybook stroke play.
She was passionate about Bharatanatyam, and this love showed in her nimble footwork, which became as much a trademark of her batting as grace and unmatched accuracy at snatching runs in the cover region.
Two generations of Indian batters have drawn inspiration from her for her technical proficiency and capacity to lead an inning at the top of the order in all three forms. Her greatest Test score of 214, in 2002, and later an unbeaten 91 in the 2005 ODI World Cup semi-final — a knock she puts on a par with her double-century — were bolstered by both her traits.
She played against Ireland in her first One-Day International in 1999 and scored an undefeated 114 runs. She played her first Test in Lucknow in 2001–2002 against South Africa.
On August 17, 2002, on her third test, she surpassed Karen Rolton’s record for the highest individual test score in the world (209) at the age of 19. In the second and last Test at the Country Ground in Taunton, she scored 214 runs against England. By scoring 242 against the West Indies in March 2004, she surpassed Pakistan’s Kiran Baluch’s previous record.
READ MORE: Mithali Raj: Imagine the impact of India lifting the World Cup!
Mithali Raj became more resilient and tenacious after the World Cup. She served as the captain of the Indian cricket team in the 2005 World Cup Final, which was played in South Africa against Australia. The Indian side, led by her, advanced to the 2005 Women’s Cricket World Cup finals before losing to Australia.
In 2006, she guided the team to its first-ever Test and Series triumph in England, and the year was capped off with a second-straight Asia Cup title, this time without dropping a single match.
Harmanpreet Kaur eclipsed her by getting a century in the second game of the 2013 ICC Women’s World Cup against England, which was 107 runs off 190 balls.
Mithali Raj is referred to as the “Lady Tendulkar of Indian Women’s Cricket” since she presently holds the record for most runs scored by an Indian player in all competitions, including tests, ODIs, and T20s. She is the fifth and the first Indian cricketer to have more than 1,000 World Cup runs.
Raj surpassed former England captain Charlotte Edwards to become the most prolific ODI run scorer and the first female to reach 6000 runs during the 2017 ODI World Cup. Her 409 total runs in the event were second only to England’s opening batter Tammy Beaumont’s, and her three fifty-run innings and a century were crucial to India’s runners-up conclusion.
Mithali Raj got involved in a dispute during the Caribbean T20 World Cup in 2018 as a result of being left out of the semi-final. She decried T20I captain Harmanpreet Kaur’s decision to back her expulsion and accused the then-head coach Ramesh Powar of unfair and discriminatory attitude.
Mithali Raj flaunts with the bat
Mithali Raj, the right-handed batter, has established herself as one of the top batters from the nation, both in terms of technique and consistency. She undoubtedly remains India’s most reliable batter. Her poise and patience when playing at the crease are what make her so deadly. She is a dangerous batter because of her ability to score runs quickly.
Raj is also capable of forming alliances or putting up immediate runs when the team needs them. She has scored highly in both the formats, One Day and Tests, because of her consistent form. Raj can contribute several arms bowling leg-spinners in addition to her batting skills. In fact, Mithali Raj holds the distinction of leading India to the most victories in both ODI and T20I games.
Career Averages
Batting & Fielding
| FORMAT | Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | 100s | 50s | Ct | St |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEST | 12 | 19 | 3 | 699 | 214 | 43.68 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 0 |
| ODI | 232 | 211 | 57 | 7805 | 125* | 50.68 | 7 | 64 | 64 | 0 |
| T20I | 89 | 84 | 21 | 2364 | 97* | 37.52 | 0 | 17 | 19 | 0 |
Bowling
| FORMAT | Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10w |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEST | 12 | 5 | 72 | 32 | 0 | – | – | – | 2.66 | – | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ODI | 232 | 10 | 171 | 91 | 8 | 3/4 | 3/4 | 11.37 | 3.19 | 21.3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| T20I | 89 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | – | – | – | 6.00 | – | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Awards
Arjuna Award: 2003
Padma Shri: 2015
Vogue Sportsperson of the Year: 2017
(Stats taken from ESPNCricinfo)
Click Here to get the latest news related to women’s cricket. You can also check about Match predictions here. like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more updates.
