Exclusive interview with UAE cricketer Kavisha Kumari: Predictions for Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s record and managing lessons in cricket

In a special interview no United Arab Emirates (UAE) a cricketer Kavisha Kumariwe go into his incredible cricketing journey. From the age of nine, Kavisha’s love for the streets blossomed, leading to her selection for the 2014 Gulf Cup at the age of 11. He reflects on the sacrifices his family has made, including missed cricket training sessions. Balancing academics and sports was important, encouraged by his mother’s insistence on getting good grades.

Kavisha shares the joy of winning the latest series she fought against Zimbabwehighlighting his decisive role in the thrilling drama. As women’s cricket grows globally, she expresses her admiration for future tournaments and her achievements, including stardom. Sachin TendulkarInternational cricket record

Here are some excerpts from the interview:

Q: Can you tell us about your cricket journey and how it started?

I mean it all started when I was nine years old. I was just, you know, playing cricket as a hobby in the ditch and everything. Then one of my dad’s friends, seeing that I was talented and told my dad, ‘You know, just join the club and we’ll see where it goes.’ And then I was playing in the club and I was having my fun time, just hanging out with the guys out there and having fun. And then my father’s friend said, ‘You know, there are trials going on [place]why don’t you just go and try?’ So I went to camp and went to practice games.

Then when the games were over, I got a call saying that I had been selected. Then when I was 11, I was selected for the 2014 Gulf Cup to Oman. And the funny thing here is that I was selected when I was young, my passport had a child’s photo because I didn’t renew it, and I still had a child’s photo. And then they had to refuse my visa because I couldn’t fly alone; I had to fly with my parents. So what my father did was, on the day of the flight, the whole team went by plane. I recently went on a trip with my parents to Oman, and that was my first trip, and I did the first final of that.

Q. What sacrifices have you or your family made in your cricketing journey?

Kavisha: I mean the sacrifices for me would be missing, um, you know, family gatherings or birthday parties because I was just, every weekend we’d go to the club, keep working hard. Like, just every day, you know, play this number of balls, do some spot bowling, improve my driving. So it was like a habit for me. I come back from school, finish my homework, then around 6:00 we go to the nearby park or clubs if there are practices during the days and continue to devote my time to the nets and continue to work hard.

And yes, there would be a lot of sacrifices for my parents and me too because we had to miss many family gatherings, meeting friends, and sometimes, after a certain period, they all stopped calling us. They are like, ‘You guys are busy with cricket.’ So I think we have not lost friends; we just lost contact with them. But the phone is always there, so we just call them, and they’re like, ‘Yeah, what’s up?’ But meeting face to face is something we don’t have. But we’re slowly getting into it because it’s time to connect with people.

Q. How do you manage your studies apart from cricket?

Kavisha: I mean it was because of my mother. He’s like, ‘You need to get good grades, otherwise you won’t play cricket.’ So he was like, you could say it was a reason for me because I like a great challenge. So he’s like, whenever we have exams and everything, I would focus on that, but I won’t miss my practices. So I would have this routine: as soon as I came home from school, I would finish, um, I would eat my lunch and finish all my studies, like homework and so on, before 6:30, and then after that. , it’s cricket time. And during school hours, I would try to finish all my homework so that I can go home and study instead of finishing all the homework, so I prepare for the next day and future exams. And just, um, just learning whatever they were teaching us that day, which helped me because I didn’t want to, you know, put everything together at once and find difficulties with my tests.

Q. The tri-series recently when your team beat Zimbabwe, tell us about what happened?

Kavisha: I mean, it was a really good experience. The way we started to win against Namibia, we lost again against Zimbabwe. So it was a series three, right? We won again against Namibia, and then it was the second game against Zimbabwe that we had to win. They scored almost 146, and we had to chase them. Isa and I, we had a good partnership of 100-plus runs, then he got out in the 18th over, and we needed 13 runs.

Then it’s all over the last six balls; we needed 13 runs, so I’m the batsman, and the no-batsmen were like, you know, they’re young, right? So everything fell on me, and I was just like focusing on myself. I was like, ‘I just need to get more runs from every ball.’ Like, that was my whole goal: 13 balls, 13 runs—sorry, six balls, 13 runs needed. So I just needed to get as many runs as possible. We got the first boundary in the second ball because the first ball was wide. Then it was a boundary, then we got a couple of wides, then we got one in the middle. And then we need, I think, two more borders, and I went with two more borders. And then the last ball, we needed two runs to win, and I was telling the batsman my game, I said, ‘Whatever happens, you run. Like, whatever happens, you’re going to get through it.’

And then, luckily, we didn’t have to finish it. I just hit a hot shot in the cow corner, and we got the win. And it was a big win for us because it was the second time we beat Zimbabwe, and they are ranked higher than us, so it always benefits our ranking as well. Then we got their title, and we beat them so easily in our last game against them, and we won the Capricorn series easily. From the way we started to the way we finished, it was really good, and it felt really good compared to our camp in the Asia Cup, and it’s been a really good way so far, and yes.

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Q. You did, you know, surpass Sachin Tendulkar. So what was that feeling like?

Kavisha: There was a funny story about that because when I got my 50, there was another 50 that day, and it was my first 50 against the UAE of Malaysia in the international arena. So for me, it was a special 50, but I didn’t know that I broke the record that day or in a few days. I found out later in the year when Shafali Verma hit his 50 against the West Indies, then a friend of mine who was in India, he saw the Times of India and he was like, you know, he’s the first. to break it.

I was like, uh, what do you mean? Like, can you send me a piece of paper, like a picture? Then he sent, and it was written that he was the first Indian; like, he is the youngest Indian to score in a century. However, it is held by Kaisha Egod who holds the record at 15 years and 267 days and breaks the record held by Sachin. I was like, I’m like, what? Did I really do that? Because on that given day, it was a special 50 for me as it was my first, but I didn’t know that I had broken the record of the god of cricket, and it meant a lot to me.

I was like, I was like, I was bamboozled, and I was like, I didn’t know; like, all the emotions were going away. I was like, like, first it was my first 50, and now it was the one that broke Sachin Tendulkar’s record. I was…it was, you can’t say any words; like, I can say, like, all the hard work and dedication like getting to one place and it just all paid off, and I’m humbled to have that record right now. So, like, especially to break it to the god of cricket, so it means a lot to me.

Q Who were your idols or role models when you were growing up?

Kavisha: So when I was there it was very male dominated and women’s cricket came in later, right? Like, you didn’t see much of women’s cricket on TV back then. It was TM Dilshan, who invented the Dil scoop. And then as you get older, yes, idols change. And now for me right now, Chamari Athapaththu and Sophie Devine. The way they play is great to watch them hit every day.

Q. Looking ahead, what are your predictions for the Women’s T20 World Cup?

Kavisha: Okay, that will be… okay, the first two will be easy to pick. It would be Australia and India in my book. And then lastly, so that England can make it, and… so that England, Australia, India, and hopefully the West Indies can get to the fourth place because they’ve got the likes of Dottin in their team. Yeah, so it’s a new team, and they’ve got a great mix of old and young. So, my top picks are India, Australia, England, and the West Indies.

Q: Which teams do you support outside of the UAE?

Kavisha: My favorite bands AustraliaSri Lanka, and England.

Q: Who are your favorite all-rounders in women’s and men’s cricket?

Kavisha: In women’s cricket, I admire Chamari Athapaththu, Sophie Devine, Deandra Dottin and Hayley Matthews. In men’s cricket, Sam Curran, Glenn Maxwell and Hardik Pandya are my favourites.

Watch the full interview:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHALGGgUSOY

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This article was originally published on WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Times company.