Indian opener Pratika Rawal continues to capture the attention of the cricketing world with her exceptional talent and performance and mostly recently impressed during India’s Tri-series opener against hosts Sri Lanka. The youngster, with yet another impressive innings, earned praise after putting up another Player of the Match performance.
The 24-year-old displayed a commendable knock with an unbeaten half century that helped India to clinch a 9-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in Colombo. The youngster, playing in her 7th international match, she has been underlining her growing stature in India’s top order.
Rawal has shown maturity beyond her years and has reached the brink of becoming the fastest woman to score 500 runs in an ODI career. She will surpass several renowned names to set a new benchmark, reflecting her ability to deliver to the team.
Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, heaped praise on the youngster believing the youngster has a bright future. She said, “She has been really great for us, and in the last few games she’s shown us that she’s taking that responsibility. Every match she’s playing a special knock and I’m really happy to see her best is coming for the team.”
Opener Rawal, who notched up her maiden international century against Ireland, with a statement, record 154 runs outing, is just 6 more runs away to claim the title of the fastest woman to reach 500 ODI runs. She has accomplished 444 runs in her first six innings, making a promising ODI career. While achieving this milestone, she’s also close to breaking the long-standing record of England great Charlotte Edwards who reached the feat in nine ODI matches.
“It’s years of hard work that’s coming into place now. I’m very lucky, very fortunate I got this opportunity,” she said. “I’m just trying to play on the merit of the ball; nothing more goes into my mind. I’m very lucky that I have a partner like Smriti (Mandhana), who just makes the game so easy, and I just have to play the ball according to merit. It makes my job very easy.”
Instead of focusing on potential records, Pratika is concentrating on her path to lead India towards the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup campaign on home soil. This youngster might grab the spoon to claim the batting record in the next match against South Africa on April 29. With her rise, it adds depth in the Indian batting unit as they aim to build momentum in the upcoming matches.
(Quotes sourced from ICC)
