In an exclusive interview with United Arab Emirates (UAE) cricketer Kavisha Kumari, we delve into her remarkable journey in cricket. Starting at the age of nine, Kavisha’s passion blossomed in the streets, leading to her selection for the 2014 Gulf Cup by age 11. She reflects on the sacrifices made by her family, including missed gatherings for cricket training. Balancing academics and sports was crucial, motivated by her mother’s insistence on good grades.

Kavisha shares the thrill of winning a recent tri-series against Zimbabwe, highlighting her decisive role in a thrilling match. As women’s cricket grows globally, she expresses excitement for future tournaments and her personal achievements, including breaking Sachin Tendulkar‘s international cricket record

Here are some excerpts from the interview:

Q: Would you tell us about your cricketing journey and how it all started?

I mean it all began at the age of nine. I was just, you know, playing cricket as a hobby in the gully and everything. And then one of my dad’s friends, he saw that I had the potential and he told my dad, ‘You know, just join a club and we’ll see from where it goes.’ And then I was playing at the club and I was just having my fun time, just playing with the guys over there and enjoying. And then my dad’s friend told, ‘You know, there are trials going on in [place], why don’t you just go and try?’ So I went for the camp and went for the trial games.

And then once the games were over, I got the call saying I got selected. And then at the age of 11, I was selected for the 2014 Gulf Cup to Oman. And the funny part over here is since I was selected at a young age, my passport had the baby photo because I didn’t renew it, and I still had the baby photo. And then they had to reject my visa because I couldn’t fly alone; I had to fly with my parents. So what my dad did was we, on the day of the flying, the rest of the team went by flight. I just went with my parents on a road trip to Oman, and then that’s how I started my debut tour, and I made my debut in the final of that.

Q. What sacrifices did you or your family make for your cricketing journey?

Kavisha: I mean, the sacrifices for me would be missing out on, um, you know, family gatherings or birthday parties because I was just, every weekend we would go to the club, keep working hard. Like, every day just, you know, play this many number of balls, do spot bowling, improve on my fielding. So it was like a routine for me. Come back from school, finish my school work, and then around 6:00 we would go to a nearby park or to the clubs if there were practices on the weekdays and then just keep giving my time on the nets and just keep working hard.

And yeah, the sacrifices would be a lot for my parents and me as well because we had to miss a lot of family gatherings, get-togethers with friends, and at times, after a certain period, they all stopped calling us. They’re like, ‘You guys are busy with cricket.’ So I think we did not lose friends; we just lost connection with them. But the phone is always there, so we just give them a call, and they’re like, ‘Yeah, what’s up?’ But the face-to-face meetups are something we lack. But slowly we’re getting into it because it’s time to interact with people.

Q. How do you manage your studies alongside cricket?

Kavisha: I mean, it was because of my mom. She’s like, ‘You need to get good grades, or otherwise you’re not going to play cricket.’ So she was like, you could say it was a motivation for me because I like a really good challenge. So she’s like, whenever we have exams and all, I would give my focus on that, but I will not miss my practices. So I would have this routine: as soon as I’m back from school, I would finish, um, I would have my lunch and then finish all my studies, like homework and etc., before 6:30, and then after that, it’s cricket time. And during school times, I would try and finish all my homework so I can come home and study instead of finishing all the homework, so I’m prepared for the next day as well as for the future tests. And also just, um, just studying whatever they taught us on that same day, which helped me because I wouldn’t like, you know, cram everything all at once and get struggle with my exams.

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

Kavisha: I mean, it was a really good experience. From the way we started off winning off against Namibia, then lost against Zimbabwe. So it was a tri-series, right? And then again we won against Namibia, and then the second game against Zimbabwe was a must-win for us. They scored around 146, and we had to chase it down. Me and Isa, we had a really good partnership of 100-plus runs, and then she got out in the 18th over, and we needed 13 runs.

Then it ended up in the last six balls; we needed 13 runs, so I was the said batter, and the non-strikers were like, you know, they’re the newcomers, right? So everything kind of fell on me, and I was just like focusing myself. I was like, ‘I just need to get the maximum runs from every ball.’ Like, that was my whole target: 13 balls, 13 runs—sorry, six balls, 13 runs required. So I just needed to get the maximum runs as possible. We got the first boundary in the second ball because the first ball was a wide. Then it was a boundary, and then we got a couple of wides, and then we got a single in the middle. And then we needed, I think, two more boundaries, and I did go for two more boundaries. And then the last ball, we needed two runs to win, and I was telling my non-striker, I was like, ‘Whatever happens, you’re running. Like, whatever happens, you’re going to run it out.’

And then, luckily, we didn’t have to run it out. I just hit a crispy shot towards cow corner, and we got the win. And it was a big win for us because it was our second time defeating Zimbabwe, and they’re higher ranked than us, so it’s always beneficial for our ranking as well. And then we got the tip of them, and we defeated them easily as well in our last game against them, and we won the Capricorn series easily. From the way we started to where we ended, it was really good, and it felt really good compared to our camp in the Asia Cup, and it was a really good outing so far, and yeah.

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Q. You happened to, you know, surpass Sachin Tendulkar. So how was that feeling?

Kavisha: There was a funny story for that because the moment I scored that 50 for me, it was another 50 on that day, and it was my first 50 against UAE for Malaysia on an international stage. So for me, it was a special 50, but I didn’t know that I broke the record on that day or the couple of days. I only got to know later on in the year when Shafali Verma scored her 50 against West Indies, and then a friend of mine who was in India, she saw the Times of India and she was like, you know, you are the first one to break it.

I was like, uh, what do you mean? Like, can you send me the paper clip in, like, the photo? And then she sent, and it was written that she’s the first Indian; like, she’s the youngest Indian to score a half-century. However, it is held by Kaisha Egod who holds the record at 15 years and 267 days and breaking the record which was held by Sachin. I was like, I was like, what? I really did that? Because on that given day, it was just a special 50 for me since it’s my first, but I never knew I broke the record of the god of cricket, and it meant so much 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. I was like, like, first it was my first 50, and then now it was the one which broke Sachin Tendulkar’s record. I was… it was, you can’t say any words; it just like, I could say, like, all the hard work and dedication like came into one place and just everything came up, and I’m like humbled to have that record right now. So, like, especially breaking it off of the god of cricket, so it means so much to me.

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

Kavisha: So when I back then it was more male-dominant and women’s cricket came in later on, right? Like, it’s not much you could see about female cricket on the TVs back then. It was TM Dilshan, the one who invented the Dil scoop. And then as you grow older, yeah, idols do change. And now for me currently, it’s Chamari Athapaththu and Sophie Devine. The way they play is so elegant to watch them bat every day.

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

Kavisha: Okay, that’s going to be… okay, the first two will be easy to pick. It’s going to be Australia and India in my book. And then the last, so England can make it, and it’s… so England, Australia, India, and hopefully West Indies can make it to the fourth because they got the likes of Dottin in their team as well. Yeah, so it’s a new team, and they got a senior blend of seniors and juniors. So, my main picks are India, Australia, England, and West Indies.

Q: Which teams do you support apart from the UAE?

Kavisha: My favorite teams are Australia, Sri Lanka, and England.

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

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

Watch the full interview:

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This article was first published at WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Times company.