OPINION
Follow UsPooja Vastrakar is an inspired cricketer these days. She was one of the best performers in India’s previous series against Australia where she was the top wicket-taker for her side with 10 wickets from eight innings and was key in India D reaching the One Day Challenger Trophy final with an all-round show.
There is a grit about her after what had transpired just before the 2018 T20 World Cup. Vastrakar, then 19, was picked ahead of experienced Shikha Pandey for the tournament in the Caribbean. She suffered an ankle injury that ruled her out of that year’s Challenger Trophy and a bilateral series against Sri Lanka. Just when she recovered from it and was about to make her World Cup debut, Vastrakar suffered an ACL tear in a warm-up game.
To her increasing frustration, a hamstring injury happened. It took over a year of gruelling rehabilitation to get back in shape when the pandemic in 2020 brought her comeback plans to a screeching halt. Besides the home T20 series against South Africa in 2019 and an away series against West Indies, she was out of favour for the longer formats of the game. For a youngster, piling up injuries and absence of game time can be a bit too much. Vastrakar was not the one to get disheartened.
“When an injury happens during match for no fault of yours, the disappointment is common for any player. During this time, it's important for us to motivate ourselves because it's very easy to get into a shell. I had to tell myself to forget everything from the past and note down what things I need to do to avoid another injury,” she explained her mindset during the difficult period.
All the hard work paid off when she was named in the squad for the multi-format series against England. She made it to the playing XI for the one-off Test at Bristol and for someone who was playing her first-ever Test match, Vastrakar was up to the task.
On a deteriorating pitch, she provided able support for senior pacers Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey by providing the first breakthrough in the innings. Her involvement in the white-ball series was limited as she played just one ODI from the six games. Under returning head coach Ramesh Powar, India were looking to try out new options for their pace battery ahead of the World Cup in New Zealand and Vastrakar was picked following her good performances in the practice matches at the preparatory camp.
It would be a make-or-break series for the youngster and it did not begin well. In the series-opening first ODI she conceded 26 runs from two overs and didn't bowl another ball for the rest of the match. Making the most of any given opportunity was something Vastrakar was used to since childhood.
While playing gully cricket with boys in her hometown Shahdol, Vastrakar would only get an over or two with both the ball and bat when she would conjure up something special. Back then, watching Virender Sehwag’s fearless batting would fire her enthusiasm, but at the highest level there are other factors. Head coach Powar’s tips came in handy.
“My action was lacking a bit, I was getting stuck. I'm a front-arm bowler, so he told me to extend my right arm little more,” she explained later, on how the inputs helped.
Besides her bowling exploits, Vastrakar also contributed with the bat, scoring 161 runs from seven innings. Vastrakar’s good form continued in the 2021 Women’s Challenger Trophy where she finished with 161 runs from four matches, including two fifties and five wickets while leading India-D.
With her purple patch continuing in the domestic tournament, Vastrakar’s selection for the 2022 World Cup comes as a no-brainer. However, the latest ODI series against New Zealand before the showpiece tournament wasn’t exactly something she would’ve hoped for.
Though she started the tournament well with 2-16 in the lone T20I and 2-55 in the first ODI, lack of warm-up matches and conservative approach have hindered Vastrakar’s performances. She bowled just a single over in the second ODI and went wicketless in the fourth.
Despite bowling according to the set fields, New Zealand batters did not take too long in figuring out Vastrakar’s lengths which saw her concede heavily in the middle overs. She seemed to have held back on the bouncer, which she used judiciously against Australia to great effect.
Vastrakar is yet to gain the experience of affecting a match all by herself, but her ability to work in tandem with other strike bowlers makes her an exciting prospect for India. It is also a different challenge for oppositions to see out Vastrakar’s spell when she is able to dry up the runs and leave the others to do the damage.
