NIRAJ PRABHU
PANAJI
Goan all-rounder Shikha Pandey was part of the Smriti Mandhana-led Trailblazers during the very first one-off Women’s IPL T20 challenge. Shikha’s team went down fighting to Harmanpreet Kaur-led Supernovas with the India cricketer scoring an unbeaten 14 runs while going wicketless in the only over she bowled. Shikha highlighted the event as ‘very exciting.’ Here are the excerpts from the interview.
Q: How does it feel to be involved in the IPL experiment for women?
SHIKHA PANDEY: It was a wonderful experience and will certainly be one of the most memorable days of my career. Getting to play and train alongside some of the best players in the world was absolutely brilliant. There was a real buzz around the game well before it even happened. It was very exciting.
Q: What is it like to share the dressing room with top cricketers from other countries?
SP: Getting to watch how some of the best players in the world go about their business was a great learning experience. They were happy to talk, share ideas and it was lots of fun. Suzie Bates was a real treat- such a humble person, happy to share her experiences and have a bit of fun with the girls.
Q: How big a challenge is it to gell quickly with batting partner and new-ball bowlers as well?
SP:It is not any different from playing alongside your state team-mates or India team-mates. Probably just the language we use to communicate is different. But understanding your role is the key, whilst batting and bowling.
Q: How does an experiment of Goan women’s T20 tourney including some top outstation icon players, sound to you?
SP:That would certainly be a very exciting opportunity for women’s cricket in Goa. There is a lot of exciting talent in the state, and we have been doing well as a team over the last few years. It would be nice for the youngsters to get a chance to play alongside some experienced players, share ideas, experiences and learn from each other.
