I will play a Tendulkar-like innings when my team is in trouble: Shafali Verma

India’s top-order batter Shafali Verma became a household name after her mind-boggling performance in the just-concluded Test match against England Women. Shafali registered scores of 96 and 63 across two innings and helped India in saving a lost match. Her coach Ashwani Kumar was involved in an interactive interaction during which he spoke at lengths regarding the youngster’s career.

Ashwani revealed how Shafali draws inspiration from some of the legends of the game including Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, and Virat Kohli. After the 17-year-old’s stunning performance in the Test match, many compared the opening batter with Sehwag. Speaking about the same, the coach reckoned that he has always told Verma that she bats like the former opener.

However, the Haryana-born idolizes former Indian skipper Tendulkar and wants to be like him. “I always told her that you bat like Sehwag. She agrees as well. But she idolises Sachin Tendulkar. She says she wants to be like Sachin Tendulkar,” Shafali’s coach Ashwani Kumar told Times of India in an interview.

“After the match, she (Shafali) called me and asked ‘coach saab, mai kaisa kheli’ (Coach, how did I play?). I told her – ‘outstanding and keep it up. I told her to keep playing match-winning knocks for the country. She had planned against every England bowler. When I told her to calm down a bit in some situations, she said – ‘I will play a Sachin Tendulkar-like innings when my team is in trouble,” the coach added.

Shafali Verma is following Virat Kohli to remain fit: Ashwani Kumar

Further in the interaction, Shafali’s coach revealed that the youngster is highly inspired by the current Indian skipper Virat Kohli. The 17-year-old follows Kohli’s fitness regime and has stopped having any kind of food that can cause harm to her physical fitness. The youngster’s fitness has also helped her in improving her game.

“Shafali is following Virat to remain fit. That’s why she can play long innings and with the same intensity. She stopped having butter, ghee, and junk food and now concentrates on her fitness. She has been inspired by Virat’s fitness and has been following her regime religiously. If you compare the Shafali of one year back to what she is now, you will see a lot of difference. Her sacrifices in giving up her favorite food and dishes have helped her take her game to the next level. The one-off Test match vs England was a major example of that,” Ashwani concluded.