Richa Ghosh: The wonder girl who can be India’s trump card
Going into the ICC Women’s World Cup, India will be bolstered by the youth and exuberance of some of the young squad members. One such player is wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh who can fit perfectly with her panache to complement the grace and discipline of some of the senior players.
The 18-year-old prodigy holds the record for the fastest half-century by an Indian batter in women’s ODIs. She is third behind Anju Jain and Karu Jain with the most ODI fifties for India women wicketkeepers. The Siliguri-born cricketer is also the only Indian player to have scored more than 200 career runs at a strike rate of 100 or more in the history of Women’s ODI cricket. All of this and more has been achieved in only 20 international appearances so far for the wicketkeeper-batter.
Ghosh had announced her arrival as a young teenager playing in the Challenger Trophy where she instantly attracted eyeballs with her exquisite shot-making ability. The records she has broken in the last two years since she first broke onto the scene as a young upcoming talent reiterates the value that she is capable of bringing to India’s World Cup campaign.
At the tender age of 16, Richa had already made her way into the Indian T20 World Cup squad in 2020. The aggressive batter, who prefers to bat up front, has been more than happy to take up a different role in the Indian batting order – a finisher. During her ODI debut against Australia back in 2021, Ghosh came into bat at No 7 and scored a quickfire 32* off just 29 balls. In her very next ODI, she struck a 50 ball 44 at No 5, thus displaying the flexibility in her game.
The right-handed batter has previously stated MS Dhoni to be her idol. If Dhoni had to see the way Ghosh smashes the cricket ball, it could well remind him of his hay days. When she hit a brilliant half-century in just 26 balls against New Zealand this month, the entire cricketing world could see the incredible potential she possesses.
The fact that the innings came in New Zealand, where the World Cup is also to be held, further strengthens the point of her being a potential X-factor for India come March. With a perfect pull shot in her armoury, Ghosh displayed brilliant back foot play on the recent tour. She has the game to be the aggressor in India’s batting lineup at the World Cup and could find the perfect foil in experience batters such as Mithali Raj and Harmanpreet Kaur.
