in an exclusive interview with United Arab Emirates (UAE) a cricketer Kavisha Kumariwe explore his remarkable journey in cricket. Starting at the age of nine, Kavisha’s passion blossomed on the streets, leading to selection for the 2014 Gulf Cup at the age of 11. He reflects on the sacrifices his family made, including missing meetings for cricket practice. Balancing academics and sports was crucial, prompted by his mother’s insistence on good grades.
Kavisha shares the thrill of winning the recent three game series Zimbabwehighlights his decisive role in the thrilling match. As women’s cricket grows globally, she expresses her excitement for future tournaments and personal achievements, including breakthroughs. Sachin Tendulkarinternational cricket record
Here are some excerpts from the interview:
Q: Tell us about your cricket journey and how it all started?
I mean, it all started when I was nine years old. I was just, you know, playing cricket as a hobby in the creek and everything. Then one of my dad’s friends saw that I had potential and said to my dad, ‘You know, just join a club and we’ll see where it goes.’ Then I was playing at the club and just hanging out, playing with the guys there and hanging out. Then my father’s friend said, ‘You know, there are trials going on there, why don’t you go and try it?’ So I went to the camp and went to trial games.
After the games, I got a call that I was selected. Then, at the age of 11, I was selected for the Gulf Cup of Oman in 2014. The funny thing is that since I was selected at a young age, I had a baby photo on my passport because I didn’t update it and I still have a baby photo. And then they had to deny my visa because I couldn’t fly alone; I had to fly with my parents. So what my dad did was we, the rest of the team went on the flight on the day of the flight. I had just gone on a trip to Oman with my parents and that’s how I started my debut tour and I made my debut in the final.
Q. What sacrifices have you or your family made for your cricket journey?
Kavisha: I mean, victims for me would miss family gatherings or birthday parties because I was just, we’d go clubbing every weekend, we’d keep working hard. Like every day just, you know, play this much ball, spot bowling, improve my field. So it was like a routine for me. Come home from school, finish my schoolwork, then around 6:00 we’d go to the nearby park or clubs if there was practice on weekdays, then just continue to spend my time on the nets and continue to work hard.
Yes, the sacrifices would be a lot for both my parents and me as we had to miss many family gatherings, meet ups with friends and sometimes they all stopped calling us after a certain period of time. They say ‘you are into cricket’. So I think we haven’t lost friends; we just lost touch with them. But the phone is always there, so we just call them and they’re like, “yeah, what’s up?” they ask. But face-to-face meetings are something that is lacking. But we’re slowly 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 thanks to my mother. “You have to get good grades or you won’t play cricket,” he thinks. So you could say it’s a motivation for me because I really love a good challenge. So when he had our exams and everything, I would focus on that, but I wouldn’t miss my practices. So I would have a routine: as soon as I got home from school, I would have my lunch, then I would finish all my studies, homework, etc. , it’s cricket time. And during school I would try to finish all my homework so that instead of finishing all my homework I could come home and study so I could prepare for the next day and future tests. And just, um, just learning everything that they taught us that day helped me because I didn’t want to cram everything in at once and 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. We started by beating Namibia, then we lost to Zimbabwe. So it was a three-part series, right? 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. Isa and I had a very good partnership of over 100 runs and he got out in the 18th over and we needed 13 runs.
Then it ended in the last six balls; We needed 13 runs, so I was the batter in question, and the non-strikers, you know, they’re the newbies, right? So everything fell on me and I was like focused. “I just have to get maximum runs from every ball,” I said. My whole target was: 13 balls, 13 runs – sorry, six balls, 13 runs required. So I need to get as much mileage as possible. We got the first boundary in the second ball as the first ball was wide. Then we got a boundary, then a couple of wides, and then a single in the middle. And then I think we needed two more boundaries and I went for two more boundaries. And then we needed two runs to win off the last ball and I was telling my non-striker, ‘Whatever, you run. Either way, you’ll be exhausted.”
And then, luckily, we didn’t have to get rid of it. I just had a crisp shot towards the cow corner and we won. It was a big win for us because it’s the second time we’ve beaten Zimbabwe and they’re ranked higher than us, so it’s always good for our ranking as well. And then we got their edge and beat them easily in our last game against them too and won the Capricorn series easily. From the way we started to where we finished it was really good and it felt really good compared to our camp in the Asian Cup and it’s been a really good trip so far and yeah.
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Q. You know Sachin Tendulkar. How did it feel?
Kavisha: There was a funny story to that because the moment I hit that 50 for me, there was another 50 that day and that was my first 50 for Malaysia against UAE in the international arena. So it was a special 50 for me, but I didn’t know that I had broken the record that day or a few days. I only found out a year later when Shafali Verman scored 50 against the West Indies and then a friend of mine in India saw the Times of India and he said, you know, you’re the first. break it.
I said what do you mean? For example, could you send me a paper clip, such as a photo? Then he sent, and it was written that he was the first Indian; he is the youngest Indian to score a half-century. However, it belongs to Kaisha Ego, who holds the record for 15 years and 267 days, breaking Sachin’s record. I was like, what was I? Did I really do it? Because it was a special 50 for me that day because it’s my first but I didn’t even know that I broke the record of the god of cricket and it meant a lot to me.
I was like, I was confused and I didn’t know; it was like all the emotions were gone. I felt like first it was my first 50 and then it was Sachin Tendulkar’s record breaker. I… it was like that, you can’t say a word; I can say that all the hard work and dedication came together and it just all came out and I’m humbled to have this record. It means a lot to me, especially as separating him from the god of cricket.
Q Who were your idols or role models growing up?
Kavisha: So I mean it was more male dominated then and women’s cricket came later, right? For example, you couldn’t see much about women’s cricket on TV back then. It was TM Dilshan who invented the tongue scoop. And then as you get older, yes, idols change. Now for me it’s Chamari Athapaththu and Sophie Devine. Their style of play is very elegant to watch them bat every day.
Q. Looking ahead, what are your predictions for the Women’s T20 World Cup?
Kavisha: Okay, so it’s going to be… okay, picking the first two is going to be easy. Australia and India would be in my book. And then the last one, England can do it and that too…England, Australia, India and hopefully West Indies can be fourth because they have teams like Dottin. Yes, it’s a new team and they’ve got a great mix of seniors and youngsters. So my top choices are India, Australia, England and West Indies.
Q: What other teams do you support besides the UAE?
Kavisha: My favorite teams AustraliaSri Lanka and England.
Q: Who are your favorite all-rounders in women’s and men’s cricket?
Kavisha: In women’s cricket I admire Chamari Athapaththu, Sophie Devine, Deandra Dottin and Hayley Matthews. Sam Curran, Glenn Maxwell and Hardik Pandya are my favorites for men’s cricket.
Watch the full interview:
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This article was originally published here WomenCricket.coma Cricket Times company.
