The Madhya Pradesh supply line nurturing elite women cricketers

Kranti Gaud and Vaishnavi Sharma play for India while WPL teams bought five from the state

- Samreen Razzaqui

For years, when it ‘came to women’s cricket, Madhya Pradesh existed on the fringes. But now, the state has one of the most fertile cricketing ecosystems, winning domestic titles and becoming the feeder region for the India team and Women’s Premier League (WPL).

At the 2025 WPL auction, 12 players from MP were registered and five bought. Anushka Sharma (Gujarat Giants), Kranti Gaud (UP Warrior2), Pooja Vastrakar—one of India’s top allrounders whose career has been marred by injuries~could return, if fit, with RCB. Rahila Firdous and Sanskriti Gupta were signed by MI.

In the last two years, players from MP have consistently earned India call-ups. The most recent entrant is the impressive left-arm spinner Vaishnavi Sharma, a member of the 2025 U19 World Cup-winning squad. She impressed on debut in the T20 series against Sri Lanka. Last year, Shuchi Upadhyay, also a left-arm spinner, and Gaud made their India debuts. From Chambal to Ghuwara, Bhopal to Gwalior, MP players are emerging thanks to a carefully built system.

Cultural shift