Shafali Verma: The Gen Z Cricketer's Game Plan Starts With Self Belief

A quick conversation with the record-breaking cricketer whose recent World Cup stint is being touted as a redemption story for the ages.

- Snigdha Ahuja

Imagine this—you are 21, at the most riveting turn yet in your career, with your idols in the stands and a packed stadium rooting for you.

You win, everyone wins. You lose, and an entire country is crestfallen. Being a sportsperson, especially in the public eye, is not an easy thing—it's a career built on skill, and sometimes the only difference between a good and a bad one lies in the complexities of your mental state when you hit the field. For Shafali Verma, the recent win for team India at ICC Women's Cricket World Cup is an exercise in exemplifying (and excelling in) all these facets of being a sportsperson. To reiterate, at the age of 21.

At Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium on Sunday, November 2, where India won the cup against South Africa, Verma laid a strong foundation for the victory alongside vice captain Smriti Mandhana, in a trailblazing 104-run partnership, while becoming the youngest player to hit half a century in an ODI World Cup final (and not just women's).