How Indian cricketers are building up to the ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Radha Yadav (left) and Jemimah Rodrigues pose for Qua, the homegrown women’s apparel brand as their ambassadors
 
Eat. Sleep. Train. Repeat.

That’s the mantra for the Indian cricketers as they prepare to set off for the UAE for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.

With their first match against New Zealand scheduled on October 4, the team, which concluded its preparatory camp recently, is putting in the hard yards relentlessly while also ensuring they are not overwhelmed by the occasion.

Forbes India caught up with four players of the contingent on the sidelines of their ad shoot with Qua, the homegrown women’s apparel brand. Qua has onboarded Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Radha Yadav and emerging star Shreyanka Patil as its brand ambassadors.

Qua, which focusses on ‘power dressing’, says the campaign, celebrates the female athletes as modern-day icons, for a new collection titled ‘Modern Heroine’.

 “These cricketers represent resilience, strength and individuality, values that are central to both their athletic journeys and Qua’s fashion philosophy,” says Rupanshi Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of Qua. “As a women-led brand, we deeply understand the importance of showcasing real women. These cricketers have broken into a male-dominated space, and we’re honoured to partner with them to redefine what it means to be a ‘heroine’ in the modern world.”

The collection is set to launch ahead of the T20 World Cup, and features contemporary cuts on classic pieces—for instance, you will find cargoes made of satin, trench coats with a sculptural silhouette, faux leather skirts with angular hemlines. The colour palette is muted, in black, white, shades of grey, accented in warm, earthy tones.

The campaign showcases the cricketers in monotone outfits, with sharp cuts and structured silhouettes. “My personal style is simple and classy,” Rodrigues, the spunky top-order batter says, adding that the team’s mantra before the big tournament aligns nicely with the campaign, to keep it simple on the field.

“We know the World Cup is different when compared to any other tournament,” says Rodrigues. “But, for me, when it comes to preparations, it’s always the same: Just not thinking too much about the World Cup and just taking it as one game after the other helps you focus on the process rather than putting too much pressure on yourself.”

(clockwise from above left) Shreyanka Patil, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues and Radha Yadav in Qua's campaign that celebrates the female athletes as modern-day icons, features them in contemporary cuts on classic pieces

For Rodrigues, who is coming on the back of a successful CPL (Caribbean Premier League) campaign—a stage rehearsal for the T20 format’s biggest prize, as she puts it—purpose is the key to her preparation. “I play every net session with a specific purpose—like improving a specific shot. The more I practice, the better I master a shot,” says Rodrigues, who ended up among the top five run-scorers in the CPL.    

A year ago, Rodrigues had guided India through a tricky chase against Pakistan in the team’s opening game in the 2023 edition of the T20 World Cup, scoring a match-winning unbeaten 53 in 38 balls. She will look to channel such resilience into the tournament, where India has its task cut out right from the group stages, clubbed as it is with the likes of Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

But before Rodrigues takes guard in the middle order, India would look towards young opener Verma to get the team off to a flying start. The 20-year-old, already a veteran of 81 T20 internationals, is a powerhouse of sorts in the format, scoring 1,948 runs at a strike rate of 130.56. The Delhi girl has already led the India under-19 team to victory at the T20 World Cup in 2023, and emerged as India’s highest run-getter in the senior T20 World Cup in 2020. With such an illustrious CV in T20s, all eyes would be on Verma to give the team an explosive start. And she says she’s up for it.

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“I have built an image for myself, that I will go and hit sixes and fours. So it's no pressure for me. This is my game and my job, and I’m just enjoying myself,” she says. In June, Verma took her swashbuckling hits to Test cricket, the longest format, as well, scoring a double hundred in 194 balls—it was also the fastest double century in women’s Tests.

But five years of international cricket has also taught Verma to be prudent. “Earlier, I used to think I should hit every ball, but I adopt a cautious approach sometimes,” she says. “Now, I can also play down the order. Cricket teaches you everything.” 

Over the past two years, the youngster has had exposure to the vast reserves of experience of Meg Lanning, the seven-time World Cup winning former Australian captain and a legend of the game. Lanning has been Verma’s opening partner at Delhi Capitals at the two-season-old Women’s Premier League (WPL). “What I really like about her is that she never says anything negative, instead she always pushes me,” she says.   

(clockwise from above left) Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Radha Yadav and Shreyanka Patil in action playing for India ahead of the T20 World Cup. Image: Sameera Peiris / Getty Images; Ishara S. Kodikara/ AFP; Sameera Peiris/Getty Images; Abhishek Chinnappa/Getty Images

Rodrigues and Yadav, too, have been playing under Lanning’s leadership at the WPL, and have been learning about mental resilience from the Australian great. “One thing I would take from her is just how calm she is under pressure. It’s exceptional,” says Rodrigues. “If your captain is calm in pressure situations, you also stay calm.”

“When you play at this level,” says Yadav, a left-arm spinner and an agile fielder, “you already have the skill. What you learn from playing alongside top Australian and English cricketers at the WPL is the mindset. If you don’t have the right mindset, you won’t be able to bounce back from failures.”     
Patil, on the other hand, has been that rare bowler in the WPL, who’s managed to dismiss Lanning twice in the 2024 edition of the tournament, catching her leg before wicket on both occasions. “When I got her a second time, I was ecstatic. You don’t often get Lanning once, and I managed to dismiss her twice,” says Patil, 22, who plays for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the WPL. Off to play her first World Cup for India, the off-spinner also insists that she keeps her big-match routine simple. “I get some sleep, listen to music, and then spend a few minutes with my thoughts before heading out on the field,” she says. And it’s not going to be any different for the World Cup too.  

But keeping it simple is hardly as easy as it sounds, says Yadav. “It’s never yeh ho jayega, isko karna padega (it’s never done, you have to do it),” she says. Yadav recently became the first bowler to bowl a maiden 20th over twice in a T20 match. Her first maiden came in 2019 against West Indies, while the second came as recent as the Asia Cup semi-final in July, against Bangladesh. She also became the leading wicket-taker in the T20 series against Bangladesh in April, scalping 10 wickets in five matches. 

“To do the right things consistently, you have to sleep on time, eat good food. These sound easy, but they aren't easy at all,” she says. “My friends ask me to go hang out with them, to join them at a party, but I have to tell them no because I have a schedule and I need to follow it.”