NEW DELHI: A motivational and corporate speaker, an author, an actor, a reality show participant, a state-level basketball player, a commentator... and one thought it would be a cakewalk introducing someone who represented the country for almost 17 years in a sport considered as a religion in India. It isn’t. And behind all these achievements and accolades is a story of hard work, perseverance and dedication. An Arjuna awardee and the recipient of Padma Shri, Anjum Chopra can easily be called the “first star” of Indian women cricket. She has many firsts to her credit – first to represent the country in six World Cups, first Indian batswoman to score an ODI century, first player to play 100 ODIs for India, first captain to win a Test Series abroad, first captain to win a home series 5-0 whitewash against England, first player to get international appointment when she worked with Cricket South Africa women’s team as a technical consultant in 2012-13, first Indian woman cricketer to be awarded an honorary life membership of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and first female commentator and player to commentate on men’s cricket matches.
Hailing from a family of sportspersons – her father is a golfer, mother has won a car rally, brother represented Delhi in U-17 and U-19 cricket teams, maternal uncle captained Hindu College and Delhi University cricket teams and maternal grandfather had represented India as an athlete – it was natural for Chopra to enter the sports arena. “I remember giving trials for the U-15 Delhi cricket team, getting selected and then starting the training period. But, it didn’t mean goodbye to studies. At DPS, RK Puram, you had to perform academically too. Back then, there was no guarantee if you would be able to make a career in sport.
Mukherjee in 2014 at Rashtrapati Bhavan
There was limited financial backing and the system was not so well-structured as it is today. But as a kid, all I wanted to do was go on to the field and play,” she says, overlooking a batch of youngsters learning cricket at Modern School Grounds on Barakhamba Road. Ask her if ever the women’s team can be considered at par with the men’s and the former India captain says, “For that to happen, they need to win the World Cup. When you win, sponsors get attached automatically and then, it will be the same road the men’s team traversed after their 1983 World Cup win.” All praise for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), she says, “All a player needs to do is perform today. Rest all – food to grounds and umpires to scorers – is taken care of by the BCCI.”
Chopra made her One-Day International debut against New Zealand at 17 in February 1995 and Test debut against England a few months later. The former India captain says her generation, in cricketing terminology, was part of the changing phase of Indian women’s cricket. “When I started playing the game, it was evolving to the next level as India had already won the men’s World Cup and taken shape. But women’s cricket was just entering that phase.
One needed to perform for when you are in a transitional phase, you can’t rest on past laurels and wait for wonders to happen. You need to make them happen,” avers Chopra, who feels opportunities are going to only increase in future. “With the ICC planning to organise a World Cup for U-19 girls in 2022, it is time players divert their energies to the field. Distractions take you away from the game.” With the 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup taking place in Australia at present, she feels Jemimah Rodrigues is one of the players to watch out for apart from Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur. “At 19, Jemimah is extremely talented and has a balanced head on her shoulders. Other good players are Deepti Sharma and Richa Ghosh,” says Chopra, adding India needs to win the World Cup as it will usher in a generational shift for women sports as it did for men in 1983.