NEW DELHI: When Biju George met Arundhati Reddy in Hyderabad during the 2023 Indian Premier League, the India international, a vital cog of the Delhi Capitals side that reached the 2023 Women’s Premier League final, had resigned from her Railways job to focus more on her cricket.
Having been with Railways from 2017-18 till the 2022-23 season, Reddy decided it was time to move on. In this period, she had featured in 24 List-A and 21 T20s for Railways and five T20s for Central Zone. That is when George, the former India women’s and current DC fielding coach, had a conversation with her.
It did not take long him to put her in touch with Kerala Cricket Association. Soon enough, Reddy was set to represent the state in the 2023-24 season. “Going to Kerala was a brave call,” recalls George. “She wanted to focus more on cricket and she believed that she wasn’t getting more chances as an all-rounder. In the meantime, KCA was also welcoming. Vinod S Kumar, the secretary, was very welcoming as they took her onboard,” he adds.
At that point, Reddy’s aim was to make her mark in the domestic circuit as an all-rounder, plotting her comeback to the national team. In the past couple of years, she had taken to spirituality, become a lot more calmer in approaching life and cricket. Now, her focus was on upskilling and showcase what she was capable of. Although she did not get to bowl regularly in the senior T20s, Kerala reached the semifinals. As a senior member, Reddy had a big part in it.
By the time the one-dayers came along, Reddy had settled in. In five innings, she scored 252 runs at an average of 126 apart from four wickets. Although Kerala missed out on knockouts berth, Reddy kept pushing herself and team. “She performed well and lifted the performance of the team as well. The benefit with her is that she shared her experience with me and the players and it gave them a lot of confidence. That made a difference to the players as well,” says Kerala coach Suman Sharma.
Going into the 2024 WPL with this momentum and confidence, Reddy became the go-to first change pacer for DC captain Meg Lanning. Unlike the last season, where she did not play all games, Reddy has been a regular for DC. She has taken eight wickets — most by an Indian pacer so far — in seven matches, and has effected two runouts and been a gun on the outfield. The next Indian pacer on the wicket-takers list is Shikha Pandey with six scalps and Mumbai India’s Pooja Vastrakar (5).
One of the key factors behind Reddy’s performance and confidence is the work she had put in during the season. Reddy worked on her release positions, especially with the new ball, with George during the DC camps. “She really pushed herself, worked on specific things she wanted to do. Even though she is not bowling with the new ball in WPL, down the line, when she plays for India and bowls with the new ball, it will be very effective. She has put on another yard of pace too. She has become stronger and very quick in covering the ground,” says George.
Reddy also trained with Arjun Dev at the NICE Academy in Bengaluru. There, she worked on being brave as a pacer and trying different things like coming around the wicket to a left-hander, field setups and so on. The result is there for everyone to see. From bowling only nine overs in the 2023 WPL, she has sent down 23 overs so far this season.
And it happened because she was brave enough to let go off the security she had to pursue her dream, and the joy she found in playing the sport. “Railways might have offered her job security but probably her cricket would have stagnated. She took the braver option… the way she sits down and thinks about her game, pre and post match. she knows what has to be done in a training session, knows her body well to understand what has to be done to get to the next level," says Geoge. “I still believe she is the one all-rounder that India is lacking, if she and Pooja play together for India, and both of them bowl, she can grow up to be what Perry is doing for Australia.”
Suman, too, is pleased with the way Reddy has expressed herself in the WPL. “The one thing I like about her is her attitude. She is confident, bowling good lines and lengths and also has been superb on the field. Very proud of her,” says Suman.
Reddy, who last wore India blue in 2021, has always spoken about her comeback dreams. But she knows it is a long road. At the moment, the first thing on her mind would be going all the way with DC capitals and get her hands on the WPL trophy.
