Madurai to Malaysia: A keeper’s dream

Not sure of the timing, relatives from Madurai, and all over Tamil Nadu had been calling since the wee hours thinking if they had missed the start of the match.
Kamalini (second from left) with her parents and brother
Kamalini (second from left) with her parents and brother
Updated on
3 min read

CHENNAI: The Gunalan-Saranya household in Chennai was buzzing with phone calls early in the morning on Sunday. It was India’s first game at the ICC Women’s Under-19 T20 World Cup and their daughter Kamalini was set to take the field against West Indies in Malaysia around noon Indian time.

Not sure of timing, relatives from Madurai, and all over Tamil Nadu had been calling since wee hours thinking if they had missed the start of the match. “Since the Asia Cup matches started early, they thought the World Cup game was also at the same time,” Saranya told CE, beaming with pride.

“Many may not necessarily know cricket that intimately but everyone is following Kamalini. We watched it at home and are very happy to see our daughter in the World Cup,” she adds.

For the record, Kamalini scored a 13-ball 16 in the low-scoring tie as India kicked off their title defence with a nine-wicket win against West Indies. It is a continuation of the incredible couple of months Kamalini and her family has had. The road to this point — where Kamalini got a WPL contract with Mumbai Indians for Rs 1.6 crore before becoming the only Tamil Nadu player in the India team at the WC — has been a rather long one.

Five years ago, it was not on anyone’s mind, not even Kamalini’s. Back then, they were in Madurai where Gunalan would have a net for his son Kishore and he would give him throwdowns during school holidays. On one such evening during the Covid lockdown, the then 12-year-old Kamalini picked up the ball and wanted to bowl.

That was the first time a spark was ignited. From thereon, it was a long, hard toil. With not many matches to play for her in Madurai, Gunalan and Kamalini would travel to Chennai to train and play matches. “In Madurai, we could do the basics but for special training, turf wickets we had to come to Chennai. We used to train what was called Drone in Thoraipakkam and then became a part of the CSK academy,” Gunalan told CE.

Barely into her teens, Kamalini instantly became a prodigy in TN Cricket. She was a part of the U15 side last year and in 2024-25, the 16-year-old was a vital part of the U19 team that won the T20 title. It was followed by a call-up to the triangular series featuring India A, B and South Africa U19 and Kamalini finished as leading run-scorer with 270 runs in four games.

Three days later, their lives were changed at the WPL auction. There was a bidding for her daughter before she was eventually signed by MI. “For all the hard work over the past five years, it was a gift from god. All her wishes and dreams came true. When I was in hospital last year, she came to visit, was in tears. Two days later, she scored a century for TN. She is a courageous girl, it makes me very emotional. I cried a lot of happy tears on the day of the auction,” said Gunalan, beaming with pride.

“It all happened together. We will never forget that day. I am not sure if we would have been this happy the day she was born,” said Saranya. “Cannot explain our feelings in words, to see our daughter play for India. Want to jump in joy and that is what I and my son did. We knew we struggled but we always believed in Kamalini. That she would do it for us. So many people had a part to play in this journey. Grateful for them. I have to thank all the coaches, and my daughter the most,” she added.

This is just the beginning of course for Kamalini and her family. The world is going to see a lot more of her in the coming days and years.

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