Armeet, Mahi, Nishika: Trio driving Delhi U19 women to quarters

Matching their Under-23 women seniors, who have qualified for the knockout stage of the BCCI T20 tournament with a clean slate, the Delhi under-19 girls have also ended the group stage of the Women’s Under 19 One Day Trophy with a perfect record.

They have topped Group D, and in fact ended as the best team across groups thanks to their superior run rate of 2.817.

Leading the run charts is Armeet Kaur, who has logged 359 runs in five matches at an average of 89.75 with two centuries.

The right-handed opener could have been No. 1 across India but for the triple century (346 not out) by Ira Jadhav of Maharashtra Cricket Association. Ira’s aggregate got bloated to 434 thanks to that triple ton.

Armeet Kaur has amassed 359 runs in five matches

Armeet is currently No. 2 in the list of run-getters across the country.

“I got to open this season, so I feel great. This was a great opportunity and I grabbed it,” said Armeet ahead of departure to Puducherry for the quarterfinal.

Armeet picked cricket after watching her father, who used to play corporate cricket. Her father Amritpal helped her take up the game. She began playing at her school, Guru Nanak Public School, before registering in an academy.

Virat Kohli was also an influence. 

“I saw Virat Kohli bat, and was inspired to take it up,” adds Armeet whose favourite shot is the cover drive.

This is 18-year-old Armeet’s second season. She didn’t get much opportunity to play last season.

Nishika Singh, who played a stellar role in Delhi under-15 girls’ team’s run to the final last year returning as the all-India top-scorer with 595 runs and three centuries, is the fifth highest run-getter in the under-19s this year.

Nishika Singh is fifth in the run-getters' list

She has amassed 301 runs in five matches at 100.33.

Nishika, who is still 15, also attributes her interest in cricket to her father Khajan Singh, who earlier used to play for Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) team in DDCA League. Khajan, who gave up cricket after her daughter’s birth in 2009, has rented a ground for his daughter to train.

“The season has been good for me and my team. My own performance has been good, the team is also doing well. The last match that we played against Puducherry [where I scored a century] is my best performance,” says Nishika who is studying at Vidya Jain Convent School in Kanjhawala but mostly devotes her time training to become a cricketer.

“Earlier, I used to bat. I started liking wicketkeeping and developed interest in it. My favourite cricketer is Virat Kohli. I like his attitude and batting,” adds Nishika. 

Off-spinner Mahi Chauhan is Delhi’s top wickettaker with 11 wickets in five matches at an average of 9.81. She ranks 12th across the country.

Mahi Chauhan has picked 11 wickets. She bowled the Super Over

The 18-year-old’s interest in cricket developed by watching India cricketer Priya Mishra in Salwan Girls School. 

“She (Priya) was doing fitness session, and I saw the colourful cones and got attracted to them. Told my friend that we will play that game,” says Mahi.

“This season was a great season. I debuted last year in DDCA. This year I had confidence, took wickets in trial games. Got support from coaches. They supported me a lot in the matches.”

She had three wickets in first match, then three wickets again against Manipur. The match against Jharkhand was her best where she bowled the Super Over.

“I was a fast bowler initially. But I faced a problem. For one month, my arm would come straight and then it would come as batta (with a kink). My friends suggested that I should bowl off-spin. The ball was also turning, so I decided to bowl off-spin.”

Delhi, under Head Coach Swapandeep Singh, had it easy through the league phase with only one match, against Jharkhand, going to the Super Over and testing their nerve. Nidhi Mahto came good in that match, scoring 61 off 49 balls.

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