From topspin to spin, Parunika Sisodia's journey to India U19 World Cup team

Parunika Sisodia, the 19-year-old left-arm spinner who has been picked in the India team for ICC Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup that gets underway in Malaysia this month, was a tennis player who reached top 30 in all-India rankings at the under-12 level.

Cricket happened by chance.

Everyday after completing her tennis training at the Yamuna Sports Complex, she would go to her dad who coached budding cricketers at the same complex.

“I used to go to dad to do fitness after my tennis and my interest in cricket developed there. Then I slowly started playing cricket, and realised that I can make a career out of it,” says Parunika, who nowadays trains at the RP Cricket Academy in Capital’s Gargi College.

“I began my cricketing journey in 2018. The first time I appeared in trials was in 2019-2020 in the RP Academy itself. After that I was selected in under-19 from here only and began my journey as a domestic cricketer from there.”

The credit for putting her on the path to realise her dreams of becoming a cricketer lies with her father.

“She used to like and play lawn tennis. After doing the one-hour tennis class she used to come and sit with me. I told her that instead of sitting idle, you should do something in cricket. The more games you learn to play the better it is for you. She began bowling there and started developing,” says father Sudhir Sisodia, who has represented Uttar Pradesh at the under-16 and under-19 levels and also played Vizzy Trophy and was part of the Combined Universities XI team.

Parunika Sisodia                                         

Sudhir shifted to Delhi from Meerut along with his family in search of opportunities. He first dabbled with his brother’s business but being a sportsperson, his interest waned. He then got into coaching. Two of his three kids now play cricket – his son is also training to be a cricketer.

Parunika’s debut season at the under-19 level (2019-20) proved to be very fruitful. She was seventh in the list of wicket-takers across the country in the one-day tournament. Post-Covid, she progressed to Delhi seniors for whom she ended as the second highest wicket-taker in the country in the 2021-22 season in the Senior Women’s One-Day Trophy – there were four others ahead of her, tied on the number of wickets.

In the next season, in 2022-23, she emerged as the numero uno in the Senior Women’s One-Day Trophy, being the top wicket-taker across the country. She followed it up with a great performance in the inter-zonals for North Zone, where she was again the top wicket-taker. Her team won the title. 

“[Former New Zealand left-arm spinner] Daniel Vettori is my idol. [England Women’s left-arm spinner] Sophie Ecclestone and [former India Women’s captain] Mithali Raj are my favourites among women. When I first saw women’s cricket, I saw Mithali Raj as a player. I developed interest there, and realised that girls can also play cricket like boys. But I would like to give credit to my father for my cricket.”

India spinner Radha Yadav is another player she looks up to.

“Left-arm spinners like Daniel Vettori, Sophie Ecclestone and Radha Yadav – all that I have learnt from them is that they can handle pressure anywhere, and in any situation,” says Parunika. 

“They have one thing common, they never wavered from bowling at a spot. These left-arm spinners are famous for bowling at one spot regularly. My goal is to keep bowling at one spot. I have good variations and have better control than others.”

One of the earliest lessons in spin bowling came from her father.

“Dad told me that a spinner should have jigra (courage). He told me that spinners are bound to be hit but you have to keep control over your bowling.”

Sudhir took her to Surjeet Verma and Ajay Verma of RP Cricket Academy in Gargi College.

“I found good atmosphere for girls there.”

Ajay says that she is fast through the air which makes it difficult for the batters.

“When I saw her for the first time, I thought she is a wonderful talent. She had speed in the air and off the wicket, and for her age, it was good. The batsmen had little time to play her. That is why she started having success in the junior teams.”

Parunika Sisodia was the top wicket-taker in Senior Women's One-Day Trophy in 2022-23 

Parunika’s great performances for Delhi Senior Women won her a spot in the team for the Under-19 Women’s Asia Cup last month which India won.

“The Asia Cup experience was great. I wore India jersey for the first time, and was live on TV. I felt like a small kid left to play in an open space for the first time. There were chills and also a feeling of responsibility that we are wearing India’s logo, and that we have to respect it,” says Parunika, who finished the tournament with nine wickets and was the second highest wicket-taker in the tournament behind Ayushi Shukla of Madhya Pradesh who took 10.

At the moment, she is perfecting how to bowl at left-handers, a kind she will face against Sri Lanka in a group game. The Sri Lankans are supposed to have as many as seven lefties so bowling to them will be a different challenge.

The ICC Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup begins on January 18. India open their campaign on January 19 against West Indies, then face Malaysia on January 21 before winding up their group stage with a game against Sri Lanka on January 23. All their matches are in Kuala Lumpur.

Tags : Parunika Sisodia, Cricket, Women's Cricket, Sophie Ecclestone, Daniel Vettori, ICC Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup, India Women's U19 team, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia