ICC Women’s T20 World Cup: Fans celebrates the rise of 16-year old Shafali Verma

XtraTime Web Desk: The Indian women’s cricket team has made a great start in the Women’s T20 World Cup with two back to back victories. The Indian bowlers bowled brilliantly against Australia in the first match and last night they were again brilliant against Bangladesh where the Women in Blue won the game by 18 runs. But the cricketer who is generating the most amount of interest among fans is 16-year old prodigy Shafali Verma. The teenager has captured the imagination of fans and former cricketers with her power hitting display at the top of the order and social media is buzzing with discussions around her.

Verma, who opens the innings for India, was adjudged player of the match against Bangladesh after a whirlwind innings of 39 runs in just 17 balls. He ability to clear the boundary has excited cricket pundits as she took a toll on the Bangladeshi bowlers in the powerplay, hitting 4 maximums and two boundaries.

“39 runs 17 balls 4 sixes 2 fours Shafali Verma, superstar…” tweeted ICC as it shared a video of Shafali.

Former England captain Nasser Hussain and Australian women’s cricketer Lisa Sthalekar were also excited on seeing Shafali’s power hitting and took to twitter to share their appreciation.

Shafali will be a key figure in India’s campaign in this tournament and looks good to be an important part of this team for several years to come. Her ability to hit the big shots will hold her in stead in women’s cricket where power hitters have so far been a rarity.