India U19 Women's National Cricket Team player Vaishnavi Sharma made history on Tuesday with a stunning performance in the U19 Women’s World Cup match against Malaysia. The match took place at the Bayuemas Oval.
Sharma produced a magical spell with the ball, taking a hat-trick and becoming the first Indian player in tournament history to achieve the feat. In her debut match, Sharma dominated the Malaysian batters and helped her team bowl them out for a low total.
Sharma’s remarkable spell began with the dismissals of Nur Dania Syuhada and Nuriman Hiyadah. She continued her onslaught, removing Nur Ain Binti Roslan, Nur Isma Dania, and Siti Nazwah to claim the hat-trick. She trapped Roslan and Dania LBW before bowling out Nazwah. Sharma ended with impressive figures of 4-1-5-5 and was the standout bowler of the match.
Sharma’s hat-trick placed her alongside South Africa’s Madison Landsman, who achieved the same feat in 2023.
Alongside Sharma, Aayushi Shukla also impressed with the ball, picking up three wickets for eight runs in 3.3 overs. India bundled Malaysia out for just 31 runs in 15 overs.
Chasing the target, India made quick work of the chase. Opener Gongadi Trisha scored an unbeaten 27 off 12 balls, while G Kamalini was not out at 4. India secured the win, moving to the top of Group A with four points and a net run rate of +9.148.
Speaking after the match, Sharma expressed her excitement about her dream debut. She revealed that Radha Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja are her idols. "This was a dream debut to get a hat-trick and a five-wicket haul. My journey has had its ups and downs. I look up to Radha Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. I had visualized how to get wickets here last night," she said.
