Radha Yadav: Daughter Of Milk Seller Making Strides In ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Radha Yadav, the first player from Gujarat’s domestic team to make a cut into Indian women’s cricket team, deceived Sri Lankan top order in the group stage match of the T20 World Cup to record her best figures in the format. Yadav, who loves to bowl in the stump-to-stump channel, enabled India maintain their winning streak in the group stage of the tournament.

Tried to keep it simple: Radha Yadav

Yadav is still a teenager but her performance on the field speaks volumes about her maturity as a cricketer. On being adjudged, the player of the match on Saturday, Yadav said, “she tried to keep it simple”.

“I was just thinking of bowling stump to stump and tried to keep it simple. We did well as a bowling unit. And we need to keep this momentum going forward. Yeah, she’s (Poonam) a legend.”

Radha Yadav struggled her way to glory 

Radha Yadav’s is no ordinary story. The crafty left-arm spinner shifted her base to Vadodara from Maharashtra in 2014-15 to play her part in the domestic tournaments. It came as a turning point in her career as she made it to the national team in a few years.

But all the success she has earned today came after a tough ask. Yadav’s family lived in a 225-square-foot house in Kandivali, Mumbai. For her father, a milk seller, it became extremely tough at a point to make ends meet. However, from two square meals her family would sometimes adjust to one, in a bid to support their daughter’s cricketing dreams.

About six-seven years ago, Yadav’s talent was recognised by Praful Naik, who spotted her playing tennis ball cricket with her society boys. It was a life changing moment for Yadav. Naik approached her parents and offered to coach their ward.

Yadav, who studied in Vidya Kunj school, from there on took giant leaps in the cricketing world. Her parents sacrifice have paid dividends and not only that she will be an inspiration for generations to come.