India, March 8 -- Born in Rohtak, Haryana, Shafali Verma is a trailblazer in Indian women's cricket, who from a young age, she exhibited an innate passion for the sport, often practising with her father and brother. However, her journey was fraught with challenges, particularly due to the lack of prominent names or facilities for women's cricket, which would help her to look up to during her formative years.

"I fell in love with the game, so playing cricket was easy, but trying to pursue it professionaly was extremely challeneging. There were hardly any cricket academies for girls, access to the net or the ground was also difficult. I used to wait for boys to leave and then practice in the nets with my father or my brother."

At just 21 ...