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From hit every ball to hit different: How watching Sachin Tendulkar's Test knocks helped Shafali Verma make India comeback
The opener was excluded from both white-ball formats following the 2024 T20 World Cup, which led her back to domestic cricket, where she accumulated numerous runs for Haryana and later for Delhi Capitals in the Women’s Premier League (WPL).
Updated : Jun 28, 2025, 04:14 PM IST
 "From hit every ball to hit different: How watching Sachin Tendulkar's Test knocks helped Shafali Verma make India comeback")
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Indian women's opening batter Shafali Verma has disclosed that watching videos of Sachin Tendulkar's Test innings significantly aided her return to the Indian cricket team after being dropped last year. In her effort to rejoin the national squad, Shafali, an ardent admirer of Tendulkar, diligently viewed his videos, which played a crucial role in her comeback.
The Indian batter mentioned that these videos inspired her and highlighted the importance of respecting quality deliveries while batting. The opener was excluded from both white-ball formats following the 2024 T20 World Cup, which led her back to domestic cricket, where she accumulated numerous runs for Haryana and later for Delhi Capitals in the Women’s Premier League (WPL).
The selectors have reinstated her for the upcoming five-match away series against England, providing her with another opportunity to showcase her skills and strengthen her case for the 2025 ODI World Cup at home. India women are set to compete in five T20Is and three ODIs starting June 28.
‘Earlier, I used to try to hit every ball for a boundary, but now I have learned to respect the good ones, Verma told BCCI in an interview. I watched Sachin sir’s Test innings. I got a lot of motivation from that, it reminded me of my childhood days when I used to not even miss a single game of his. I covered almost every match again. Watching that, I learned that the only way to build a good innings is by respecting the good deliveries,’ she added.
Shafali is expected to start the innings alongside vice-captain Smriti Mandhana. Shafali has previously mentioned her father, Sanjeev, experiencing a heart attack prior to her exclusion. In the interview, she also reflected on feeling lost during that period but managed to recover by concentrating on her fitness and batting.
“Ten days before the selection call, my father had a heart attack," Shafali said. “That was a really tough situation for me. Then, suddenly, I wasn’t selected for the team. Giving myself a boost at that time was difficult because even I didn’t even know what was happening. Then, for the next 20-25 days, I just worked on my fitness. When I picked up my bat after that, I loved it — it was a different kind of feeling.
“Time teaches you everything," Shafali added. “I just thought about doing my processes right. Then when my father recovered, he made me work quite hard before domestics. He got a lot of batting done, standing there. It has been very up-and-down for me, but I think it’s very important to face these in life to become a strong person."
