Exclusive: 'That was incredible', Titas Sadhu on First Sports show after India women's cricket team's gold medal win

At 19, Titas Sadhu is one of the most promising cricketers the Indian women’s cricket team has produced. The right-arm medium pacer has emerged as one of the best fast-bowling prospects in the country. Sadhu, who was part of the India women’s cricket team that won the Asian Games gold in Hangzhou recently, was impressive in each of her outings, registering figures of 1/10 and 3/6 against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka respectively. After India managed just 116/7 in 20 overs following their decision to bat first in the final against Sri Lanka, Sadhu and Rajeshwari Gayakwad (2/20) shared five wickets between them to restrict the Lankans to 97/8, thereby winning by 19 runs. According to Sadhu, the women’s team never lost hope of winning the gold medal in Hangzhou.

“The best part was that we never thought we won’t win it. That was incredible, because we get to play for the Indian cricket team, but rarely do we get a chance to represent the country as a whole. And to add to the tally of the medals is an incredible feat,” she said in the Mic Up segment of First Sports, Firstpost’s brand new sports show hosted by Rupha Ramani. Earlier this year, Sadhu was also part of the India women’s team that won the Under-19 T20 World Cup in South Africa, after they beat England in the final. Sadhu had finished the tournament with six wickets, and two of those came in the final. India had lost a Super Six match against Australia, and had no option but win against Sri Lanka to make the semi-finals. Sadhu said that the words of the team’s coach, Nooshin Al Khadeer, went a long way in helping the team beat the Lankans. “I just wanted to have fun, and I enjoyed playing. I developed that interest and the competitive spirit as I kept on playing. “In last February, during the U-19 World Cup, we had lost the match against Australia. The next match was a crucial one against Sri Lanka. When we were going into the field, Nooshin ma’am, our head coach then, had told me “Take the charge”. That’s all she had said. Coincidentally, first ball I get a wicket, and that just sort of set the tone for the whole match, and we came out with flying colours. We went onto play the semis,” she said. “I still get goosebumps when I think about that moment (winning the World Cup),” she added.