Any cricketer’s century is always memorable, but it’s made even more memorable when your loved ones are there to see your moment in history.
As the Indian opener hit 110 not out in her team’s 150-run triumph over Scotland, Gongadi Trisha became the first player to reach a century at an ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup. With a 147-run opening partnership with G Kamalini, the 19-year-old was dominant at the wicket before amassing an unprecedented three figures.
To top off an incredible day, especially with her family there at the Bayeumas Oval, Trisha went on to take three wickets with the ball.
She remarked, “Having them in the crowd today was really special to me.” “My family has always supported and encouraged me, and they have been my rock.” I find it unbelievable that I could take three wickets in front of them after scoring a hundred.
I must admit that I did not anticipate this. I never thought I’d be the first player to reach 100 in the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup. I’m still experiencing the feeling.
Following Scotland’s decision to send India in bat, Trisha and Kamalini got off to a quick start, scoring 67 runs in the powerplay.
Kamalini scored a half-century of her own before taking India’s lone wicket at 51, proving to be the ideal starting point.
The two were forced to run the hard yards even though they had several restrictions, especially when Trisha approached her century and disclosed that this was the secret to scoring such a high total.
I made an effort to keep things easy for myself,” she continued. I played freely while concentrating on following my procedure. In an attempt to keep the scoreboard moving, I tried attacking the bowlers.
Additionally, having G Kamalini on the other end was really beneficial. While we were doing this, we were talking about our batting strategies.
“Like every other team member, my goal is to constantly help the team out. Although my goal was to score as many runs as possible and give the team a strong start, I believe that day was mine, and I am happy to have scored that hundred for my team.
Scotland responded well to the daunting target of 209, as Pippa Kelly hit the boundary three times in the first over. Left-arm spinners Aayushi Shukla and Vaishnavi Sharma swiftly put an end to their run chase, taking seven wickets between them to reduce Scotland to 42 for seven. Trisha then concluded the innings with three of her own wickets, including two in two balls.
During practice, she added, “I do work on my bowling, and I enjoy it.”
Being able to use the bat and ball to help the team win feels fantastic. Getting a hat-trick would have been ideal, but I’m content that I took three wickets and we won.
India’s focus now shifts to their semi-final, where Trisha hopes to make even more history on the field after her century and back-to-back tournament wins, but her squad isn’t looking too far ahead just yet.
“As a team, we are taking one game at a time and are totally focused on the semi-final right now, but it would be great to keep the title,” she stated.
“If we keep playing good together, everything else will work itself out. The support staff is ensuring that we maintain our routines and keep things straightforward as we work diligently as a team.
As a team, our goal is very clear: once we get onto the pitch, we try to give it our all.
“We have adhered to this throughout the tournament, and we will do so going forward as we aim to improve on our prior semi-final results.”