As the sun set over the BCCI Senior Women’s Inter-Zonal T20 Trophy at Lucknow, a new dawn was rising for 20-year-old Kashvee Gautam. Following a remarkable bowling performance that saw her clinch a five-wicket haul, including a hat-trick for the North Zone against the North East Zone, this Chandigarh cricketer had yet another reason to celebrate. Upon her return to the team hotel, she was greeted with the sensational news of her selection to the India A women’s team for the upcoming three-match T20I series against England, scheduled to commence on November 29 in Mumbai.
For Gautam, this was not just any ordinary day; it was a culmination of her efforts and persistence, reminiscent of her 2020 feat where she grabbed headlines by securing all 10 wickets in an innings during the BCCI Women’s U-19 One Day Trophy. Reflecting on her stellar performance, Gautam asserted, “Whenever I bowl, my focus is to maintain my line and length, and wickets will come automatically. The same happened today and I focused on bowling according to my strengths. The hat-trick and the five-wicket haul have come at a right time for me this year and the selection for the India A is the cherry on the top of the cake. To play in India colours is always a memorable moment for any cricketer and I hope to give my best in the series against England A.”
Gautam’s journey to the apex of domestic cricket circles began in her neighborhood streets. Encouraged by her aunt, Sunita Sharma, a six-year-old Gautam took to playing gully cricket with boys in Sector 37, laying the groundwork for her ascent into junior and senior teams of Chandigarh in her teens. A watershed moment in her early career was when she made history in 2020 by taking all 10 wickets against Arunachal Pradesh in the U-19 One Day Tournament, a first for any Indian woman cricketer. Furthermore, she brought her talent to the national stage by participating in the Women’s T20 Challenge representing the Trailblazers in the same year.
The current playing season has seen Gautam in electrifying form, snaring 12 wickets and adding 112 runs to her tally for Chandigarh in the BCCI Senior Women T20 Trophy. Her prowess earned her a berth in the Indian women’s team for the ACC Emerging Women’s Asia Cup held in Bangladesh, albeit her opportunities on the ground being limited due to rain-affected matches.
“Last year, my form was not that good but this year’s performance in the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy boosted my confidence a lot. The call-up for the Indian U-23 team too gave me a lot of confidence. Even though I did not pick any wicket in Bangladesh, wearing the Indian jersey for the first time is something I will cherish the most. We are playing against England at home and I would like to give my best against a side like England,” shared an optimistic Gautam.
Under the tutelage of BCCI level-2 coach Nagesh Gupta, Gautam has fine-tuned her game. Gupta, assured in her talent, remarked, “She was a bit struggling with her swing last year but we worked on some of the basics. Doing that made her bowl according to her strength as well made her accurate and it helped her this year. The Senior T20 performance and this hat-trick today will help her be in good mental shape ahead of the England series, and I am sure she will be among the wicket-takers against a side like England.”
With her skills sharpened and confidence at its peak, Kashvee Gautam is poised to don the India A jersey and turn heads with her exceptional talent against England A. Her remarkable strides in cricket serve as inspiration and testament to the fact that dedication and hard work are indeed the keystones of success.