Mithali Raj

Mithali Raj
Mithali during receiving Padma Shri Award in 2015
Personal information
Full name
Mithali Raj
Born (1982-12-03) 3 December 1982 (age 41)[1]
Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India
Height5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm leg break
RoleTop-order batter
International information
National side
Test debut (cap 56)14 January 2002 v England
Last Test30 September 2021 v Australia
ODI debut (cap 56)26 June 1999 v Ireland
Last ODI27 March 2022 v South Africa
ODI shirt no.03
T20I debut (cap 9)5 August 2006 v England
Last T20I9 March 2019 v England
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1996/97–1998/99Andhra
1999/00Air India
2000/01–2021/22Railways
2018Supernovas
2019–2022Velocity
Career statistics
Competition WTest WODI WT20I
Matches 12 232 89
Runs scored 699 7,805 2,364
Batting average 43.68 50.68 37.52
100s/50s 1/4 7/64 0/17
Top score 214 125* 97*
Balls bowled 72 171 6
Wickets 0 8 0
Bowling average – 11.37 –
5 wickets in innings – 0 –
10 wickets in match – 0 –
Best bowling – 3/4 –
Catches/stumpings 12/– 58/- 19/–
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 27 March 2022
Medal record
Representing  India
Women's cricket
ODI World Cup
Second place 2005 South Africa
Second place 2017 England and Wales
Asia Cup
First place 2005-06 Pakistan
First place 2006 India
First place 2008 Sri Lanka
First place 2012 China
First place 2016 Thailand
Second place 2018 Malaysia

Mithali Raj (born 3 December 1982) is an Indian former cricketer who captained the national team from 2004 to 2022.[2][3] She is the highest run-scorer in women's international cricket, and ESPN ranked her as one of the greatest female cricketers of all time.[4][5] Raj has received several national and international awards, including the Wisden Leading Woman Cricketer in the World in 2017, Arjuna Award in 2003, the Padma Shri in 2015, and Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2021.

Raj holds numerous records in international cricket. She is the only female cricketer to surpass 7,000 runs in Women's One Day International (WODI) matches.[6][7] She is the first player to score seven consecutive 50s in ODIs.[8] She also holds the record for most half-centuries in WODIs.[9]

In 2005, Raj became the permanent captain of India. She is the only female player to have captained India in more than one ICC ODI World Cup final, doing so in the 2005 and the 2017.[10][11]

In June 2018, during the 2018 Women's Twenty20 Asia Cup, she became the first player from India to score 2000 runs in T20Is. She also became the first female cricketer to reach 2000 WT20I runs.[12][13][14]

On 1 February 2019, during India's series against New Zealand Women, Mithali Raj became the first woman to play in 200 ODI matches.[15] In September 2019 she announced her retirement from T20Is to focus on ODI cricket.[16] In 2019, she became the first woman to complete 20 years in international cricket.[17]

In July 2021, Raj broke Charlotte Edwards's record of 10,273 runs to become the player with the most runs in women's international cricket.[18][19]

On 8 June 2022, Raj announced her retirement from all formats of international cricket.[20]

  1. ^ "Mithali Raj turns 37, Twitterati pours wishes for India's women's ODI skipper". www.timesnownews.com. 3 December 2019. Archived from the original on 7 March 2023. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  2. ^ Mithali Raj Archived 5 May 2020 at the Wayback Machine ESPNcricinfo
  3. ^ "Raj finds life lonely at the top". Archived from the original on 20 July 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
  4. ^ Ghosh, Annesha. "ESPNcricinfo". ESPN Edition US. ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
  5. ^ Mohanarangan, Vinayakk (21 May 2020). "Data check: Greatest of all time? Mithali Raj's domination of ODI cricket is unreal". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 20 September 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  6. ^ "Record-setting Raj top of the women's charts". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 13 July 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  7. ^ "Mithali Raj becomes leading run-scorer in women's ODI cricket; surpasses England's Charlotte Edwards". Indian Express. 12 July 2017. Archived from the original on 13 July 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  8. ^ "Meshram-Raj and spin quartet to the fore in emphatic India win". International Cricket Council. Archived from the original on 16 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  9. ^ "Records. Women's One-Day Internationals. Batting records. Most fifties in career". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 27 March 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  10. ^ "India's chance to spur a revolution". Archived from the original on 12 November 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
  11. ^ "Team of the ICC Women's World Cup 2017 announced". Archived from the original on 12 November 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  12. ^ "Mithali Raj edges Virat Kohli, becomes first India cricketer to score 2000 T20I runs". The Times of India. 7 June 2018. Archived from the original on 7 June 2018. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  13. ^ NDTVSports.com. "Women's Asia Cup: Mithali Raj Becomes First Woman To Reach 2000 T20I Runs – NDTV Sports". NDTVSports.com. Archived from the original on 7 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  14. ^ "'Consistent run machine': Mithali Raj becomes FIRST Indian to score 2000 runs in T20Is; fans ECSTATIC". The Indian Express. 7 June 2018. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
  15. ^ "Mithali Raj at 200: The best of a record-breaking career". International Cricket Council. Archived from the original on 1 February 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  16. ^ "Mithali Raj retires from T20I cricket". ESPNcricinfo. 3 September 2019. Archived from the original on 3 September 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  17. ^ "Mithali Raj becomes 1st woman to complete 20 years in international cricket". Hindustan Times. 9 October 2019. Archived from the original on 9 October 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  18. ^ "Record-breaking Mithali Raj becomes leading run-scorer in women's international cricket". Times of Sports. Archived from the original on 7 July 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  19. ^ "Mithali Raj: India captain becomes leading run-scorer in women's cricket". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  20. ^ "India's Mithali Raj announces retirement from international cricket". Times of Sports. 8 June 2022. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2022.