How a 21-Year-Old Girl Batted Her Way From Dharavi Slums to WPL 2023.

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'I Knew Nothing but Cricket' - Simran Shaikh.

'I Knew Nothing but Cricket' - Simran Shaikh. Simran batted her way from the world's largest slums, Mumbai's Dharavi to Women's Premier League 2023.

Dharavi, one of the largest slums in the world has thrown up many enterprises based on human grit and willpower; and the latest one is a 21-year-old Simran Banu Shaikh who has made it to the Women's Premier League.

It's amidst these circumstances that the story of Simran Shaikh unfolds and she became an example for the youth in following her dreams.

Simran played cricket since her childhood and as the girls didn't play the sport, she played with boys in her area. When she turned 15, she found herself obsessed with cricket and yet had no idea about the growth and popularity of women's cricket.

While playing street cricket, Simran joined the Crossway-based United Club, where under the guidance of coach 'Romdeo Sir', Simran learned the nuances of the game.

Simran's father Jahid Ali said, "When my daughter was small she was interested in playing cricket. Whenever she used to play cricket on the ground a lot of people used to scold her and say a lot of things.

"But my daughter ignored all the noises. She focused on cricket and continued to move forward," added Ali.

Cricket is competitive and finding a place is tough. Ali himself revealed how he didn't believe that Simran would play at such a level.

Simran also mentions the name of Sanjay Satam in helping her. He provided her with a cricket kit and would also bring her other stuff as and when she required it.

There is a vast difference between street cricket and main cricket; the former is played with a Tennis ball and the latter with a heavy leather ball.

But to her surprise mainstream cricket seemed easier than cricket played with a tennis ball.

She said she was never interested in studies and after she failed the matriculation examination, she dropped out of school.

Simran Sheikh is a right-hand batsman and a strong leg spinner. She plays in the middle order and is known for her aggressive batting. She gained experience playing local cricket tournaments in Mumbai. She also played under-19 cricket.

Later she was selected for Mumbai's senior team. "I am a batsman. I like to bat in the middle order. But in T20 cricket, I can play at any position" said Simran.

Simran says that she got a chance to interact with Indian team women players like Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Singh, Smriti Mandhana, and Jemima Rodriguez during a tournament.

She has played together with Jemima for Mumbai and says that experience is invaluable for her.

From breaking window panes and windshields while playing, the 21-year-old went on to qualify for the playoffs of the inaugural season of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2023 — a women's franchise cricket tournament in India.

Simran has been picked by the UP Warriors for 10 lakhs in the first season of the WPL along with 16 Indian and international players.

The WPL gave Simran the exposure to play with international cricketers — including Australia's Grace Harris, England's Laurell Bell, and South Africa's Shabnim Ismail.

Simran added that the WPL also provided her with an ideal platform to showcase her skills and get an opportunity to be selected for the Indian women's cricket team.

This is just the beginning:

Simran says that gully cricket helped her learn mainstream cricket fast.

"I have played several domestic matches for the Mumbai Cricket Association team. This has benefitted me a lot. Only Humaira Kazi (from Mumbai Indians) and I were selected for WPL from our club," she adds.

In WPL, her team went on to finish third in the cricket tournament that concluded in the last week of March. They lost to Mumbai Indians by 72 runs in the eliminator round.

Simran is a right-hand batswoman, but she has been complimented for her fielding, immensely. She says, "My fielding was the best in my team. But I need to work on my batting and footwork."

Rooted in her simplicity, the cricketer still plays gully cricket with her childhood friends sometimes while she aspires of joining the Indian women's team soon.