Mithali Raj featured in 89 T20Is for India and accumulated 2,364 runs at a healthy average of 37.52
Former India captain Mithali Raj is all set to come out of retirement for the upcoming Women’s IPL, likely to be played from first week of March. Plenty of activities are happening ahead of the inaugural Women’s IPL and the names of the five participating teams are likely to be released in the last week of January.
News of Mithali’s participation will certainly give the tournament a boost as the veteran has been the face of women’s cricket in India for years now. The classy right-hander called it a day in June last year but kept the Women’s IPL option open even then.
In a July 2022 chat with former England player Isha Guha and ex-New Zealand off spinner Frankie Mackay on ICC’s 100% Cricket podcast, Mithali dropped the first hint of coming out of retirement for the WIPL.
“I’m keeping that option open. I’ve not yet decided. There are a few more months to go before the women’s IPL happens. It would be lovely to be part of the first edition of the women’s IPL,” Mithali had said.
The 40-year-old has featured in 89 T20Is for the country and accumulated 2,364 runs at a healthy average of 37.52. She last played a T20I game for India back in 2019 against England at home. Mithali continued to play ODI and Tests before hanging her boots in June 2022.
Will Jhulan come out of retirement too?
Mithali’s presence will sure be a good advertisement for the league and it could well be a double delight should former India seamer Jhulan Goswami decide to follow suit. The spearhead of India’s bowling for two decades, Jhulan’s last appearance for the country came in the away series against England in 2022.
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Responding to a query then, Jhulan didn’t say much on participation in the WIPL and kept the focus on her journey with the Indian cricket team.
“As of now, I haven’t decided because so far, the Women’s IPL has not been officially announced. We are hopeful that it might come in the coming season. Let’s wait for the official announcement and then I will decide. At this moment, I am ending my career in international cricket. I have enjoyed every time,” Jhulan had said.
Both Mithali and Jhulan have served Indian cricket for two decades and have established a strong connect with fans not only in India but across the world. As per latest reports, as many as eight IPL teams have shown interest in buying teams for the WIPL and next few weeks are going to be very interesting.
