Wicket smart: Wknd interviews psychologist-turned-cricket star Pratika Rawal

Hindustan Times

2 days ago

She is now the fastest woman in ODI history to 500 runs, toppling a record that had stood since 1997 (set by England's Charlotte Edwards). Rawal, 24, is also the second-fastest to this target across men and women, behind only South Africa's Janneman Malan.
In a sense, Rawal has always been in a hurry.
In Class 3, she asked her father, the BCCI-certified umpire Pradeep Rawal, if she too could build a life in this sport they both loved. 'As long as you enjoy it, do it,' he said.
That simple green light set her on an unusual path. Rawal didn't pursue cricket straight away. She graduated from Delhi's Jesus & Mary College in psychology, though she only practises, she says, laughing, in the nets.
That's where she hones her batting averages and her understanding of her own mind.
She genuinely loves psychology, she adds. 'I didn't take it thinking it would help my game. I took it because I was fascinated by how we process things in our minds. But it has ended up helping me immensely on the field.'
She has learnt to identify, for instance, when her mind is working against her, she says. 'When you get that self-awareness, it becomes much easier to maintain composure, on the field and in other stressful situations.'
Being able to police her mind has become her superpower, she adds. She even has a superhero pose to go with it. 'When I'm nervous, I'll stand like Superman — chin up, chest out. This is to trick my brain into feeling confident, especially when what I'm really feeling is at least a little bit nervous.'
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'I even have a superhero pose. I'll stand like Superman — chin up, chest out. This is to trick my brain into feeling confident, especially when what I'm really feeling is at least a little bit nervous,' Rawal says. (Saikat Das / Sportzpics for BCCI)
Rawal made her debut for India against West Indies in December. There was a lot of positive self-talk before that series, she says. 'Each time I bat, I tell myself: I am the best. I am a star.'
She visualises exactly what she wants each shot to look like, over and over. 'The life I'm living right now, I've visualised that too maybe a hundred, a thousand, a million times,' she says, grinning.
Her dream day was one in which she kicked things off with yoga, followed by time at the gym, and then played matches for her country and won them. It's uncanny how close to that fantasy her real life has come, and yet it hasn't all been easy innings. She was, in fact, dropped from her school's cricket team about 10 years ago.
'I was a nerd. I loved being a nerd. But focusing on academics and doing well in basketball meant I was missing out on cricket practice. So I was dropped,' she says.
That taught her early on that no one can have it all.
She set her other passions aside and began to focus all her attention on her first love: cricket. She decided she had to graduate, for her own long-term security. But alongside, she hired a trainer, a dietitian and new coaches. One of those coaches, Deepti Dhyani, has guided her ever since.
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Rawal and Tanuja Kanwar pose after a win over West Indies in Vadodara, in December. (Saikat Das / Sportzpics for BCCI)
All the support and positivity notwithstanding, the pressure on Rawal, in her first year, has been unusually high.
She made her debut 10 months before the ICC ODI Women's World Cup (due to be hosted in India and Sri Lanka from September 30). India, who are eyeing what would be their first-ever win, will have the comfort of home conditions but still a massive task at hand; so far they have only twice made it to the finals (in 2005 and 2017).
Australia and England — the latter coached by the formidable Charlotte Edwards, whose record Rawal has just broken — look set to be the biggest threats. The ongoing tour of England (June 28-July 22), in which Rawal is looking to make a mark, will help prepare her at least for the latter, she says.
It helps to be on a fantasy league of a team, she adds. She shares close friendships with players such as Tejal Hasabnis and Shweta Sehrawat, and is forging an on-field bond with seniors such as Smriti Mandhana.
'Off the field, Smriti is a lot of fun. We once talked about the Mahabharata right before going in to bat,' Rawal says.
Mithali Raj and Virat Kohli, both of whom have stepped away from the pitch, are her biggest cricketing idols. Raj's calm inspires her. She watches Kohli videos to try to 'imbibe his drive and passion'. The Australian Meg Lanning's grim determination motivates her too, she adds.
With Mandhana and giants such as Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues and Richa Ghosh playing around her, 'I sometimes feel like I'm a kid living in Disneyland'.
Ask about her own legacy, and her eyes light up. She has clearly given it some thought already. 'I want to be the person who, when it's not working, still tries one more time. One more rep. One more hour. One more chance,' Rawal says.
That persistence is what she wants young girls to see in her story, especially those torn between passion and practicality. 'Just do it. If you're enjoying it, just stay,' she says. 'Keep going. There's enough success in the world for everyone.'