Cricket
Smriti Mandhana to Meg Lanning: The Best Women’s Cricket Player
Over the years, numerous women cricketers have graced the field with unparalleled specialities that have propelled the sport to newer heights in the last decade. However, none of them has achieved as much as Meg Lanning, Australia’s former captain.
Like in men’s cricket where the likes of Sir Don Bradman, Sir Viv Richards, Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli have ruled the age-old debate of being the best cricket player ever, concluding the best women’s cricket player ever is equally difficult.
Over the years, numerous women cricketers have graced the field with unparalleled specialities that have propelled the sport to newer heights in the last decade. However, none of them has achieved as much as Meg Lanning, Australia’s best women’s cricket player.
Best Women's Cricket Player
Meg Lanning
Carrying on Australia men’s cricket-winning legacy and mentality, Meg Lanning is inarguably one of the best women cricketers ever to play the game. The Aussie skipper, who has won ICC trophies for fun at one point, debuted in 2011 and made her maiden century in her second match as an 18-year-old. No other Australian, male or female, had a century as young as Lanning with the second youngest being Ricky Ponting at 21 years and 21 days.
She started making a habit of breaking records thereafter and became the fastest centurion from Australia the very next year against the New Zealand White Ferns when she brought up her 100 in just 45 balls.
It was followed by a successful campaign at the 2012 ICC Women's World Twenty20, where Lanning ended as the third-highest run-scorer including a pivotal 25-run innings against England in the final as Australia lifted the trophy.
Lanning was achieving major milestones very early in her life but she was just getting started. She followed her World T20 triumph with yet another ecstatic display at the 2013 Women's Cricket World Cup, where Lanning's 112-run knock against New Zealand and a handy 31 against West Indies in the final helped Australia win the title.
Image for Meg Lanning
Lanning’s performances made it impossible for the board to overlook her for a leadership role and at the age of 21, the Singapore-born became the youngest woman cricketer to captain the Australian cricket team.
Despite her inexperience in leading roles, Lanning took on the challenge head-on and exhibited an air of calmness in pressure situations. Her first challenge was the 2014 World Twenty20 and she ended up as the tournament’s top run-scorer summing 257 runs in six innings. Her 126-run knock against Ireland was the highest individual score in women’s T20Is, which was followed by yet another crucial knock in the finale where Australia chased down 106 runs against England to win the title.
Lanning entered the 2017 Women's ODI Cricket World Cup as the highest centurion (10) in ODIs but shoulder injury issues kept her away from her best as Australia exited the tournament as semi-finalists. This was pretty much a rare setback in her career as Lanning underwent surgery soon and won the T20 World Cup titles in 2018, 2020 and 2023, apart from lifting the ODI World Cup in 2022 and winning the Commonwealth Games the same year.
Lanning retired in 2023 with 15 ODI centuries and two T20I centuries, having played 235 games in white ball cricket. Alyssa Healy is the current Australian Women’s cricket captain and also ranks among Australia’s best women’s cricket players today.
Alyssa Healy
Taking over the captaincy reins from the able hands of Meg Lanning was no easy task but the Australian management had full faith in Alyssa Healy, who had reinvented herself into one of the most destructive batters in women’s cricket. Possessing the finest lofted on-drive in the game, Healy is known to disseminate bowling attacks with relative ease.
Image for Alyssa Healy
Healy holds the record for scoring the highest T20I innings score of 148 against Sri Lanka apart from the memorable final-defining innings of the 2020 T20 World Cup. Since promoting herself to the opener’s position, Healy has been nothing short of phenomenal, tallying five ODI tons and one T20I century. Her glovework is perhaps the best in women’s cricket at the moment, an opinion that became a fact since her popular dismissal of Shafal Verma in the 2020 World Cup final.
Other names that come into discussions among Australia’s great women cricketers are bowling all-rounder Ellyse Perry, Tahil McGrath and more.
India Women's Cricket Team Best Players
Mithali Raj
Also called “Captain Cool” after MS Dhoni, former India women’s cricket team captain Mithali Raj debuted for India at the age of 16 and wasted no time earning a name for herself India’s most reliable batter. By the time she retired, she was the highest run-scorer in women's ODIs having tallied over 6,000 runs.
Image for Mithali Raj
Raj’s specialty lies in her impeccable batting technique and playing the anchor role impeccably on multiple occasions for team India with a calm temperament under extreme pressure. She led the team to the final of the 2005 World Cup as well as the semifinals in the 2017 World Cup.
Anjum Chopra
Anjum Chopra could be labeled as the player who inspired a generation of cricketers to take up the sport, even Mithali Raj. A classy left-handed batsman with elegant stroke play in her arsenal, Chopra was one of India’s most consistent performers in the early part of 2000s.
Image for Anjum Chopra
Anjum Chopra was the first woman cricketer from India to score a Test century and played a crucial role in India’s road to the 2005 Women's World Cup final. Apart from being a cricketer, Anjum Chopra has also been a celebrated commentator and analyst, who is contributing to the steady rise of women's cricket in India.
Jhulan Goswami
Jhulan Goswami has been to India women’s cricket team what Javagal Srinath was to the Indian team in the 90s. Possessing a towering height and unparalleled athleticism Goswami was a mainstay for the Indian women’s team for almost two decades.
Image for Jhulan Goswami
The West Bengal bowler debuted in 2002 and remained India's pace spearhead until a few years back. Goswami could produce pace and bounce like no Indian bowler and remained a nightmare for opposition batters. She is still the highest wicket-taker for India in both ODIs and T20Is. The Padma Shri awardee was India’s main player during the 2007 World Cup as the side reached the final and missed the title by the skin of their teeth.
Smriti Mandhana
Fondly called the "Princess of Indian Cricket", Smriti Mandhana is the current superstar of the Indian women’s cricket team. One of the most established batters in the world today, the Mumbai player debuted in 2013 and cemented her place as an opener since.
Image for Smriti Mandhana
The southpaw personifies elegance and brute strength, making her one of the most dangerous batters in both ODIs and T20Is. The 2018 saw Mandhana became the first Indian woman to hit a T20I century, which she achieved against England. She is also a popular name in the domestic leagues like the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) and the Women’s Premier League.
Harmanpreet Kaur
India women’s cricket team captain Harmanprett Kaur has made a name for herself as a hard-hitting all-rounder, who burst onto the scene with an unbeaten 171 against Australia in the 2017 Women's World Cup. Kaur also comes in handy with her off-spin bowling from time to time. Making her debut in 2009, Kaur is currently one of India’s most impactful players owing to her fearless batting and ability to score runs quickly.
Image for Harmanpreet Kaur
England Women's Cricket Best Player
Sophie Ecclestone
Often found at the top of bowler rankings in T20Is, Sophie Ecclestone has the ability to single-handedly change any game. She ended the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup as the highest wicket-taker having taken 11 scalps in five games apart from being a handy batsman down the order.
Image for Sophie Ecclestone
She further became a worldwide name during her WPL stint in India while playing for UP Warriorz, where she not only took wickets regularly but also scored two half-centuries. Well known for taking two five-wicket hauls in women’s Ashes, Ecclestone was also the fastest and youngest woman cricketer to reach 100 T20I Wickets.
Nat Sciver-Brunt
One of the most celebrated all-rounders in women’s cricket, Sciver-Brunt had debuted for England in 2013 and marked her arrival with a three-wicket haul in just her second ODI game. She had also become the first England cricketer to take a T20I hattrick. The recently-concluded 2023 T20 World Cup saw Brunt finish with 216 runs as the second highest run-scorer in the tournament.
Image for Nat Sciver-Brunt
Sciver-Brunt’s demand was felt when she was auctioned for a whopping 3.2 crores (£320,000) in the inaugural WPL edition. She lived up to the expectation with an unbeaten 72 off just 36 balls in the knockouts before her yet another knock of 60 helped Mumbai Indians lift the title.
New Zealand Women's Cricket Best Player
Sophie Devine
Arguably one of the best players in women’s cricket now, New Zealand’s Sophie Devine is a stalwart in every sense. A constant part of the White Ferns Cricket since 2006, Devine has earned a name for her hard-hitting abilities. Interestingly, she had started her career as a number 11 batsman and today boasts of seven ODI hundreds and one T20 ton.
Image for Sophie Devine
Devine became a household name in the cricket crazy nation of India when she hammered nine boundaries and eight sixes to score 99 off 36 balls while playing for the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Sophie Devine has over 3000 runs and 100 wickets in both ODIs and T20Is.
While these names come in the debate of the best women’s cricket players, the women’s cricket also has superstars like Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu, South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp, West Indies’ Hayley Matthews and many more who have rejuvenated the game bring in a terrific entertainment quotient.
FAQs
Indian opener Smriti Mandhana is the star woman cricketer of India right now, having tallied 268 runs in the last 10 matches with an average of 38.29.
New Zealand’s Suzie Bates is widely considered the best fielder in women’s cricket, having taken 66 catches in 123 ODI innings.
An M.A. in English Literature, Subhayan is an experienced journalist and sports writer. Having worked as a journalist at Hindustan Times, Subhayan covered diverse beats including sports, education, and health, showcasing his versatility and in-depth understanding of various subjects.