Astrologers’ Daughters Shine on the Cricket Field: Selected for Under-19 T20 World Cup

Two ordinary Brahmin families in Madhya Pradesh, where the hymns of the Vedas, rituals, and astrology are part of daily life and a means of livelihood. The daughters of these families, who chart the course of the stars to make life easier for the common people, have now become stars themselves for the common people. Ayushi Shukla from Indore and Vaishnavi Sharma from Gwalior have made it to the Indian cricket team with their impressive skills. The challenge they have been chosen for is the Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup. Both daughters are ready to bring victory to the team with their performances. Anadi Tagde from Indore has also been included in the standby team. Ayushi’s father, Lalji Shukla, is a priest and earns his living by performing religious ceremonies. Once, while going to perform a puja at the home of former Indian women’s captain, Sandhya Agarwal, he encouraged his daughter to become a cricketer. She is currently working hard under the guidance of Devashish Niloshe.

Both players’ families have also made sacrifices in their journey to the Indian team. The distance from the Devguradia area to the Gymkhana ground is about 8 to 10 km. Lalji explains, “Initially, Ayushi used to go by bicycle, but now I or her brother go with her. We stay at the ground until her practice is over.” Anadi’s mother, Deepti, was a cricketer. When Anadi went for selection in the Under-19 team at the age of nine, the selectors said, “How can such a young girl play cricket? She won’t be able to stand in the sun for half an hour.” Anadi stood in the sun for half an hour and was selected for the team. Recently, Anadi was included in the Indian team for the series against South Africa.

Vaishnavi’s father is also an astrologer. Vaishnavi Sharma from Gwalior doesn’t have a direct connection to sports or cricket at home. Her father, Narendra Sharma, is an astrologer by profession and teaches at Jiwaji University. But when his daughter wanted to become a cricketer, the whole family supported her. Earlier, Bhopal’s Soumya Tiwari played for the Indian Under-19 team. Indore’s Sandhya Agarwal was the captain of the Indian women’s team. Apart from them, Chitra Bajpayee, Bindeshwari Goyal, Arundhati Kirkiri, Babita Mandlik, Nidhi Bule, Rupanjali Shastri, Rekha Punekar, Rajeshwari Dholakia, Rajeshwari Goyal, Jyotsna Patel, Rita Patel, Minoti Desai have also been part of the Indian team. All of them are from Indore. Singrauli’s Nuzzhat Parveen has also played for India. Shahdol’s Pooja Vastrakarr is a member of the Indian senior team.