‘Got a lot of Motivation…’: Indian star reveals watching Sachin Tendulkar’s innings in order to improve the understanding of the game

Shafali on secret behind improvement in game

Shafali Verma says watching videos of Sachin Tendulkar’s batting in Test cricket, when she was not in the scheme of things, helped her understand the importance of playing each ball on merit.

Closely observing Tendulkar’s knocks played a part as she got down to plot her comeback into the Indian women’s team after being dropped last year due to poor form.

“Earlier I used to think of scoring a four or a six off every ball, but then I realised that it’s important to give respect to a good ball. I saw Sachin (Tendulkar) sir’s Test innings and got a lot of motivation from that,” Shafali told BCCI Video ahead of the white-ball series opener against England in Nottingham.

“It reminded me of my childhood days when I used to not even miss a single game of his. I covered almost every match again. Watching that, I learned that the only way to build a good innings is by respecting the good deliveries.” she added.

Excellent performance in domestic cricket and Women’s Premier League (WPL) paved the way for her comeback.

The 21-year-old said that that comebacks are never easy and it became all the more tough after her father suffered a heart-attack just 10 days before the team selection last year.

Shafali got dropped for the three-match ODI series against Australia in November after a poor run of form.

“Whenever you make a comeback you encounter tough situations, but when you are back in the team environment, it is a very good feeling. I am very happy that I could make a comeback.

“Just 10 days before my selection (for the series against Australia), my dad suffered a heart-attack. That was a very tough situation for me and after that I did not get selected in the team. I did not know what was happening.

“I worked on my fitness for 20-25 days. I picked up the bat after 20-25 days and I felt very good. That gave me a different kind of energy, a different feeling. Time teaches you a lot of things. I will do my best and leave the rest to destiny.”