Shafali Verma misses out on hundred against England by 4 runs; netizens say 'more to come'

Seventeen-year-old Shafali Verma who made her Test debut against England in the one-off India vs England Women's Test match missed out on bagging a well-deserved century by just 4 runs. Showcasing her fearless play, the debutant piled up 96 runs, the highest knock for an Indian women player on her Test debut. With her knock of 96, Shafali Verma broke a decades-old record of Chanderkanta Kaul who made 75 runs against New Zealand in 1995. 

Apart from bagging the highest score by an Indian woman cricketer on Test debut she also became the first Indian woman cricketer to hit a six on Test debut and only the second Indian woman cricketer to hit a maximum in Test cricket history. 

Stichting an opening partnership of 167 with Smriti Mandhana, the duo together also broke the record of India's highest opening partnership held by Gargi Banerji and Sandhya Agarwal who had bagged 153 runs against Australia in Mumbai in 1984. Shafali Verma scored her knock of 96 runs off 152 balls bagging 13 fours and two sixes. 

In a presser after the march, Shafali Verma expressed her disappointment in getting out in the 90s saying that it was "natural to feel bad". However, the young cricketer said that she was focused on punishing the loose balls and spending a good amount of time in the middle.

"It is usually tough to negotiate the bowling at the start of an innings. We were biding time and giving respect to the bowlers. But in doping so, we missed out on converting a few loose balls into boundaries. These two days of Test cricket have taught me the importance of patience and fitness. I will get a lot of confidence from this innings and hopefully, will convert the 90 into 100 next time," she said in the press conference as per Sportstar.

Netizens react

In the opening India vs England Women's Test match, England has set up a mammoth target of 396/9 for the Indian women.