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Punjab’s Taniyaa banks on domestic cricket success for comeback
For Taniyaa Bhatia who had been a permanent face behind the wickets in the Indian women’s cricket team, it was disappointing to lose the berth
Last few days have been difficult for Punjab cricketer Taniyaa Bhatia to fathom. Nearly a month ago, wicket-keeper batter, who had become the first woman cricketer from Chandigarh to play for the Indian women’s cricket team in 2018, was dropped from the BCCI central contracts for 2022-23.
For someone who had been a permanent face behind the wickets in the Indian women’s cricket team, it was disappointing to lose the berth. Although, she had been dropped from T20 and ODI format bringing Richa Ghosh and Yastika Bhatia in spotlight as wicket-keepers, but going out from scheme of things from the selectors point of view had been crushing for the 25-year-old cricketer. Since her ODI and T20 debut for India in 2018, Taniyaa blossomed and surged as a wicket-keeper, holding the record for the most catches and stumpings for India in T20 cricket.
“It is definitely a disappointing thing to happen and I was not expecting this at this point. But the selectors and the BCCI verdict is final. It is now up to me to work harder and get back into the team. Playing for your country gives joy and fills your heart with so much pride,” said Taniyaa, who was part of the Indian team that finished second in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022.
Taniyaa, who started playing under former Indian cricketer and Yuvraj Singh’s father Yograj Singh in Chandigarh when she was seven, has her eyes fixed on the upcoming domestic season and wants to perform well in all formats for Punjab.
“Women’s cricket has changed rapidly in the last couple of years and also become very competitive. The start of Women’s Premiere League (WPL) is the best example of the change and popularity the women’s cricket has seen recently. So, one has to be on the toes and never let complacency set in. Punjab Cricket Association has planned the preparation of the season well. I am focusing on fitness and off-season training, and raring to do well for my state and North Zone as well in order to catch eyes of the selectors,” said Taniyaa, who is not bogged down by being dropped and is hopeful of a comeback.
She has played 19 ODIs and 53 T20Is along with two tests for India. With 23 catches and 45 stumpings, Taniyaa is the most successful keeper for India in T20 format. She was bought by Delhi Capitals for ₹30 lakh. Led by Australia’s Meg Lanning, DC lost to Mumbai Indians in the WPL final. She has also trained under former India wicket-keeper Kiran More.
While she has been top-notch in the wicket-keeping segment, Taniyaa has struggled to put scores on the board while playing for India. Just one half-century under her belt in ODIs, gives an idea how she has not been able to do justice to her batting talent. And she has been scoring runs consistently for Punjab and North Zone all these years. Also, she has suffered due to frequent change in national team coaches as her batting number has never been static. From batting as an opener to batting at number 10, she has been tried at various spots.
“One always gains training under coaches like More sir and also playing under captains like Meg. WPL is a great platform, unfortunately, I could not get many chances to bat due to the short format. But I learnt so much and now, I am training hard. The game is changing now, so one has to make adjustments in batting style too. I would like to bat now up the order and go for big hits,” added Taniyaa, who has been captaining Punjab in absence of Harmanpreet Kaur and now eyes a comeback through domestic cricket success.
