Deepti Sharma to play for Western Storm in KIA Super League

21-year-old Deepti Sharma became the fourth Indian cricketer to sign for an overseas T20 team

India all-rounder Deepti Sharma on Friday joined her compatriot Smriti Mandhana in the squad of Western Storm for the KIA Super League, a women’s Twenty20 competition organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

India's Deepti Sharma celebrates taking the wicket of Australia's Nicole Bolton(Action Images via Reuters)

Western Storm announced the signing of the 21-year-old Deepti on their website.

“I am looking forward to the challenge of playing in the KIA Super League. Every player wants to play alongside and against the best in the world, and this will give me the opportunity to do that,” said Deepti.

“I have heard good things about Western Storm from Smriti and I can’t wait to contribute to the team’s success on the field,” she added.

Deepti has played in 30 IT20s, taking 28 wickets with her off-spin at an average of 22.92. She has also featured in 48 ODIs, taking 56 wickets at an average 27.39 with a best of six for 20. She also averages 41.81 with the bat in ODI cricket.

“Deepti is a quality player with a huge amount of experience at the very highest level and she will bring something a little bit different to our squad this year,” Western Storm head coach, Trevor Griffin said. “Continuity of selection is something that has played a huge roll in our success over the last few years, and therefore we felt it was important to sign overseas players who will be with us for the duration of the campaign.

“She’s still only 21 but she will bring a huge amount of experience and knowledge to our dressing room. She is currently rated as the second-best all-rounder in the world in one-day cricket by the ICC, so her quality is there for all to see,” added Griffin.