During a Senior Women’s T20 Trophy match in October 2019, Bengal found themselves at 35/2 after 10.3 overs when 16-year-old Richa Ghosh came out to bat. At the Saurashtra Cricket Stadium in Rajkot, she would go on to score 67 runs off 36 balls, hitting two sixes and nine fours, which helped Bengal reach a total of 136/7 – with over 100 runs being made after the 10-over mark. Bengal’s victory over Delhi by 60 runs that day was more than sufficient. Richa believes that the knock was instrumental in her receiving a call-up to the Indian squad at the age of just 16.
Such a talent is what the formidable wicketkeeper-batsman from Siliguri has always had. On Thursday night in Visakhapatnam, it was on display for all to witness as she entered the batting order amid her team’s struggles—mirroring her performance in Rajkot years prior—and launched a 94 off 77 deliveries that pulled India to a comparatively advantageous position, despite the fact that the night concluded with a loss to South Africa. With that knock, she reminded everyone of her effortless strength and her capability to maintain a stable base while sending the ball crashing to every corner of the field.
Typically regarded as powerful in the mid-wicket area, Richa executed two massive sixes with a slog sweep, one of which soared nearly into the stands for over 80 meters. The remaining part of the wagon wheel, however, exemplified her comprehensive skill set perfectly. Her ability to produce force for line-hitting was clear when she crushed Tumi Sekhukhune’s moderate bowling for a flat six over mid-off. In fact, 73% of her runs via fours and 50% of her sixes originated from the offside.d.
“That was some serious hitting,” said Nasser Hussain, a former captain of the England team, during the mid-innings match on JioHotstar. „Richa Ghosh verfügt über diese rohe Kraft und Muskulatur. However, she also possesses the technique for hitting. She maintains her body shape, trusts her position, and avoids overhitting. She relies on staying out of sight and making hits through the line. Furthermore, she is not one-dimensional: she can strike the ball to deep mid-wicket, hit straight, play over extra-cover, and execute a reverse-sweep. And she struck a cover-point yorker that was almost flawless.
This ability to access all angles on the pitch – which remains uncommon in elite women’s football – is rooted in an understanding of the science behind power-hitting. “It involves science; it’s not solely reliant on strength or merely about entering and swinging the bat.” Muralidhar clarifies that it concerns the effectiveness and efficiency of utilizing one’s own generated strength to transfer energy through the body and hand onto the bat. He adds that Richa, though naturally strong, possesses a ‘very inquisitive’ nature when it comes to self-improvement.
Muralidhar stated, “The more you engage in it, the more you benefit from external feedback from coaches and internal feedback from your body, which aids your improvement.” “It’s possible you’re a strong individual and strike the ball with great force. At this level, however, what is needed is consistency. At that point, you require science. This is the point at which repetition becomes relevant. Over the past few years, that has improved considerably.
