‘Do something that girls start playing after watching you’ - Jhulan Goswami recalls mother’s words of wisdom back from playing days

Former India cricketer Jhulan Goswami reflected on her mother’s advice during the formative years of her professional career. The former pace stalwart proved to play a pivotal role in team India’s success in the women’s circuit and shaped the bowling department with her impressive performances.

Jhulan called time on her stellar career in September 2022, featuring in 204 ODIs, 68 T20Is, and 12 Tests upon which she collected 255, 56, and 44 wickets, respectively, across the formats. In an interaction with former India skipper Anjum Chopra, Jhulan disclosed her mother’s advise to become a role model for the forthcoming generations.

"These are the things we always discuss many times as a group, that where we need to take women's cricket. After the ICC award in 2007, my mom told me one very valid thing, that you achieve whatever you want as an individual but make sure you do something on the ground that one or two girls start playing cricket after watching you,” Jhulan told speaking on Anjum Chopra's YouTube channel.

"That was a key thing that was in my mind that when I leave cricket, Indian cricket should have its own identity, and people start playing cricket professionally in our country. Unfortunately, the World Cup dream I had when I started playing in 1997, it didn't happen, but otherwise, I got more than I had thought,” she added.

For the unversed, Jhulan became the first Indian cricketer to be awarded the Women's Cricketer of the Year in 2007. She was later conferred with the prestigious Arjuna Award in 2010 and the Padma Shri award in 2012.

The former pacer further highlighted the developments in the sporting facilities in Chakda, her hometown, since her early days while training. 

"Earlier there were no facilities in Chakda. Now there are facilities and people want to play the sport. These are the things my mom really enjoys because they keep telling her where they are practicing and she watches them going in their cycles,” she concluded.

Jhulan joined the Mumbai Indians' setup in the Women's Premier League in the capacity of a mentor and bowling coach. The franchise went on to lift the inaugural title of the WPL in 2023.