'Do you ask this to a male cricketer?' - When Mithali Raj's befitting reply left a reporter speechless

Star Indian batter Mithali Raj announced her retirement from all formats of cricket on June 8 and tributes flowed all over the internet. She ended her glorious career with a big fifty in her last match, which came against South Africa in the Women’s World Cup 2022.

The 39-year-old will be remembered for her 23-year-long career and her unparalleled contribution to Indian cricket. She was a true leader on the pitch and remains the only Indian captain to guide India to two World Cup finals. Mitahli amassed 10868 runs in international cricket in 12 Tests, 232 ODIs, and 89 T20Is.

She also maintained a fifty-plus average in the ODI format and a 43.68 average in Tests. But she surprised everyone in the T20I format as well with an average of 37.52, scoring 2364 runs in a format for the so-called young cricketers only.

‘Do you ask a male cricketer?’ – Mithali Raj shuts up a reporter in style

Mithali made her debut in 1999 at the age of 16 and scored an unbeaten century and became the youngest player to do so. She is also the only player to score seven consecutive ODI half-centuries and also holds the record for most fifties (64).

There is no limit to the veteran cricketer’s on-field records but she also showed great character off the field. One such example is her press conference conversation back in 2017 when a reporter asked her an off-the-topic question and the then Indian captain replied to him in some style.

The reporter had asked Mithali about her ‘favorite male cricketer’s name’ and the skipper responded, “Do you ask a male cricketer who their favorite female cricketer is?”

This reply gained a lot of traction and many praised her for shutting the reporter with a befitting reply. Another Indian iconic player Sania Mirza applauded her reply with a tweet ‘Mithali Raj, slay girl, well done’ with strength emoticons.