South Africa Women's Tri-Nation Series: Amanjot Kaur's India debut is a day to remember

With big-hitting teen phenoms Verma and Ghosh unavailable owing to their Under-19 World Cup commitments, and Harmanpreet, along with pacer Renuka Singh among the regulars, taking ill, batting allrounder Amanjot used her time on a slow, dry pitch to good effect.

“It was a big occasion,” Amanjot, who received her India cap with stand-in captain Smriti Mandhana, said. “The area where we're put up has forests and beaches and some of the players reported sick because of an allergy, so they were grounded by a bit of fever, cough and weakness as the Indian body is not immune to it.

“We surely missed them, but we were not short on our preparedness. When we had our team meeting, the side for today's game was announced. To be in the playing XI on my first tour means a lot to me. It all feels quite unreal.”

Amanjot’s knock, the highest by an Indian at No. 7 or lower in women's T20Is, included seven fours. Two of those came through power-packed cover drives off successive deliveries off medium-pacer Ayabonga Khaka in the 19th over, which cost South Africa 15 runs, 12 of those fetched by Amanjot in boundaries.

It helped that Amanjot had a calming presence in Deepti Sharma, herself a close shout for the Player of the Match for her 23-ball 33 and 3 for 30, by her side during her maiden international innings. A mainstay in the line-up with 165 caps across formats and a rapidly burgeoning reputation as a serial all-round rescuer, Deepti’s wisdom proved pivotal in Amanjot plotting the pace of her innings in unhurried fashion.

"She advised I refrain from hitting the ball too hard, and instead look for the singles early on, so that once we had our eye in, the boundaries would starts coming,” Amanjot said. “Given I was on my debut, she said being excited could be a natural thing, but treading with calm was the need of the hour, as was keeping the scoreboard (climbing) with singles, so that we could have a partnership going to take our team to the safety of a competitive total.”

Amanjot’s stand with Deepti is the highest sixth-wicket partnership for India in women’s T20Is. The record, previously held by Reema Malhotra and Sulakshana Naik's 60-run stand against Australia at Visakhapatnam in 2012, speaks to the youngster’s ability to absorb pressure and feedback alike.

To anyone up-to-speed with domestic cricket in India, Amanjot’s undaunted step-up to the big stage under testing circumstances, against the formidable South Africans, would not have come as a surprise, though. A resident of Mohali, Amanjot had been on the radar of the national selectors for several seasons straight, thanks to her consistent performances with both her former state side, Chandigarh, and Punjab.

A proven performer in the inter-zonals as well as the Challengers, she was picked for a camp primarily for India probables -- but which also featured legends Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami -- at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru last year ahead of the tour of Australia. The promise she had been showing with her consistent returns with her bat over the years, distilled in the 2022-23 domestic T20s where she finished as Punjab’s highest run-scorer with 192 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 105.49.

That her incisive seam-bowling skills offer India, a team historically heavy on allrounders who bowl spin, a coveted, potentially long-term option who can bat as well as bowl pace – besides the injury-prone Pooja Vastrakar and the oft-ignored, just-recalled Shikha Pandey – also strengthened Amanjot’s case for selection for the tri-series.

Her journey to the India XI wouldn’t have been possible, reflected Amanjot, if it were not for her desire to relinquish a blossoming, and enriching, stint in senior cricket at Chandigarh. To switch allegiances back to Punjab, where she had plied her trade as an age-group player, came with its share of challenges, but she knew she had to push herself out of her comfort zone.

"I started my domestic career with Punjab before moving to Chandigarh,” said Amanjot. “That was a turning point for me, for I got more opportunities as a batter in Chandigarh and, in a way, it brought my batting to the limelight. I grew into a mature batter and developed my knowledge of batting during my time at Chandigarh.

“Then, for me to move back to Punjab and bring myself back into contention for selection was another turning point because I had everything going well for myself in Chandigarh, including the captaincy. Leaving all of that behind and heading back to Punjab was a daunting task.

“But I wanted to act on that intention because I wanted to play cricket of a more competitive kind, play under seniors, learn more about the game. [India international] Taniya [Bhatia], for instance, was at Punjab, and I wanted to learn how cricketers like her who have played at a level higher than me, manage things, compete at that level. The journey hasn't been easy, but I hope it keeps going ahead.”

Amanjot dabbled in several sports and even played handball, football and hockey at the district level before shifting her attention to cricket. Her initiation into the sport came about through matches she played with boys in her neigbourhood. Then, a move to Chandigarh to pursue her higher-secondary studies after her 10th board examinations, put her into the orbit of formal training.

https://twitter.com/ghosh_annesha/status/1616116674385838082?s=20&t=CXopYLJkpYBAW2Yjoknhhw

In her father, Bhupinder Singh, a carpenter, Amanjot has had a constant source of support. It was he who enrolled her at an academy in Chandigarh, when she was 17, under coach Nagesh Gupta, with a view to channeling Amanjot’s growing love of cricket. The decision, however, warranted sacrifices on the part of Bhupinder, who dealt in workwood and carpentry at the time. Before long, however, he decided to give up his woodwork job, so he could drop his daughter off to, and pick her up from, training on time.

"The travelling (between home and the cricket academy) was three and a half to four hours and he played a big role in managing that in 2016-17 when I had started," Amanjot explained. "Earlier he used to undertake work that entailed longer hours, staying over at the (clients') place and be away from home sometimes. But to pick and drop me from the academy, he left that," Amanjot said in the press conference after the match.

In Gupta, Amanjot found a father-figure, who gave her desire to play for India direction.

“The only personal coach I have ever had is Nagesh sir,” said Amanjot, who trains under Gupta in Panchkula. “It is to him I would like to dedicate my performance and the Player-of-the-Match Award. I had started out as a bowler, but for me to now be considered a batting allrounder is a big thing. Much of this has been possible because of him. It's quite incredible what he's done for me, how much he's worked on me.”

Amanjot is not part of India’s squad, or the reserves, for the T20 World Cup that begins in about three weeks in South Africa. Where her confident debut might take her India career over the next few weeks is anyone’s guess. It will, with near-certainty, however, make scouts for the inaugural five-team Women’s Indian Premier League highlight her name in their notebooks in big, bold colours as the auctions for the tournament draw closer.

“I have not done it yet,” Amanjot said of completing the BCCI’s player-registration process for the WIPL auction, tentatively scheduled for February 11, with January 26 set as the deadline for the registration. “I was waiting to make my (international) debut, because the registration process allows you to enlist yourself as a capped or an uncapped player. I might fill the form shortly after reaching (my hotel).”

While capped players — those who have played for India or currently have a central contract — can choose either INR 30 lakh, INR 40 lakh or INR 50 lakh as their base price, the uncapped cricketers have been given two options (INR 10 lakh and INR 20 lakh). Wise move from Amanjot, by all means, then, to opt for playing the waiting game.

“As for the bidding, I hope I am picked by a team,” she said, smiling. “All I want is to play a lot of cricket, more matches. I want contribute as much for my team as I can.”

With a record-breaking, match-winning performance, she painted a significant part of Thursday at Buffalo Park a shade of Amanjot. Her expectations were mostly conservative for the biggest day for her career yet, as they are around her WIPL fortunes. Come auction time, though, she might be in for a surprise, again, and a (pay)day to remember, just like her India debut was.