Poonam Yadav

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Poonam Yadav is an Indian cricketer who plays for Indias national cricket team. She has played for Central Zone, Uttar Pradesh, and Railways in domestic cricket. In 2023, she was bought by the franchise team Delhi Capitals for the Womens Premier League (WPL).Originally, her family hails from Mahuahar village in the Mainpuri district, Uttar Pradesh. In 1990, her family settled in Agra, and a year later, Poonam was born.She was athletic since childhood and used to play multiple sports, but she was ridiculed for her short height. However, in cricket, her short height became a blessing in disguise for her, making her a highly skilled leg-spinner.Growing up, she played gully cricket with boys in her neighbourhood. Once in an interview, her father recalled her childhood and said that she never feared injuries or scars, unlike other girls.In 2007, she enrolled at the Eklavya Sports Stadium and started training under senior cricketers like Hemalatha Kala. In the beginning, her father was adamant he was not going to let her play cricket. However, he agreed when Poonams coach M K Afghani (deceased) and fellow players Manoj Kushwaha and Hemlata Kala convinced him. In 2010, Manoj Kushwaha started coaching her.In the beginning, she used to practise three times a day. Firstly, it was before school, she would warm her body. Then, she went back to the ground at 2 pm after school and train personally for an hour. After resting at the ground for nearly 90 minutes, she joined other children in the nets in the evening batch.Although her family came on board with her cricketing career eventually, Poonam faced sexism from society.She captained the Uttar Pradesh team that won the Under-19 championship in 2010.Around 2009-10, when she was playing for Uttar Pradesh, her performance dipped significantly. She nearly thought of quitting cricket, but her father helped her rebuild her confidence.In 2011, she secured a job as a junior clerk in Indian Railways in the Agra division of North Central Railway via sports quota. Later, she became the office superintendent of the railways record department.