Just over two months after pulling a heist in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2024, Sajeevan Sajana finally gets to see her dream come true. The 29-year-old has made her international debut as she finds a place in India’s playing lineup against Bangladesh in the first T20I in Sylhet.
Hailing from Mananthavady in Wayanad, Sajana is only the second Keralite woman cricketer to play T20Is for India, following in the footsteps of Minnu Mani. A hard-hitting batter and a handy off-spinner, Sajana has impressed everyone with her all-round abilities.
WPL stardom – Sajeevan Sajana
Sajana’s rise to fame began in the WPL 2024 auction, where Mumbai Indians acquired her for INR 15 lakh. She wasted no time in announcing her arrival on the big stage, delivering a match-winning performance in the opening clash against Delhi Capitals (DC).
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With MI needing a near-impossible 12 runs off the last over to win, the situation looked bleak. The dismissal of skipper Harmanpreet Kaur on the penultimate ball made things even tougher, leaving MI needing 6 runs from the final ball. Delhi Capitals, with Alice Capsey taking two wickets earlier, must have felt confident of victory.
However, Sajana had other plans. In a moment of brilliance, she launched a mighty six off the very first ball of the final over, etching her name in history as the first woman cricketer to win a T20 chase on the last ball with a first-ball six.
Apart from this, Sajana faced a total of 55 balls and hammered 87 runs at a strike rate of 158.18 for the 2023 WPL Champions.