“Uncle, your daughter is special”: How 9-year-old Pratika Rawal left Ranji players stunned — and built her way to India’s Women’s World Cup

At just nine years old, Pratika Rawal stepped into a university-level cricket match and stunned senior players with her performance. According to her father, Pradeep Rawal, during that match at Lakshmibai College she had faced players who competed in the Ranji Trophy. She scored fifty runs, prompting one senior player to say: “Uncle, your daughter has something special — she’s India-level material.” 

Fast forward to Women’s World Cup 2025, Pratika carried that early promise into the global arena. In a must-win pool match against the New Zealand women’s cricket team, she hammered her maiden World Cup century — a 122-run knock — and along with partner Smriti Mandhana stitched a massive 212-run opening stand, ensuring India’s place in the semifinals. 

Pradeep, who once entertained his own cricketing dream and later became a BCCI-level umpire, recounts how he introduced his daughter to the game at age three. He said: “I handed her a bat when she was just three years old. When she turned nine, I sent her to an academy. There was a university-level match … Nine-year-old Pratika scored fifty runs.” When veteran players recognised her talent, he realised she might one day represent India. 

Since making her international debut in December 2024, Pratika has compiled over 1,100 runs at an average above 50 in just 23 ODIs, including two centuries and seven half-centuries. She also became the fastest Indian woman to reach 1,000 WODI runs — in a remarkable 304 days. 

Her cricketing journey is not just about record numbers. It reflects determination, grit and early talent nurtured under supportive yet realistic conditions. Pradeep emphasises that he promised her a different path from his own truncated career, saying: “Despite my flaws and the family’s lack of support that I faced, I wanted to ensure she never faced such things.” 

The recent century in a high-pressure match speaks of her ability to deliver when it matters. With India posting an imposing total of 340/3 in 49 overs and winning by 53 runs (via DLS method), her milestone knock is seen as a turning point for the team’s campaign. 

Fans and cricket pundits alike are now watching how Pratika’s career unfolds. Her early exploits (those fateful 9-year-old innings) serve as a reminder that talent, when recognised and nurtured, can flourish. For young girls across India, her journey offers hope: that even in a nation where one-sided narratives of male dominance still hold sway, a girl with focus, family support and opportunity can rise to the highest levels.

India’s women’s cricket team, gearing up for the knockout stages, will lean on Pratika’s form. She has already begun converting potential into performance — and the message is loud and clear: when you believe someone has “something special”, you might just witness how special that becomes.