Diana Edulji (born 26 January 1956) is an Indian former cricketer. Born in
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
to a Parsi family,
she was drawn to sports at an early age. She grew up playing
cricket
Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
with a tennis ball in the railway colony where she lived. She then went on to play
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
and
table tennis
Table tennis (also known as ping-pong) is a racket sport derived from tennis but distinguished by its playing surface being atop a stationary table, rather than the Tennis court, court on which players stand. Either individually or in teams of ...
at the junior national level, before switching to cricket. At a cricket camp hosted by former Test cricketer
Lala Amarnath, she honed her skills. Women's cricket was becoming more popular in India at the time . Diana went on to play for the
Railways
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to roa ...
and then the Indian national cricket team where she was a successful slow left-arm orthodox bowler. She played her first series in 1975. In 1978 she was made the captain of the team. She remains the third highest wicket-taker in Tests.
In 1986 Edulji was refused entry to the
Lord's Pavilion
The Lord's Pavilion is a cricket pavilion at Lord's Cricket Ground in London, England. Designed by Thomas Verity and built in 1889–1890, the pavilion has achieved Grade II* listed heritage designation. Like the rest of Lord's, the pavilion is ...
while captaining India on their tour of England. She quipped that the MCC (
Marylebone Cricket Club
The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...
) should change its name to MCP ("
male chauvinist pigs").
Unofficially, Edulji became the first bowler to take 100
Women's 'Test wickets', but some of these Tests were later deemed unofficial. As per the official record, she took 63 Women's Test wickets, which is the highest by an Indian player, and the third highest of all time, after
Mary Duggan
Mary Beatrice Duggan (7 November 1925 – 10 March 1973) was an English cricketer who played as an all-rounder. She appeared in 17 Test matches for England between 1949 and 1963, and captained the side from 1957 onwards. Most of her domestic c ...
and
Betty Wilson
Betty Rebecca Wilson (21 November 1921 – 22 January 2010) was considered one of the greatest woman cricketers of all time. She represented Australia in Women's Test cricket between 1947–48 and 1957–58. Wilson batted right-handed, was a go ...
. She holds the record for delivering the most balls by any woman cricketer in Women's Test history (5098+). She finished with 120 international wickets, which was the highest by a women's cricketer at the time of her retirement.
Diana received India's then greatest sports honour, the
Arjuna Award
The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards given for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjun ...
in 1983. The Government of India awarded her the civilian honour of
Padma Shri
The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...
in 2002.
In the same year, she was felicitated by
Castrol
Castrol Limited is a British oil company that markets industrial and automotive lubricants, offering a wide range of oil, greases and similar products for most lubrication applications. The company was originally named CC Wakefield; the nam ...
for her contribution to Indian women's cricket. She was the first Indian women's cricketer to be awarded a benefit match. She was appointed in BCCI administration panel by the
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...
on 30 January 2017. She became the first woman to be appointed to the BCCI selection panel. In 2023, she was inducted into the
ICC Cricket Hall of Fame
The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame recognises "the achievements of the legends of the game from cricket's long and illustrious history". It was launched by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in Dubai on 2 January 2009, in association with the Fe ...
.
References
Notes
Further reading
*
External links
Diana EduljiSportslibro
1956 births
Living people
Indian women cricketers
India women Test cricketers
India women One Day International cricketers
Railways women cricketers
Mumbai women cricketers
West Zone women cricketers
Cricketers from Mumbai
Sportswomen from Maharashtra
Indian cricket coaches
Indian women cricket captains
Recipients of the Arjuna Award
Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports
20th-century Indian women
20th-century Indian people
Parsi sportspeople
Parsi people from Mumbai
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