Minnu Mani (born 24 March 1999) is an Indian international

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 ...

er who represents the Indian women's national team. She plays for

Delhi Capitals The Delhi Capitals, formerly the Delhi Daredevils, also known as DC, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Delhi that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The franchise is owned by GMR Group and JSW Sports. Its home groun ...

in Women's Premier League. In domestic cricket, she represents

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

cricket team. She became the first Kerala woman cricketer to play for

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Early life

Minnu hails from Choyimoola in

Wayanad district Wayanad () is a district in the north-east of the Indian state of Kerala, with its administrative headquarters at the municipality of Kalpetta. It is the only plateau in Kerala. The Wayanad Plateau forms a continuation of the Mysore Plateau, ...

. Her father, Mani CK, is a daily wage labourer and her mother, Vasantha, is a homemaker. She has a younger sister, Mimitha. She studied at Mananthavady Government Vocational Higher Secondary School, Edappady till Grade 8 and St. Sebastian High School,

Thodupuzha Thodupuzha () is a municipality and taluk in the Idukki district of Kerala, India. It is located west of the district headquarters in Painavu and about north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. As per the 2011 Indian census, Thodupu ...

till Grade 10. She completed her higher secondary education at Sarvajana Higher Secondary School,

Sulthan Bathery Sulthan Bathery is a major municipal town in the Wayanad district of Kerala, India. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Sultan Bathery taluk and is the most populous and commercially active urban center in the district. Strategic ...

and graduated from

Government College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram Government College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram is a public college situated in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Established in 1864 by Ayilyam Thirunal, the Maharaja of Travancore, it is one of the oldest women's colleges in Kerala. Initi ...

. As of 2023, she is pursuing her BA in

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

through distance learning. She started playing cricket at 10 with boys at paddy fields. Initially, her family didn't support the idea of her playing cricket. Her physical education teacher, Elsamma noticed her skill and took her to selection trials of the

Wayanad Wayanad () is a district in the north-east of the Indian state of Kerala, with its administrative headquarters at the municipality of Kalpetta. It is the only plateau in Kerala. The Wayanad Plateau forms a continuation of the Mysore Plateau, ...

District Under-13 team. The next year, she played in the Kerala U-16 team and represented Kerala at the senior level aged 16. Minnu had to travel one and a half hours daily, switching four buses to reach the nearest stadium from her home for cricket practice.

Domestic career

Minnu made her debut for Kerala at the age of 16. She was the key performer when the Kerala U-23 women's team won the national T20 championship in 2018 with of 188 runs and 11 wickets. In 2019, she represented India Blue in the Under-23 One Day Challenger Trophy. She got her maiden call for the India A team touring Bangladesh and was called for ACC Emerging Women's Asia Cup in the same year.

Indian Premier league

In February 2023, she was bought by the

in the WPL auction ahead of the 2023 Women's Premier League.

International career

In July 2023, she was called up to the Indian team touring Bangladesh, making her the first female cricketer from Kerala to earn an India call-up. She made her

Women's Twenty20 International cricket Women's Twenty20 international (WT20I) is the shortest form of women's international cricket. A women's Twenty20 international is a 20 overs-per-side cricket match between two of the International Cricket Council (ICC) members. The very first ...

(WT20I) debut for India Women against Bangladesh Women on 9 July 2023. She finished the series as India's highest wicket-taker, with 5 wickets from three matches. In July 2023, she was selected in India's 2023 Asian Games squad. In December 2023, Mani was selected in India's T20I series against Australia.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mani, Minnu 1999 births Living people People from Wayanad district Cricketers from Kerala Sportswomen from Kerala South Zone women cricketers Delhi Capitals (WPL) cricketers Asian Games gold medalists in cricket Cricketers at the 2022 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for India Medalists at the 2022 Asian Games India women Twenty20 International cricketers India women One Day International cricketers