Pakistan’s off-spinner Sana Mir became the most successful ODI spinner in the world when she dismissed South African Sune Luus on Sunday at the third one-day International ICC Women’s Championship in Benoni.
In her 118th appearance, she took her 147th ODI wicket, knocking Anisa Mohammed of the Windies and Australian Lisa Sthalekar into third place in the list of the most successful bowlers of all time behind fast bowler Jhulan Goswami of India ( 218) and Australia’s Cathryn Fitzpatrick (180).
Sana Mir is currently the third-ranked ICC bowler, but is expected to make an upward move as the new leaderboards are released on Monday, May 13th. In October of last year she was the first Pakistani bowler to lead the ICC ranking.
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Sana Mir celebrated her ODI debut eight days before her 20th birthday against Sri Lanka at the National Stadium of the ACC Women’s Asia Cup. She remained without wicket, but scored 23 runs with the racket.
Recalling her early days, Sana told me she had to face a number of challenges. “The journey began with proving that girls can play this sport on every street I play cricket. We had no role models, girls who participated in cricket were not so common.
“My father was in the army, so we had to move a lot. This meant finding new friends and, at the same time, repeatedly proving my cricket skills.
“From street cricket to playing on the grounds to moving to the stadiums wearing the Pakistan jersey, moments of immense pride. From then on my goals got bigger and bigger as I started to get results in the field.
“The more you intend to contribute to the team, the more successful you become. This journey has taught me that in addition to fame, recognition, and success, it also brings contentment, especially with the goal of the team.
Urooj Mumtaz
The former captain and current chief selector Urooj Mumtaz, who captained Sana in 26 ODIs, congratulated her former counterparts, calling her a true inspiration for women not only in Pakistan cricketers but around the world.
“Sana was a great role model for our cricket. In fact, World Cricket, its hard work, dedication and humility are absolutely admirable.
Alhamdolillah !
— Sana Mir ثناء میر (@mir_sana05) May 12, 2019
All praise to Allah Who gave me the opportunity to represent and contribute for my motherland. 🙏💞
Thank you all for the messages ❤ https://t.co/r9afl7y25I
“I was captain of Pakistan when we started and it was a great help to have her by my side. Sana was a calm and collected personality, and these qualities have made her a great actress.
“I really enjoyed commanding her because she had a great cricket spirit. Her achievements as a bowler are not surprising to me, as I have always felt that she would go a long way in terms of her talent and her ability to put pressure on herself.
“I really want to wish her all the best and hope she continues to inspire young people and continue to bring laurels to the country.”
Sana was captain of Pakistan from 2009 to 2017 and also inspired her team for the Asian Games gold medals in 2010 and 2014. She captained 83 goals in 72 ODI games and scored 1069 runs.
In 100 T20Is, Sana fired 84 batters, including the Irish Laura Delany. The delivery was later voted Play of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2018.
