Anjum Chopra

Last updated

Anjum Chopra
ANJUM CHOPRA (3388377038).jpg
Chopra in 2009
Personal information
Full name
Anjum Chopra
Born (1977-05-20) 20 May 1977 (age 47)
New Delhi, NCT of Delhi, India
BattingLeft-handed
BowlingRight-arm medium
Role Batter
International information
National side
Test debut(cap  47)17 November 1995 v  England
Last Test29 August 2006 v  England
ODI debut(cap  42)12 February 1995 v  New Zealand
Last ODI16 March 2012 v  Australia
T20I debut(cap  2)5 August 2006 v  England
Last T20I23 March 2012 v  Australia
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
Representing Flag of India.svg  India
Women's cricket
World Cup
Runner-up 2005 South Africa

Anjum Chopra (born 20 May 1977) is an Indian cricket commentator and former cricketer. [1] She started playing cricket at the age of 9. She played her first friendly match with the college girls' team at the inter-college level, scoring 20 runs and taking 2 wickets. Later the same year she was selected to play for New Delhi in the under−15 tournament.

Contents

She played various sports at an early age, representing her school and college in athletics, basketball, and swimming. She was also a member of the Delhi State basketball team that competed at nationals. [1]

Chopra made her debut in one-day internationals at the age of 17, on 12 February 1995 against New Zealand at Christchurch, New Zealand, and made her debut in Test cricket a few months later against England at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, on 17 November 1995. [2] In only her second series for India the same year, she was awarded player of the series in the one-day internationals against the visiting England cricket team, scoring at an average of 67.5.

She played as a left-handed batter who bowled right-arm medium pace. She played in 12 Tests, 127 ODIs and 18 T20Is. [3] [4] She was coached by Sunita Sharma, Hardeep Dua and Tarak Sinha from Sonnet Club. [5] She was the first woman to score 1,000 runs in ODIs for India. [6]

Carving out a niche in the male-dominated sport in the country, Chopra has begun to be recognized as the face of women's cricket in India as a player, captain, consultant, commentator, motivational speaker, author, and actor.

Personal life

She received her undergraduate degree from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi [7]

Chopra belongs to a family of sportspeople:

Chopra is also a pet lover who loves to spend time with her dogs, who live with her at home.

Career

Anjum Chopra is both a Test and One Day International cricketer who represented India's national women's cricket team. She is currently working as a cricket commentator. She made her One Day International debut in 1995 against New Zealand at Christchurch. In the first ODI she opened the bowling for India, giving 14 runs in her 4 overs. Going in to bat at No 10 for India, she had a crucial partnership of 11 runs to secure the victory for India.

She made her Test match debut in November 1995 against England in Calcutta. She was sent in as a nightwatchman against the English team in her very first Test match for India. Living up to her coach's confidence in her she successfully batted until the next morning until lunch scoring 27 runs for her team.

She was made Vice Captain of the Indian team in 2000 ESPNcricinfo World Cup in New Zealand. With two player of the match awards and the highest scorer from India, Chopra led the batting charts at the World Cup until the Indian team lost in the semi-finals to eventual winners New Zealand.

Chopra was made the Captain of the Indian team in 2002. In her first series as skipper, she led India with 7 debutants to a whitewash win over visiting England side, a record victory. The Indian team's first tour of South Africa saw them record their first overseas Test win, with Anjum Chopra scoring a match-winning 80. Her astute captaincy and using the part-time bowlers got the team 20 South African wickets at Paarl.

In 2005 World Cup in South Africa, India reached the finals of the World Cup for the first time. She was the top scorer from India and was also the Player of the Match against England.

In 2009 World Cup in Australia, in a must-win game for India, Chopra scored 76 match-winning runs and bagged the player of the match award. India finished third at the World Cup behind England and New Zealand.

She has played 6 World Cups for India, including four 50-over World Cups and two T20 World Cups. She is the first player to play 100 ODIs for India. One of the strong fielders on the team and a safe pair of hands, she has held the highest number of slip catches for India. [8] A right arm medium pace bowler, Chopra made her debut as an all-rounder, opening the bowling in her first ODI and batting at No 10. She is the eighth-highest run-getter in women's ODIs. [9]

Chopra has batted at almost all positions for her team, including opening, when needed. She has scored against some of the best of bowling attacks in the world, and is known to occupy the crease and bat for long hours. For example, batting in the 2000 World Cup in New Zealand against Ireland, India was reeling at 3 wickets down with 1 run on the board. She played a patient knock of 70 runs and won the match.

She is known to bat well under pressure and has played numerous knocks to perfection to get the victory. A quick runner between the wickets, her ability to convert ones to twos had been an outstanding feature of Chopra's batting style.

After attending Delhi Public School R.K. Puram and St. Stephen's College, Delhi University, Chopra completed her Master's in Business Administration from FORE School of Management with a dual specialisation in Marketing and Human Resources.

In the corporate world, Chopra is a motivational and corporate speaker/consultant. Also an MBA, she has conducted training programs for globally recognised brands such as General Electric, Standard Chartered, Goldman Sachs, Vodafone, and various schools and colleges.

Domestic career

Anjum Chopra is a Delhi native who has played for the state since her Under-15 days. She has also represented Air India (her employers) for domestic matches where she emerged as the most successful skipper for the women's team.

Under her captaincy:

The 2011–12 cricket season saw her achieving victories for Delhi State. Captaining the team, Delhi won the national championship for the first time in history of the women's game. She also went on to lead the North Zone team that won the Zonal championships the same year. In the T20 format, Delhi state finished as runner-up, ending the year as the "Best State Team".

Awards

The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presenting the Padma Shri Award to Ms. Anjum Chopra, at an Investiture Ceremony-II, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on April 26, 2014 The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presenting the Padma Shri Award to Ms. Anjum Chopra, at an Investiture Ceremony-II, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on April 26, 2014.jpg
The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presenting the Padma Shri Award to Ms. Anjum Chopra, at an Investiture Ceremony-II, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on April 26, 2014
The President, Smt. Pratibha Patil presenting the Arjuna Award -2006 to Ms. Anjum Chopra for Cricket at a glittering function, in New Delhi on August 29, 2007 The President, Smt. Pratibha Patil presenting the Arjuna Award -2006 to Ms. Anjum Chopra for Cricket at a glittering function, in New Delhi on August 29, 2007.jpg
The President, Smt. Pratibha Patil presenting the Arjuna Award -2006 to Ms. Anjum Chopra for Cricket at a glittering function, in New Delhi on August 29, 2007
YearAwardNotes
2014Padma Shri
2007Arjuna Award
2004Rajiv Gandhi Delhi state award
2000ICC Player of the Match
2005ICC Player of the Match
2009ICC Player of the Match
2002Shiromani Desh Sewa Rattan AwardPresented by Shaheed memorial international Sewa society, Ludhiana
2004Award of Honour for exemplary contribution in the Field of CricketPresented during forum of women in public sector
2008Zee Astitva Award – 'Award for exemplary Women'
2009FICCI – YFLO- Young Women Achievers Award
2011Award for contribution to Field of SportsPresented during National Progressive schools conference
2012Alumni recognition award for public contributionFORE School of management
2013Shaksiyat Awards for Outstanding performance in the field of sportsPresented on International women day
2012–13Exemplary contribution in the field of sportsPresented by Delhi Public School, Indore
2013Honours in Recognition to the society and nationPresented by All India National Life insurance Employees Federation on their 50 years (golden jubilee celebration)
2016Honorary Membership of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Lord's Cricket Ground, LondonShe is the first Indian woman cricketer to receive it [10]

Records

Achievements

Anjum Chopra co-authored the coffee table book titled Women's Cricket World – A Journey from 1745- 2013. The book showcases the world history of the sport to its present-day under the International Cricket Council.

She has also acted in a docudrama, "Poor Cousins of Million Dollar Babies". The film received national acclaim at the Arnold Sports Film Festival in Ohio in 2011. It talks about that despite the disparities between men's and women's cricket, the girls are very happy playing the sport and enjoy the camaraderie. [12] [13]

To promote the game, Anjum has also participated in a reality show, Fear Factor 'Khatron ke Khiladi' season 4, aired on the Colors channel. She has also walked the ramp with leading names of the fashion industry promoting the women's game.

Anjum is a commentator/subject expert with Doordarshan and other leading news and sports channels. [14] A sportscaster she represents women's cricket on television analysing the game from a player's perspective. She has also forayed into other sports, acting as a commentator for the World Kabaddi League in 2014 on Sony Six.

Anjum Chopra is the first woman cricketer from India to be awarded an honorary life membership of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). [15]

Television

Anjum was a participant on the reality show Fear Factor - Khatron Ke Khiladi Season 4. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rahul Dravid</span> Indian coach and former cricketer

Rahul Sharad Dravid is a former player, ex-captain and ex-coach of the Indian national cricket team. Known for his outstanding batting technique, Dravid scored 24,177 runs in international cricket and is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is colloquially known as Mr. Dependable and often referred to as The Wall. He won the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy as a member of the Indian team and guided the Indian team to victory in the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup as the head coach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Javagal Srinath</span> Indian cricketer

Javagal Srinath, is a former Indian cricketer and currently an ICC match referee. He is considered among India's finest fast bowlers, and was the first Indian bowler to take more than 300 wickets in One Day Internationals. With India, Srinath was a member of the Indian team that was the joint-winners of the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, a title they shared with Sri Lanka, and was a member of the team that were runners-up in the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ajit Agarkar</span> Indian cricketer and commentator (born 1977)

Ajit Bhalchandra Agarkar is a former Indian cricketer and a commentator. He is the current chairman of the BCCI selection committee since July 4, 2023. He has represented India in more than 200 international matches across all three formats of the game. He is the third highest wicket-taker for India in One Day Internationals (ODIs). He was the part of the Indian squads which won the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy and the 2007 T20 World Cup and finished as runners up at the 2003 Cricket World Cup and the 2000 ICC Champions Trophy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium</span> Cricket stadium in New Delhi

The Arun Jaitley Stadium is a cricket stadium owned and operated by the Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) and located on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi. It was established in 1883 as the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, and named after the nearby Kotla fort. It is the second oldest functional international cricket stadium in India, after the Eden Gardens of Kolkata. As of 25 October 2019, it has hosted 36 Tests, 29 ODIs and 6 T20I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mithali Raj</span> Indian cricketer (born 1982)

Mithali Dorai Raj is an Indian former cricketer who captained the India women's national cricket team from 2004 to 2022. She is the highest run-scorer in women's international cricket, and ESPN ranked her as one of the greatest female cricketers of all time. Raj has received several national and international awards, including the Wisden Leading Woman Cricketer in the World in 2017, Arjuna Award in 2003, the Padma Shri in 2015, and Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlotte Edwards</span> English cricketer

Charlotte Marie Edwards is an English former cricketer and current cricket coach and commentator. She played primarily as a right-handed batter. She appeared in 23 Test matches, 191 One Day Internationals and 95 Twenty20 Internationals for England between 1996 and 2016. She played domestic cricket in England for East Anglia, Kent, Hampshire and Southern Vipers, as well as overseas for Northern Districts, Western Australia, Perth Scorchers, South Australia and Adelaide Strikers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claire Taylor</span> English cricketer

Samantha Claire Taylor is a former cricketer who represented England more than 150 times between 1998 and 2011. A top order batter, Taylor was the first woman to be named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year. Along with Charlotte Edwards, she was the mainstay of England's batting during the first decade of the 21st century, and played a key role in the team's two world titles in 2009.

Nikhil Chopra is a retired Indian cricketer. He played as a right-handed batsman and a right-arm offbreak bowler. A One Day International (ODI) specialist, he was part of the Indian team at the 1999 Cricket World Cup. He played in 39 ODIs and a solitary Test match for India.

Nadine Andrea Julietta George MBE is a Jamaican former cricketer who played as a left-handed batter and wicket-keeper. She appeared in 1 Test match, 41 One Day Internationals and 3 Twenty20 Internationals for the West Indies between 2003 and 2008. She was the first West Indian woman cricketer to score a hundred in a Test match, scoring 118 on Test debut against Pakistan in Karachi in the third innings of the only Test on the tour. George was awarded an MBE for her contributions to sport. She played domestic cricket for Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ajay Jadeja</span> Indian former cricketer


Ajaysinhji Jadeja, known as Ajay Jadeja, is an Indian former professional cricketer, who was a regular member of the Indian cricket team in the One Day International (ODI) format between 1992 and 2000. He played 15 Test matches and 196 ODIs for India. He also occasionally captained the India national cricket team. He was part of the Indian squad which won the 1995 Asia Cup. Presently, Jadeja is working with the Afghanistan cricket team as the team mentor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shikhar Dhawan</span> Indian cricketer (born 1985)

Shikhar Dhawan is an Indian cricketer. A left-handed opening batsman, he captains Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League and plays for Delhi in first-class cricket. At the 2013 Champions Trophy and 2017 Champions Trophy, Dhawan was the leading run-scorer and was awarded the 'Golden Bat' in both tournaments. He was the leading run scorer for India at the 2015 Cricket World Cup. He also became the first player in the history of IPL to score two back-to-back centuries. He was awarded the 'Player of the Tournament' for his exploits in the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, which he won with his national side. In the 2018 Asia Cup which Dhawan won with his national side, he was named Player Of The Tournament as he was the top scorer of the tournament with the bat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jhulan Goswami</span> Indian former cricketer (born 1982)

Jhulan Nishit Goswami is an Indian former cricketer. She played for the India women's national cricket team from 2002 to 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Umesh Yadav</span> Indian cricketer

Umeshkumar Tilak Yadav is an Indian cricketer who currently plays for Vidarbha cricket team, Indian national team, Essex and Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League. Yadav was a member of the team that won the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harmanpreet Kaur</span> Indian cricketer

Harmanpreet Kaur is an Indian cricketer who captains the India women's national cricket team in all formats. She plays for and captains Mumbai Indians in the Women's Premier League. She plays as an all-rounder for the Indian women's cricket team; and was awarded the Arjuna Award for Cricket in the year 2017 by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virender Sehwag</span> Retired Indian cricketer (born 1978)

Virender Sehwag is a former Indian cricketer who represented India from 1999 to 2013. Widely regarded as one of the most destructive openers and one of the greatest batsmen of his era, he played for Delhi Capitals in IPL and Delhi and Haryana in Indian domestic cricket. He played his first One Day International in 1999 and joined the Indian Test side in 2001. In April 2009, Sehwag became the first Indian to be honoured as the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World for his performance in 2008, subsequently becoming the first player of any nationality to retain the award for 2009. He worked as stand-in captain occasionally during absence of main captain of India, also worked as Vice-Captain for Indian squad. He is former captain of Delhi Daredevils and Delhi Ranji Team. During his time with India, Sehwag was a member of the team that was one of the joint winners of the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, the winners of the 2007 T20 World Cup, and the winners of the 2011 Cricket World Cup. During the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, Sehwag was the highest run scorer with 271 runs. In 2023, he was inducted into ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dinesh Karthik</span> Indian cricketer

Krishnakumar Dinesh Karthik is an Indian commentator and former professional cricketer who played for the India national cricket team. He was also the captain of the Tamil Nadu cricket team in domestic cricket. He made his debut for the Indian cricket team in 2004. He was the 4th Indian batsman to play 300 T20 matches. Karthik was a member of the team that won both the inaugural 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Axar Patel</span> Indian cricketer

Akshar Rajeshbhai Patel, also spelled as Axar Patel, is an Indian international cricketer who plays for the Indian cricket team in all formats of the game as a bowling All-rounder. He also plays for Gujarat in domestic cricket and for the Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League. He is a left-handed batter and slow left-arm orthodox bowler. He was an integral part of the Indian squad which won the 2024 T20 World Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deepti Sharma</span> Indian cricketer

Deepti Bhagwan Sharma is an Indian cricketer who plays for Bengal, Birmingham Phoenix and India. She is an all-rounder who bats left-handed and bowls right-arm off break. As of 2018, she was ranked 3rd in the top all-rounders in the ICC Cricket Rankings and had the third highest individual score by a female cricketer in ODIs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Capsey</span> English cricketer

Alice Rose Capsey is an English cricketer who currently plays for Surrey, South East Stars, Oval Invincibles, Delhi Capitals and Melbourne Stars. An all-rounder, she is a right-handed batter and right-arm off break bowler. In 2021, Capsey was voted the inaugural PCA Women's Young Player of the Year. Capsey made her international debut for the England women's cricket team in July 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlie Dean</span> English cricketer

Charlotte Ellen Dean is an English cricketer who currently plays for Hampshire, Southern Vipers and London Spirit. An all-rounder, she is a right-handed batter and right-arm off break bowler. She made her international debut for the England women's cricket team in September 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 "IPL8: Four female commentators who are former cricketers-IndiaTV News" . Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  2. ↑ "Live Cricket Scores & News International Cricket Council" . Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  3. ↑ "Player Profile: Anjum Chopra". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 16 January 2010. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  4. ↑ "Player Profile: Anjum Chopra" . CricketArchive. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  5. ↑ "People would say, 'Oh, ladki ne kaise out kar diya': Anjum Chopra". www.hindustantimes.com. 1 October 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  6. ↑ "Pathmakers – First to 1000 ODI runs from each country". Women's CricZone. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  7. ↑ "St Stephen's G-jams, nimbu paani must-haves: Anjum Chopra". 20 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "5 top players in the Indian women's cricket team in the last decade". 3 December 2013. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  9. ↑ "Anjum receives Padma Shri award". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  10. ↑ "Anjum Chopra first Indian woman to be honoured with MCC life membership". 7 September 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  11. ↑ Kowjalgi, kaushal (8 March 2017). "Women's Day Special: Top 5 Indian women cricketers to have made name in 'gentleman's game'". www.indiansportsnews.com. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  12. ↑ Poor Cousins of Million Dollar Babies preview on YouTube
  13. ↑ Garg, Swati (22 August 2014). "Indian women's cricket team: Poor cousins of the million dollar babies". Sportskeeda . Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  14. ↑ "Anjum Chopra and other former women cricketers part of IPL commentary team". 7 April 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  15. ↑ Lokapally, Vijay (7 September 2016). "Anjum, India's first woman to get MCC membership". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  16. ↑ "Let's get dangerous". Midday. 5 June 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.