MUMBAI: Around the same time a year ago, Richa Ghosh was on her way to South Africa after wrapping up a T20I series against Australia. With a strike rate of 179.36, she was amongst only five batters who crossed 100 runs in the five-match series and she was eager to take that form into the U19 T20 World Cup.
Test cricket was nowhere in the picture. So when the 20-year-old made her Test debut at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai against Australia, her father had no words to describe his joy.
"This is a feeling I cannot describe in words," Manabendra told this daily. "Every time India is playing, we try to make sure to be present at the venue, so we were always going to come to Mumbai. Every kid who starts playing cricket wants to play for India, wants to play this format. So we are very happy to see her debut. This is one of those special moments for us," he added.
"I know he is very happy and proud," Ghosh told the media after the day's play. "For him and everyone in the family, it (receiving a Test cap) was like a moment they were waiting for. And everyone knows how big a deal the Test cap is. I know he couldn't express his feelings, but he didn't have to. I understood what he felt. For me, the biggest thing was having my family with me through this," she added.
Even on her debut, Ghosh batted like she always knew how to play in the format. After a dropped catch on 14 by Ellyse Perry, she got a lifeline and the Bengal batter never looked back in her maiden innings. "Test cricket hai, test lega hi (it's a Test, it will test you). So I knew I had to come out of my comfort zone in this format.
When Jemi came, we wanted to build a partnership and as long as we were out there in the middle, she encouraged me a lot. It felt good to have her. I got the time to prepare for this Test and I discussed with the coaching staff, what I could do. I think it helped me a lot." she mentioned.
In her partnership with Jemimah Rodrigues, who made her debut just last week, Ghosh tried to neutralize the main Australian threat in their spinners. The partnership of 113 runs off 187 after losing Smriti Mandhana early in the day easily wiped off India's overnight deficit and built a solid foundation for the middle order to pile on that lead, which is exactly what Deepti Sharma and Pooja Vastrakar did after lunch.
"When Jemimah came, we wanted to build a partnership and as long as we were out there in the middle, she encouraged me a lot. It felt good to have her. Sir told me at night that I would debut in the next match against Australia. In my mind, I was so happy that I had been given an opportunity. I didn't let any pressure get to me about playing my first Test. I banked on my prior international experience of playing against Australia in T20s and ODIs and went with that," Ghosh, mainly known as the white-ball batter reflected, on her first day at Test cricket.
With two days to go, Ghosh knows how hard it is going to be for the batters coming up. With a partnership of 100 runs between Sharma and Vastrakar and three more wickets in hand, India has the opportunity to make Australia bat on the challenging pitch when it's getting even more tricky to bat on.
"As you can see in the match, the pitch is staying low. Some are staying low and a few balls are bouncing. So it is challenging for batters and the pitch will naturally slow down further as time goes by," she warned.
With the success of the U19 T20 World Cup, her performance in the senior T20 World Cup, Women's Premier League, and now a Test debut, 2023 has been a phenomenal year for Ghosh.
With her half-century, all three of India's debutants in these two Tests have proved what they can do in the longest format. They just need more opportunities.
