Shabnam Shakil (Cricketer)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Shabnam Shakil

• Shabnam Shakil is an Indian cricketer. She plays for the U-19 Indian Women’s cricket team as a bowler. In 2023, she was a part of the Indian Women’s team that won the inaugural Women’s U-19 T20 World Cup.

• She grew up in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, in a middle-class family.

• Shabnam grew up watching her father play cricket and developed an interest in fast bowling when she was too young; her father was a fast pacer who played club cricket.

• At the age of eight, her father enrolled her at the NAD Academy in Visakhapatnam for training in cricket. At the academy, Shabnam was trained by coach Nagaraju.

• Shabnam also practised at Visakhapatnam District Cricket Association (VDCA) ground in the evening. There, she was trained by Satish Reddy and Krishna Rao.

• After a few years of training, Shabnam started playing cricket at the district level.

  

• Shabnam made her U-19 debut for Andhra Pradesh in 2021. Soon, she made it to the Zonal Cricket Academy, where she was trained for zonal matches.

• While playing cricket at the zonal level, she caught the attention of the Indian selectors for her ability to bowl at 110 Kmph.

• Subsequently, she attended a camp at the National Cricket Academy with 25 other girls, where she was trained for the Quadrangular Series.

• In 2022, she was included in the India U-19 women’s squad for India’s five-match T20 series against New Zealand at the home ground. The series took place from 27 November 2022 to 6 December 2022 at the MCA Bandra Kurla Complex ground in Mumbai.

• In the same year, Shabnam played for India B Women Under-19 at the Women’s U19 T20 Quadrangular Series that featured India A, India B, Sri Lanka, and West Indies. She made two dismissals in four overs and bowled 18 dot balls in a match of the series.

• In 2023, she was included in the Indian Women’s U-19 squad for the U-19 T20 World Cup. Shabnam got the chance to play in only two matches of the tournament.

  

• Some of the teams that Shabnam has represented at the national and international levels include Andhra Pradesh Women, India A Women Under-19, India B Women Under-19, and India Women Under-19.

• In her spare time, she loves to dance and play badminton and chess.

• She is a huge fan of the Indian cricketers Jhulan Goswami and Jasprit Bumrah.

• In an interview, when asked about the secret behind bowling at a speed of 110kph at the age of just 15, Shabnam replied,
  

  My coach always says that everything is in the name. You are a fast bowler, so you have to bowl nothing but fast. From the day I started playing cricket, my only aim was to bowl as fast as possible. Gradually I developed good bouncers. I aim at the batter’s ribs when I am bowling.”

• In February 2023, she was sold to Gujarat Giants for Rs 10 lakh in the first WPL auction.

• She was part of the Indian U-19 women’s team that won the T20 World Cup in February 2025. The BCCI announced a cash prize of Rs. 5 crores for all the members of the team.