Sonam Yadav (Cricketer)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Sonam Yadav

• Sonam Yadav is an Indian cricketer, who was a part of the 2023 World Cup-winning Indian U-19 T20 squad. She plays for the Under-19 team primarily as a bowler.

• Sonam grew up in an economically weaker family in Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh.

• Sonam developed an interest in cricket at a young age by watching her brother play cricket. Her brother was earlier a cricketer. He left the sport due to financial constraints.

• At the age of 13, Sonam started playing cricket at nearby parks with the boys of her society.

• Her brother, who used to accompany her noticed that Sonam often ended up dismissing boys who were older than her age. Looking at her passion towards cricket, her brother enrolled her at District Cricket Academy in Firozabad. At the academy, Sonam trained under coach Ravi Yadav.

• Apparently, she was the only girl at the academy. In an interview, while talking about it, she said,
  

  I was the only one. All the boys there supported me and made me comfortable. When I joined the academy, I was very nervous, but slowly and steadily, I settled in, thanks to the other players.”

• After training at the academy for around a year, Sonam made her place in the Uttar Pradesh U19 Women’s team, playing her debut match for the state team in 2018.

• During the final match of a T20 tournament in 2018, Sonam helped her team win the tournament by taking three wickets of the Andhra Pradesh Women.

• In the same year, she played her first One-day match for Uttar Pradesh.

• Later, she was selected for a camp at Zonal Cricket Academy.

• After watching her performance at the state and zonal levels, the Indian selectors named her to the U19 Indian women’s cricket team for the New Zealand series. In the series, she took six wickets in four matches.

• Later, she became a part of the U19 Indian Women Squad for Women T20 U19 World Cup 2023. After her selection, Sonam received a four-day training in cricket at Goa. Afterwards, she also went to Visakhapatnam for training.

• Sonam got an opportunity to play for India in 6 matches of the World Cup. After taking 5 wickets in the tournament, Sonam became the leading wicket-taker for India. Her best performance in the tournament was taking two wickets by giving just one run in an over.

  

• In an interview, Ravi Yadav, Sonam’s coach, revealed that Sonam initially desired to become a batsman. However, Ravi after noticing her brilliant bowling skills decided to train her in both, batting and bowling.

• Sonam gives the credit for her success to her brother, Aman Yadav, and her coaches Ravi Yadav and Vikas Paliwal.

• Sonam admires the Indian cricketer Ravindra Jadeja. In an interview, while talking about Ravindra Jadeja, Sonam said,
  

  I have always looked up to Ravindra Jadeja. I like his bowling accuracy and pace variations.”

• Sonam has won various awards and trophies for her performance in cricket. In 2020, she was awarded best bowler of the tournament during the Under-16 Women’s Zonal League.

  

• In a media conversation, her father revealed that they brought home television on rent during the 2023 U-19 Women’s World Cup to watch Sonam play cricket at the international level.

• In February 2023, she was sold to Mumbai Indians for Rs 10 lakh in the inaugural 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.