Born in Tamilnadu, India in 1988, Karthika Vijayaraghavan is the wicket keeper for the German national team, the “Golden Eagles.”
Cricket is nature to someone born in India but it was basketball that originally captured the youngster’s attention.
“No professional background but I was a basketball player back in India. Yes, I know I am just 5’2 but played point guard for 14 years.”
Upon moving to Germany following her marriage, Karthika began to take cricket more seriously and in 2017, despite cricket being just a hobby, things began to more forwards.
“In a few months we had some senior players, Monika and the German coach come in for selections. I was in just for my batting and quick reflexes while fielding.”
The German coach, Michael Thewlis, noticed something about this player and suggested she might take up wicket keeping.
“Before the European World T20 qualifiers Michael our coach on Jan 2019 just threw the keeper gloves at me and said your reflexes are great. You have 2 months to prove that you can keep. I took that challenge.”
Karthika certainly took up that challenge and has proven to be an excellent wicket keeper for the Golden Eagles. She has played in 32 T20 Internationals, taking 5 catches and 5 stumpings. Rare opportunities with the bat due to the dominance of the top order means she’s not often seen with bat in hand, with her best effort to date 36 not out.
(Photo: Deutscher Cricket Bund)