Born on January 30th 1967 in Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh, former India Test and ODI captain, Purnima Rau.
The right hand batter and off-break bowler made her debut for India in the 1993 World Cup, against the West Indies. She made a duck but took 1-9 from 7.4 overs. That miserly bowling would be a feature of Purnima’s game across her 33 ODIs where she took 50 wickets at 16.88 with an economy of 3.23.
On 7th February 1995 she made her Test debut, as captain, making Purnima Rau the sixth person to skipper the India women’s Test cricket team. She was up against Sarah Illingworth’s New Zealand outfit at Trafalgar Park, Nelson. The Test ended in a high scoring draw but Purnima picked up 3-95 with her off-breaks, removing Penny Kinsella, Kirsty Bond and the White Ferns captain.
Five days later she squared up against New Zealand in an ODI, becoming India’s fourth ODI captain. The skipper led her team to a two wicket victory. Purnima led India in eight ODIs, winning five of them.
As Test skipper, two of her three Tests in charge were at home against England in the thrilling 1995/6 series. As a player, over five Tests she took 15 wickets at 21.26 with a best of 5-24 against England at Denis Compton Oval in 1999.
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