Sharanya Sadarangani

{{Infobox cricketer

| name = Sharanya Sadarangani

| nickname =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1995|7|3|df=y}}

| birth_place = Bengaluru, India

| female = true

| fullname = Sharanya Sadarangani

| batting = Right-handed

| bowling = Right-arm spin

| role = Wicket-keeper-batter

| country = Germany

| international = true

| club1 = Essex

| year1 = 2014

| T20Idebutdate = 12 August

| T20Idebutyear = 2020

| T20Idebutagainst = Austria

| T20Icap = 17

| lastT20Idate = 28 July

| lastT20Iyear = 2024

| lastT20Iagainst = Italy

| T20Ishirt =

| columns = 2

| column1 =

| column2 = WT20I

| matches1 =

| matches2 = 34

| runs1 =

| runs2 = 223

| bat avg1 =

| bat avg2 = 10.13

| 100s/50s1 =

| 100s/50s2 = 0/0

| top score1 =

| top score2 = 25*

| deliveries1 =

| deliveries2 = 387

| wickets1 =

| wickets2 = 13

| bowl avg1 =

| bowl avg2 = 25.82

| fivefor1 =

| fivefor2 = 0

| tenfor1 =

| tenfor2 = 0

| best bowling1 =

| best bowling2 = 3/8

| catches/stumpings1 =

| catches/stumpings2 = 2/0

| date = 7 October 2024

| source = https://www.espncricinfo.com/player/sharanya-sadarangani-1229255 Cricinfo

}}

Sharanya "Sharu" Sadarangani (born 3 July 1995) is an Indian-born cricketer who plays for the Germany women's national cricket team as a wicket-keeper-batter, and sometimes as a bowler. Previously, she has played internationally for Denmark, and in English county cricket for Essex. In 2020, she became the first female cricketer to play in the European Cricket Series.{{cite news |title=How Bengaluru gully cricketers starred in German national team |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/how-bengaluru-gully-cricketers-starred-in-german-national-team/articleshow/78485093.cms |access-date=13 July 2021 |work=The Times of India |agency=TNN |date=5 October 2020}}{{cite news |language=de|last1=Altwein |first1=Jonas |title=Kummerfelds Sharanya Sadarangani schreibt Geschichte bei European Cricket Series|trans-title=Kummerfeld's Sharanya Sadarangani writes history at the European Cricket Series |url=https://www.shz.de/lokales/pinneberger-tageblatt/kummerfelds-sharanya-sadarangani-schreibt-geschichte-bei-european-cricket-series-id28860127.html |access-date=21 July 2021 |work=Pinneberger Tageblatt |date=4 July 2020}}{{cite news |last1=Moudgal |first1=Prasen |title=Bengaluru to Germany: Sharanya Sadarangani embodies that cricket cuts across boundaries |url=https://www.sportskeeda.com/cricket/bengaluru-germany-sharanya-sadarangani-embodies-cricket-cuts-across-boundaries |access-date=13 July 2021 |work=Sportskeeda |date=15 July 2020}}

Early life and career

Sadarangani began playing cricket as a young child in her hometown of Bengaluru, India. When she was in elementary school, was the only girl who played on the boy's cricket team and was required to obtain special permission from the national association to do so.{{cite news |last1=Jensen |first1=Björn |title=Cricket: Hamburgerinnen wollen sich für WM qualifizieren |trans-title=Cricket: Hamburg women want to qualify for World Cup |url=https://www.abendblatt.de/sport/article233142757/cricket-hamburgerinnen-wollen-sich-fuer-wm-qualifizieren.html?fbclid=IwAR2dhjuQS7XiYzGvXKHte2x1DSfrjKGSaKUQEBJQjN4kBm4VYzxCu8Bot28 |access-date=7 November 2021 |work=Hamburger Abendblatt |date=26 August 2021 |language=de}} A gifted child she also excelled creatively writing complex, novel-length stories while in elementary school. She also benefited from coaching at the Karnataka Institute of Cricket (KIOC), and played several times for the U-16 and U-19 Karnataka women's cricket teams, including a few matches under the stewardship of later Indian women's team cricketer Veda Krishnamurthy.

After completing a Pre-University degree at Jain College in Bengaluru, Sadarangani moved to Essex in England to study for a bachelor's degree in Liberal Arts. There, she also played for the Essex women's cricket team. A couple of years later, she relocated to Germany to pursue another educational degree, and began teaching English and coaching young cricketers. She also started playing the game for a club team in neighbouring Denmark.

International career

In June 2017, Sadarangani was selected for the Denmark national team squad.{{cite web |title=Sharanya Sadarangani |url=https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharanya-sadarangani-01074a114/?originalSubdomain=de |website=linkedin.com |publisher=LinkedIn |access-date=13 July 2021}} Two months later, in August 2017, she played for Denmark as a wicket-keeper-batter, in a European Women's T20 tournament in Antwerp, Belgium.{{cite web |title=Sharu Sadarangani |url=https://www.crichq.com/players/2193021/matches/results |website=cric HQ |access-date=13 July 2021}}

In the first match of a bilateral series between Germany and Austria held on 12 August 2020 at the Seebarn Cricket Ground near Vienna, Sadarangani made her debut for Germany, and also in Women's Twenty20 Internationals (WT20Is), as a specialist batter. In the third match of that series, held on 13 August 2020, she top scored for Germany with 25*, and also kept wicket for the first time in a WT20I.{{cite web |title=Sharanya Sadarangani |url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/player/sharanya-sadarangani-1229255/matches |website=ESPNcricinfo |publisher=ESPN Inc. |access-date=13 July 2021}}

On 8 July 2021, Sadarangani bowled for the first time in a WT20I, in the first match of another bilateral series, between Germany and France at the Bayer Uerdingen Cricket Ground, Krefeld. She also recorded her team's best bowling figures of 2 wickets for 10 runs. In the fifth and final match of that series, played on 10 July 2021, she was even more successful as a bowler, with figures of 2 for 6. The following month, she played in all four of Germany's matches in the 2021 ICC Women's T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier.{{cite web |title=ICC Women's T20 World Cup Europe Region Qualifier, 2021 Cricket Team Records & Stats {{!}} ESPNcricinfo.com |url=https://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/batting/most_runs_career.html?id=14092;type=tournament |website=ESPNcricinfo |access-date=5 December 2021}}

Personal life

Sadarangani worked in Germany as an English teacher for three years and is now doing public relations work for the national association. She met her husband Finn after moving to Germany; they live in Sasel, a suburb of Hamburg.