Meet Fatima Sana – Pakistan’s new fast-bowling cricket captain

From playing tape-ball cricket on Karachi’s streets to leading Pakistan at the World Cup, 22-year-old Fatima Sana’s rise has been swift.

Pakistani cricketer Fatima Sana’s first brush with captaincy came under far from ideal circumstances.

Standing in for then-captain Nida Dar, Sana walked up to the batting crease with her team four wickets down for 35 runs in the second match of a one-day international (ODI) series against New Zealand in Christchurch.

The fast-bowling all-rounder turned the tide with a pivotal innings of 90 not out off 104 balls – hitting seven fours and a six – and helped Pakistan post a target of 221. With the ball in hand, she took the crucial wickets of New Zealand’s leading batter Amelia Kerr and captain Sophie Devine. But Pakistan lost the match. Three days later, Sana led Pakistan to their first-ever away win over New Zealand.

In Sana, Pakistan had inadvertently discovered a bold young leader, capable of changing the team’s fortunes with her all-round skills.

Ten months on, the 22-year-old will lead Pakistan at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

“When the Pakistan Cricket Board spoke to me about taking on the captaincy [in August], my entire career flashed before me,” Sana told Al Jazeera ahead of the tournament.

“I thought about my humble beginnings, and cried when I broke the news to my family.”

It has been a swift rise for Sana, who made her ODI and T20 international debuts as a 17-year-old in May 2019, and transformed into the leader of Pakistan’s bowling attack. Her 84 wickets across 82 international matches are the most for a Pakistani pacer since her debut.

.@imfatimasana named Pakistan captain for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024