This was in May 2021 when the country was under the influence of a second wave. The walls of the house were getting claustrophobic. Each day was a grim reminder that things weren’t perfect. The sport had not yet picked up on the world stage and it was not something no one had ever seen before. Goswami was getting restless.
“Every moment I am at home affects my fitness and my health,” she said.
Time was calling to him and no one knew it better than Goswami himself. With an insatiable hunger to perform for the team and move on till the last step, she had asked about the N95 masks she needed for training and wanted to take some to England.
Goswami was not worried about the virus. What mattered was cricket.
At 38, Goswami was ready for the tough yard. Waking up at 5 a.m. before people arrive, planning innovative exercises at home to keep things going, running more laps than every young man she trains with. This was Goswami throughout his career. All she knew was hard work, not leaving things to chance and preparing her best.
For two decades, Goswami could not afford to disappoint thousands of aspiring women whose sense of self-confidence was shaped by him. Indians can bowl fast, redefine the narrative and aspire to greatness is Goswami’s contribution to the game.
Goswami took his wickets in front of thousands. She was for fans in flesh and blood, for people to experience and be a part of her journey, to enjoy and consume the acts that had preceded her.
Women’s cricket has been accustomed to discrimination for the longest time before Mithali Raj and Goswami. He was used to the narrative of deprivation, content to play second fiddle.
The story of Goswami was different. It was domination and claim, victory and achievement, bowling fast and breaking taboos, creating a niche that many would now like to emulate.
How can one best describe Goswami? That she was one of the best things I’ve seen in the world is known and accepted. It is also known that she was the most diligent and conscientious. What can be added here is that she was equally obsessed, a quality that was necessary to be great. His longevity as a fast bowler is a testament to this.
“I was moving up and down in the room till around 3.30 pm. My mind was filled with self-doubt. It was not a happy place,” Goswami had said a day after a no-ball resulted in India’s ODI win against Australia in September 2021.
She was not one to forgive and forget.
“After sleeping really late, I woke up the next morning at around 10.30”, she said.
“Within a few minutes Harmanpreet (Kaur) and Smriti (Mandhana) called me and said they were taking me out for breakfast. I have my own routine for pre match day mornings but they were insisting that I break my routine. They didn’t give me a chance,” she laughed.
His teammates at breakfast helped him relax and focus on the third and final game.
“When I came out to bowl for the final ODI, my body was in pain but my mind was racing. I had to do well.” He scored the winning run and helped India win the match.
She wouldn’t rest easily otherwise. She was fine to let herself down, but when it came to her team, it was non-negotiable. He has done the same thing throughout his career.
And by doing so, he earned himself the status of a legend in his game. The game is poor now.
Women’s cricket will miss him. And she will miss being in the middle and running for India. But she knows that she has given her everything. Every ball thrown was a symbol of effort. He enriched his game and inspired many. She may not have won the World Cup, but she was part of a revolution in Indian women’s cricket.
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