Moksha Chaudhary, the 31-year-old fast bowler from Patiala has been named to the USA women's cricket team, which will compete in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup Americas Qualifier in Mexico from October 18 to 25.
In a double round-robin event, the USA women's squad will face Argentina, Brazil, and Canada to determine which side will advance to the ICC Women's World Twenty20 World Qualifier in 2022.
Chaudhary, a former student of Patiala's Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, has always admired Australia's Glenn McGrath and India's Jhulan Goswami.
“I have played a lot of cricket since moving to the USA. Although getting selected for the national camp is the highlight of my cricketing career in India, I watched and learned a lot from some of the greatest in women’s cricket like Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur, and a few others. And now, I am thrilled to play in my first ever ICC event representing the USA,” added Chaudhary.
Sindhu Sriharsha will captain the 15-member USA women's squad in the event in Mexico, which will feature players of Indian origin. Chaudhary is the only one having Punjabi ancestors.
On the contribution of players from the subcontinent, Chaudhary said, “The women’s game in the USA has strong support from those with a subcontinent background. We do have players from the Caribbean and other parts of the world as well, and most are residents in the USA.”
Chaudhary, who enjoys talking on the phone with her trainers in Patiala, hopes to make a name for herself in the United States in the coming years. “I want to play for the USA in the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 World Qualifier in 2022. And thereafter qualify for the Twenty20 World Cup to be held in South Africa in 2023,” said Chaudhary, who is known for bowling with the new ball and also extracting swing.
