Fatima Sana was bought by Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred wildcard draft following Lucy Hamilton’s decision to pull out of the competition. This made her the first Pakistan woman player to be slotted in for The Hundred. For Fatima, however, it also meant that she would play under her childhood idol, Ellyse Perry.
Fatima’s idol
Fatima has made no bones about her admiration for Australian all-rounder and Birmingham’s captain Perry. On her first away tour of Australia, a shy Fatima Sana asked Australian players to introduce her to Perry. Since then, the two players have faced each other on a few occasions, the most recent of which came during the T20 World Cup against Australia, where it was incidentally Fatima who dismissed the Australian player.
This is, however, the first time she is in the same team as Perry, who had heaps of praise for ‘competitive’ Fatima.
“Fatima Sana is a wonderful player,” Perry said. “I’ve been aware of her since she started playing for the Pakistan team. She’s phenomenally talented. She started as a young player and is now a senior member of the team, leading the group and playing such an important role for the side. She has wonderful skills with the ball, especially upfront, and she’s a tremendous competitor.”
Fatima has played only two games for the Phoenix so far, though she is yet to announce her arrival in the tournament. That takes nothing away from the brilliance she has exhibited for Pakistan of late. Earlier this year, she scored the fastest fifty in a WT20I, taking just 15 balls to do so against Zimbabwe.
Perry loves playing against Fatima
The young all-rounder was one of Pakistan’s very scarce bright spots during an otherwise chastening T20 World Cup campaign. She was the joint second-highest wicket-taker, grabbing 11 scalps in just five games.
“Over the last couple of years, she has translated her batting too and matured as a player. She’s a great all-round talent. I love playing against her because you know how competitive she is, how much she loves playing cricket, and how much it means to her to represent her country.”
Perry was particularly full of praise for Fatima’s ability to keep on refining her craft in whatever ways she can. Before departing for The Hundred, Fatima told the media that one of the reasons behind her leaving national duty to play the competition was to rub shoulders with players from bigger teams and bring back what she learns to her side.
“I love sharing a dressing room with someone who is so engaged, enthusiastic, and committed to her craft and to getting better. I’m sure I’ll learn just as much from her as anything I might be able to offer in return. I’m not the only one excited to have her here; the whole group is too.”
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