Delhi’s Nidhi makes dream India debut

Delhi all-rounder Nidhi Mahto announced herself on the international stage with a Player-of-the-Match performance on her India Under-19 debut against Sri Lanka in Chennai earlier this week. It was a dream performance for someone with a lot of talent, promise, and potential to become a star.

Thanks to 18-year-old Nidhi’s 44-ball 59 – the second-highest score of the Indian innings – and her three-wicket haul, the national under-19 team defeated Sri Lanka under-19 comprehensively by 93 runs in the first of the three T20 matches at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, on June 22.

Nidhi is slightly built and small in stature, but is a capable batter and a good leg-spinner. She is a brilliant fielder, too, making her close to the perfect T20 package that any team would love to have.

Nidhi, the daughter of an electrician, first made her presence felt in Delhi colours, then the T20 Delhi Premier League (DPL) while representing Central Delhi Queens (CDQ), and now for India under-19. Renowned coaches like Sharwan Kumar and Shivaram Rai, a former Delhi age-group coach, have shaped Nidhi’s career.

The turning point

A big turning point for Nidhi came when the India under-19 head coach, Nooshin Al Khadeer, a former world No.1 bowler, saw her potential and promoted her to the crucial No.3 position on her India debut against Sri Lanka.

In Delhi, and for her DPL franchise, CDQ, Nidhi has mostly been batting at numbers 5 or 6, positions that have prevented her from fully showcasing her batting prowess.

But Nooshin, a decorated former India off-spinner, realised Nidhi’s batting capability and sent her at No 3. That decision was spot on as Nidhi, the batter, flourished after India lost the first two wickets for just 26. Then, Nidhi and Captain Bhavika Ahore raised a crucial 128 runs off just 83 balls that helped the team to 170 for six in overs.

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And when Bhavika handed Nidhi the ball as the seventh bowler, she wreaked havoc as she captured three wickets for five runs in nine balls. Although she missed a hat-trick, Nidhi wouldn’t mind, especially as she has been picked in the Indian under-19 ODI series against Sri Lanka beginning June 30.

“Nidhi’s promotion to No 3 was a turning point, and credit goes to Nooshin for that. In the last two years in Delhi, various teams would send her at No 5 or No 6, where, especially while chasing targets, the batter is always confused whether to attack or defend. She gained a lot at the Indian team camp before the Sri Lanka series as her talent was recognised in all three departments,” Rai told Patriot.

CDQ Team Director Gautam Vadhera was equally happy for Nidhi. “We bought Nidhi as an all-rounder. At our net practice sessions, we noticed that the ball would come out of her hand well. Plus, we got positive feedback from the Delhi under-15 coaching staff [she is a former Delhi under-15 captain]. She is an explosive batter and a potential star,” predicted Vadhera, the batting coach of Delhi women’s T20 and ODI teams in 2025-26.