Barefoot bowler to India’s ace: Kranti Goud’s rise as a feared pacer

Kranti Goud delivered a masterclass in India’s recently concluded series against Australia, claiming the wicket of the dangerous Alyssa Healy in all three ODIs.

Her three-wicket haul in the second ODI powered India to a 102-run victory, keeping the series alive. Even in a run-fest decider, the 22-year-old pacer asserted her dominance over the Australian captain completing a 3-for-3 against one of the world’s most feared batters.

It is the kind of performance which announces a star.

But to understand what makes Krantiâ€s rise special, you have to rewind far from New Chandigarh or Delhi.

Cricket began for Kranti at a bare village ground in Ghuwara, Bundelkhand. A 12-year-old girl, youngest among six siblings, ran in with the wind in her face and no cricket shoes on her feet.

Years later, the same run-up ended in a ball that crashed through Healyâ€s defence. A month before that, England had felt the sting too, when Kranti tore through their batting with six wickets in Chester-le-Street.

Krantiâ€s father lost his job when she was still in school; her mother parted with jewellery to fund her daughterâ€s cricketing dreams.

School itself ended after grade 8, as survival pressed harder than studies. Opportunity came by accident when a local match needed players. She filled in and the Player of the Match award found its way into her hands.

More than the prize, it caught the eye of coach Rajiv Bilthare, who took her into the SAI Academy and gave her what the family could not – just shoes and kit.

Coach Chandrakant Pandit, who led Madhya Pradesh and KKR in the IPL, first spotted Kranti at open trials in Indore when she was just 17. He was instantly drawn to her smooth action and fearless run-up.

Under Pandit’s guidance, Kranti not only sharpened her bowling but also rediscovered it after injuries, growing into a complete cricketer with fire.

After that, things moved with quiet velocity. A stint as a net bowler for the Mumbai Indians put her name on the radar. A Rs 10 lakh contract with UP Warriorz at the WPL showed the marketâ€s faith in her raw pace.

And then, the biggest leap – an India call-up in May. The wickets came almost immediately. She has taken 14 wickets in her first 7 ODIs, averaging 21.21 runs apiece, with a control and economy rare in someone her age.

What defines Kranti is not just the numbers but the manner. A smooth run-up, a ball that shapes both ways, and a bouncer that rises nastily enough to surprise even set batters.

She is not flash; she is precise, and willing to grind a batter down. And to the Indian team going into the ODI World Cup, she is the new-ball partner Renuka Singh had been waiting for, the one to make Indiaâ€s pace attack look genuinely dangerous again.

Yet, for all the headlines, she remains grounded by the same soil she grew up on. The hardships that shaped her are not far behind; they are stitched into her run-up.

As the World Cup draws closer, the story of Kranti Goud feels less like the rise of a newcomer and more like the arrival of a force.

She has come too far to be overwhelmed, too hardened to be easily broken. And if history has taught us anything, it is to beware the bowler who once learned to run in without shoes, because now she has found her stride.

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