It’s scary to think where India will be in five years’ time: Sarah Taylor Premium

Sarah Taylor highlights the rapid growth of women's cricket in India, emphasizing its exciting future due to franchise leagues.

Sarah Taylor has been a trailblazer in women’s cricket in many ways.

During her distinguished playing career for England, spanning a 13-year period (2006 to 2019), she was a wicketkeeper of such supreme skill that Australian legend Adam Gilchrist, in 2018, described her as the best in the world – male or female – behind the stumps. Known particularly for her sharpness standing up to the wicket, she effected 104 stumpings in 226 matches across all formats.

A long-standing battle with mental health forced Sarah to retire from international cricket at the age of 30, but it hasn’t deterred her from continuing to leave her stamp on the willow game.

In 2021, she made headlines around the world for breaking the glass ceiling when she was roped in by County side Sussex as part of the support staff for the men’s team. A year later, she became a specialist wicketkeeping coach for Manchester Originals in the men’s Hundred. Currently, she is part of the coaching staff helmed by Andrew Flintoff at England Lions, which acts as a feeder to the senior men’s set-up.

In mid-2025, her induction into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame alongside M.S. Dhoni, Matthew Hayden, Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Daniel Vettori and Sana Mir was another feather in an already-ornate cap.

Sarah has now made her way to the Women’s Premier League as well as fielding coach of the Gujarat Giants. In a wide-ranging interview with The Hindu on a breezy Sunday morning, the 36-year-old opened up about her induction into the ICC Hall of Fame, her coaching assignments, mental health, and her fondness for the craft of wicketkeeping…