Living the dream
Born in Lalmonirhat, Jesy did her schooling till class 7. "I was very adamant about playing cricket. When I was aspiring to be a cricketer, we didn't have a national women's team. But I knew one day there will be one, and I was determined to be a part of it," says Jesy. "My inspiration was Sachin Tendulkar. When I was getting to know of him, he already had 18 centuries in his bag. He was the reason I fell in love with the game."
Jesy's parents were very pleased with her academic result, but did not appreciate her craze for cricket. They tried to convince her to stay in school, but she was determined to go to Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Pratishthan (BKSP). After seeing her passion and talent, her parents came around, but there was still a lot of criticism that Jesy had to face from outsiders for being a girl who plays cricket. "But I was so in love with the game that I knew that I couldn't let anyone's words get to
me," she says.
In 2007, after an internal all-women's league, the best players were selected and our women's national cricket team was finally formed- inevitably, Jesy was selected! Jesy has been the Vice Captain of the National Women's Team for a few years, she has also been the captain of the Abahani team, and is now captaining the Rupali Bank team, who are in the middle of a tournament right now. "Some of the greatest achievements as a cricketer, though, have been with the whole team," says Jesy. "I think the most memorable was when we got our ODI (One Day International) status in 2011. Apart from that, there was also the time when Salma Khatun, Tithi Rani Sarkar and I got the first salaries as female cricketers, and in 2007, when we became the champions in the ACC Women's Tournament."
Jesy is closest to teammates Tithi Rani Sarkar and Lata Mandal, and from the men's team, Shakib Al Hasan. "Shakib and I have been friends since our BKSP days. We even go to the same university now. He is definitely one of my favourites from the men's team. He and I get together every now and then and discuss games, tips and techniques," she says.
Apart from this, Jesy is also a prominent television personality as she hosts many talk shows on cricket during major tournaments like the T20 World Cup or the ICC World Cup.
Jesy is currently doing her Master's in Development Studies from American International University, Bangladesh (AIUB), while focusing on her cricketing career at the same time. "I took and also topped a Level 2 coaching course in Malaysia. I am currently coaching orphan girls to play cricket through an NGO in Gazipur- Kishori Unnayan Kendra. I hope to take up coaching after my career as a cricketer is over."
Comments