Hurley Gala is an Indian cricketer and fast-bowler who was a part of India’s squad for the ICC Women’s Under-19 Cricket World Cup which won the tournament in January 2023 in South Africa.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Hurley Tanmay Gala was born on Tuesday, 19 September 2006 (age 16 years; as of 2022) in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Her zodiac sign is Virgo. She was athletic since childhood and used to play multiple sports.
A childhood picture of Hurley Gala on the podium receiving medal after her first race in which she stood first
Till Class 7, she attended at Utpal Shanghvi School, and later she enrolled into St Columba School in Mumbai. Growing up, she was a skating champion at the state and national levels. One day, when she was 11, she twisted her ankle while skating following which she had to take a year-long break from the sport. During this break, at her father’s suggestion, she tried her hand at cricket. At that time, Gujarati Mid-day, a news daily from Mumbai, conducted a recreational cricket competition for housing societies. Gala’s society also fielded a team and Hurley was part of it. She performed well in those matches. That’s when her father suggested that she take up cricket as her game. Tanmay turned to his relative and friend Vishal Karya for advice as he had some cricketing credentials. They decided to employ a personal coach for her. Meanwhile, Hurley started playing with leather balls at a private ground owned by Karya. One day her uncle met junior cricket coach Ivan Rodrigues at a sports shop and told him about Hurley. Ivan Rodrigues is the father of Indian cricketer Jemimah Rodrigues, an allrounder on the Mumbai women’s cricket team. Thereafter, she started training under Ivan Rodrigues at the Negev Cricket Academy in Juhu, as they used the facilities of the private ground owned by Karya. Initially, she was a batter, but her coach noticed that she had the game to become a fast bowler. At school, she was making her presence felt in the inter-school competitions. Her performance in the Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) tournament caught the attention of Mumbai cricket selectors. During the semi-final of the MSSA tournament, she took a hat-trick with the ball and then went on to score a crucial 30-plus score in quick time in the final. At 13, following her impeccable performance at the Late Arjun Madhvi Women’s Trophy in Thane, she was selected to play for Mumbai’s Under-19 Women’s team. Later, she honed her skills training at MIG Cricket Club, Bandra under Prashant Shetty. She had fitness and fielding coaches in Venancio D’souza and Sachin Jagtap. That year, she got picked for Mumbai U-19 women’s team. She was selected for NCA’s Under-19 (Girls) 2022 camp.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 4″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: black
Hurley Gala posing with her trophy after winning the Quadrangular Women’s U19 T20 Series 2022
Family
She belongs to a Gujarati family. Her father, Tanmay Gala, is an internet and cable service provider in Juhu, Mumbai. Her mother, Bhavika Gala, is a homemaker. She has a younger sister. She lives in a joint family with her parents, sister, grandparents, and her uncle and his family.
Hurley Gala’s parents
Hurley Gala with her family
Career
Domestic
After representing Mumbai U19, she made her way into the senior Mumbai team in domestic cricket. In 2021, in her debut series for the senior Mumbai team, she caught attention when she dismissed the players Deepti Sharma in her first game and Shafali Verma in her second game. On 3 November 2021, she made her List A debut with the Women’s Senior One Day Trophy in which she represented Mumbai in a match against Odisha; Odisha Women won the match by 69 runs.
International
On 27 November 2022, she made her international debut in a T20 match against New Zealand during the New Zealand Women Under-19s tour of India. The series of T20 matches were held in Mumbai, and the India Women Under-19s team won all of them. She represented India A in the Quadrangular Women’s U19 T20 Series 2022, which won by 77 runs. Thereafter, she was named to India’s squad for ICC Women’s Under-19 Cricket World Cup. The squad consisted of Shafali Verma (captain), Shweta Sehrawat (vice-captain), Richa Ghosh (wicket-keeper), G Trisha, Soumya Tiwari, Sonia Mendhiya, Hrishita Basu (wicket-keeper), Sonam Yadav, Mannat Kashyap, Archana Devi, Parshavi Chopra, Titas Sadhu, Falak Naz, and Shabnam MD. The tournament took place in January 2023 in South Africa with matches being played in the T20 format. On 17 January 2023, Hurley Gala was ruled out of the world cup due to a laceration on her right thumb. She was replaced by Yashasri Soppadhandhi. On 29 January 2023, India won the tournament by 7 wickets.
WPL
In February 2023, Gujarat Giants bought her for Rs 10 lakh in the inaugural WPL auction.
Facts/Trivia
- Her batting style is right-hand Bat and her bowling style is right-arm Medium.
- In an interview, she revealed that she draws inspiration from Jemimah Rodrigues. While talking about Rodrigues she said,
I never had a role model. However, having played under the captainship of Jemimah Rodrigues for Mumbai, I look up to her for inspiration. I like the way she handles herself in a pressure situation. Also, I admire the way she leads the team by example. She makes every player in the team comfortable, puts her hand around them, and gives them confidence.”
