Sana Mir's rise to the top

Pakistan's Sana Mir became the most successful spinner in women's one-day international history when she dismissed South Africa's Sune Luus in the third ODI of the ICC Women's Championship in Benoi on Sunday, 12 May.

Mir, who picked up her 147th ODI wicket in her 118th game, finished with figures of 1/53 in the thrilling tied match. She is third on the list of all-time leading wicket-takers in women's cricket, behind fast bowlers Jhulan Goswami (218) from India and Cathryn Fitzpatrick (180) from Australia.

"It's a proud moment," said Mir. "Pakistan's flag is flying higher. I never thought I'd reach so far when I started out ... Of course, I would have been happier had we won, but still, it's a tie, it's not a bad result."

The 33-year-old, who made her ODI debut in 2005 at the age of 20, spoke about the challenges she had to overcome to get to where she is now. "My father was in Army, so, we had to move around a lot. This meant making new friends, but at the same time proving my cricket abilities to them again and again," she said.

"From street cricket to playing on the grounds and moving to stadia donning the Pakistan kit were moments of immense pride. From there, my goals started getting bigger and bigger as I started achieving results on the field."

The off-spinner is currently third on the ICC Women's ODI rankings for bowlers and had topped the list in October last year. She believes the secret to her success is her dedication towards performing for the team and not playing for individual records.

"The more your intention is to contribute for the team, the more success comes to you. This journey has taught me that keeping the team goal ahead of everything else brings satisfaction along with fame, recognition and success," said Mir, who picked up six wickets at an economy of 3.88 in the three matches against South Africa women. She is also the highest overall wicket-taker in the Women's Championship games with 35 wickets in 15 matches, which include four four-wicket hauls.

Chief selector and former Pakistan women captain Urooj Mumtaz also lavished praise on the experienced bowler. Mumtaz, who captained Mir in 26 ODIs, called Mir "great role model" for Pakistan cricket.

"Sana has been a great role model for our cricket, in fact, world cricket, her hard work, dedication and humility is absolutely admirable. I have really enjoyed captaining her as she had a great cricketing mind.

"Her achievements as a bowler don’t surprise me much since I have always felt she would go a long way considering the talent and the ability she had of applying herself under pressure," she concluded.