Diana Baig

Diana Baig (born 15 October 1995) is a Pakistani cricketer and former footballer.^[1] In cricket, she plays primarily as a right-arm medium-fast bowler.^[2][3] Baig was included in Pakistan squad for the 2013 Women's Cricket World Cup and 2016 ICC Women's World Twenty20.^[4][5][6]

Diana Baig

Personal information
Full name	Diana Baig
Born	(1995-10-15) 15 October 1995 (age 29) Hunza, Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm medium-fast
Role	Bowler
International information
National side	Pakistan (2015–present)
ODI debut (cap 71)	4 October 2015 v Bangladesh
Last ODI	10 November 2023 v Bangladesh
T20I debut (cap 35)	1 November 2015 v West Indies
Last T20I	1 September 2023 v South Africa
T20I shirt no.	42
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2009/10–2014	Islamabad
2011/12–2012/13	Federal Capital
2014	Saif Sports Saga
2015–2016	Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited
2017	Higher Education Commission
2018	Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited
2018/19	Higher Education Commission
Career statistics
Competition WODI WT20I WLA WT20 Matches 35 28 81 59 Runs scored 135 33 466 118 Batting average 6.13 5.50 11.09 7.86 100s/50s 0/0 0/0 0/2 0/0 Top score 35* 6* 51* 28 Balls bowled 1,475 553 3,446 1,102 Wickets 37 23 97 40 Bowling average 30.94 23.17 25.06 28.35 5 wickets in innings 0 0 2 0 10 wickets in match 0 0 0 0 Best bowling 4/30 2/12 5/28 3/23 Catches/stumpings 15/– 8/– 39/– 24/–
Source: CricketArchive, 21 January 2023

Early life and education

Diana Baig was born in Hunza, Gilgit Baltistan. Her interest in sports started with street cricket and football.^[7] Learned and enthusiastic, she moved to Lahore, for her intermediate and undergraduate studies. She opted for Lahore College for Women University, where her endeavors were rewarded by the college. Her multi-talented sporting side gives her the edge, as she can represent her country at international level for both, football and cricket. She is fluent in English, Urdu and Burushaski.

Career

Football

Baig began in football by chance. She was selected for the domestic football team when there was a shortage of players.^[8]

Cricket

Baig started her career in 2010, leading the Gilgit-Baltistan women's cricket team. She was selected for Pakistan's A team in 2012 and for the squad of the full national team in 2013.

She made her international cricket debut in 2015 against Bangladesh.^[7]

Her bowling and fielding performance in the ODI against India in 2017 Women's Cricket World Cup was impressive and was praised by Ian Bishop, one of the commentators. She came into the team in place of Kainat Imtiaz, and she immediately made an impact by taking an important wicket, Smriti Mandhana with an inswinger. ^[9]

In October 2018, she was named in Pakistan's squad for the 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20 tournament in the West Indies.^[10][11] In January 2020, she was named in Pakistan's squad for the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Australia.^[12] In October 2021, she was named in Pakistan's team for the 2021 Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe.^[13] In January 2022, she was named in Pakistan's team for the 2022 Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.^[14] In May 2022, she was named in Pakistan's team for the cricket tournament at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.^[15]

She was named in the Pakistan squad for the 2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup.^[16]