But as soon as she puts on her school uniform and steps onto the field with a rubber ball in her hands, the shy girl transforms into a fearless, strong and determined one.
“When the ball is in my hand, all I can think about is getting the batter,” she says.
Her classmate Asha, who is often on the other end with bat in hand, describes Sushila’s bowling as “tough”.
“Her ball takes an unexpected turn and then suddenly hits the wicket,” she says.
At home, Sushila’s mother Shantibai is proud of her daughter’s achievements.
She says that although many people want to meet her, not everyone supports her.
Some questioned the parents for letting their daughter play cricket instead of doing household chores.
Such attitudes are common in parts of rural India, where girls are often expected to stay at home and are discouraged from participating in sports or activities outside of traditional gender roles.
“I don’t say anything to them and I don’t listen to what they say,” says Shantibai.
“I will never stop her from playing cricket.”
Everyone at Sushila’s school plays cricket and the credit goes to their teacher Ishwarlal Meena.
“I started encouraging students to play cricket when I joined in 2017,” he says. “You need a fun activity to get them interested in school or they’ll stay home.”
Mr. Mina says that at first he and other teachers formed teams and made students play with them. Soon everyone wanted to join.
Although he has taken on the role of their coach, Mr Mina has no formal cricket training. He watches YouTube videos to learn and teach students new techniques.
When he had enough students, Mr. Meena created a social media account to showcase their cricketing talent. Slowly, people began to respond to his videos – some even offering advice on form and technique.
