Funnily enough, the house was built in reverse. A few years ago, a video of Norwegian footballer Erling Haaland’s high-performance home in Cheshire, England, caught Mandhana’s attention. It made its way to her brother’s inbox almost instantly. Everything in it seemed designed around the athlete’s performance and ease: meals, training, recovery—each element within reach, each transition seamless.
The idea turned into an actionable blueprint for Mandhana. The plot of land in Sangli first gave way to practice wickets at the far end. Then came a gym. Then, a pool; a sandpit too. The house came later, almost as an extension of what had already been built.
Mandhana herself feels like a structure under perpetual construction. She has gone from a bespectacled teenager, whose cover drives were set to slow-motion edits, to one of the most recognisable faces in cricket today. Along the way, she has stepped into spaces rarely occupied by women athletes, fronting campaigns across banking, insurance, even engine oil.
With that visibility has come a scrutiny that extends beyond the game. Her muscular upper body, the result of intense gym work and nutrition supervised by a personal chef who now tours with her, has been reduced to meme material: commented on, edited, circulated online.
Mandhana, as ever, takes it in her stride.
“These biceps win matches for India,” she says. “I think they look pretty good on me, actually.”
There are many matches and many World Cups left to win for India. But for now, Mandhana dreams of a future where references from men’s cricket are done away with while teaching, talking and playing the women’s game. “We didn’t have references from our own game growing up,” she says. “I want us to become so good, so consistent that the next generation doesn’t have to go anywhere else for comparisons. We become the reference that we never had. This is in our hands and I know it’s definitely possible.”
Standing under the hot March sun that afternoon, 13-year-old Akshara may have forgotten what she wanted to ask Mandhana. Possibly because the person she saw standing in front of her was the answer itself.
Hair and makeup: Claire Gil/Anima Creatives
Bookings editor: Aliza Fatma
Senior entertainment editor: Rebecca Gonsalves
Production: Imran Khatri Productions
Assisted by: Khaiminlian Guite (photo); Astha Killa (styling); Jasleen Narang, Reva Godbole (bookings); Vishal Baniya (production)
