Jhulan Goswami gets stamped

Jhulan Goswami’s hobby ever since she was in pigtails was collecting postal stamps. She used to neatly take them off the envelopes her mother and grandmother would get in the post. Now, the pacer has been honoured with a stamp of her own.

“Today, postcards and inland letters are hardly used and email and courier services have taken their place. Yet, this does not diminish the value of the postal stamp,” said Goswami, speaking exclusively from Kolkata. “I shall preserve and cherish this stamp. It is a great honour,” said India’s former women’s cricket captain, adding, “It was an initiative by the Vision of Bengal. During the recent tri-series in India, they took my permission when I was playing a match against England and I was immensely honoured by the gesture.”

Only four people in India have been honoured with their respective postal stamps while alive. They are the late Mother Teresa, the late Rajeev Gandhi, Sachin Tendulkar and now Jhulan. She is currently the leading wicket taker in women’s ODIs and became the first cricketer to take 200 wickets.

“Sachin is my idol and I started playing cricket after watching him play. I am a very small person compared to these giant personalities,” she said.