Taapsee Pannu feels portraying Mithali Raj in her biopic was a huge challenge

The journey of former Indian captain Mithali Raj has been an inspiration to many. She defied all odds and made her way up in cricket, which was always considered a man's sport. To honour her journey, a biopic is in the making called 'Shabaash Mithu'. The Taapsee Pannu-starrer film is all set to hit the theatres on July 15.

Ahead of the film's release, the Bollywood actress confessed that playing the veteran cricketer was really difficult for her. She went on to say that the two were completely opposite of each other. "It was the biggest challenge thrown at me to play Mithali on-screen as I'm anything but her, in terms of demeanour. I took notice of her from her journey beyond cricket," Pannu said as quoted by ABP live.

Meanwhile, the film depicts Mithali Raj's path to becoming a great cricketer and an inspiration to billions of people all over the world. Mithali revolutionised the game in her elegant way, casting aside gender agnostics in a field where the presence of women is often frowned upon.

Mithali described her initial impression of Taapsee by saying, "When the movie was announced, I first met Taapsee in Bengaluru. I found her exactly opposite of me - chirpy with a lot of energy and there I was quiet, trying to gaze and understand her."

Mithali Raj's glorious international career playing for India

As for her career in international cricket, Mithali announced her retirement in June after a glorious run with the Indian team. The right-handed batter will be remembered for her incredible run-scoring exploits, including a record 7,805 runs in One-Day Internationals, about 2,000 more than former England captain Charlotte Edwards, who is the second-highest ODI run-scorer.

She has seven centuries and a record 64 fifties in her ODI career. In 12 Tests, Mithali scored 699 runs, including a century and four half-centuries. In T20Is, she scored 2364 runs at an average of 37.52, with 17 half-centuries and a top score of 97 not out.