Sneh Rana and her rebellious comeback as the self-professed rebel is the queen of comebacks in her own words.
She lifted her right arm, removed her sleeve, and showed off a tattoo as Sneh Rana got rid of Anushka Sanjeewani to help India win the ODI tri-series final in Colombo last month. Just below her wrist, it was inked with the word “Vidrohi” (which means “rebel”) in Devanagari.
“If someone says something cannot be done, my automatic response is [to ask] why it cannot be done,” offspin-bowling allrounder Rana says. “It can be done. I rebel.”
She had made numerous comebacks, the most recent of which was the tri-series. After nearly a year and a half, she returned to white-ball cricket and won Player of the Series after taking 15 wickets in five games. She became just the third Indian, after Smriti Mandhana and Deepti Sharma, to win a match award in all three forms, with five of those wickets coming against South Africa, a career high for which she was awarded Player of the Match.
Rana returned shortly after the conclusion of the series. After being absent for more than two years, she was included in India’s T20I team when they revealed their roster for the England tour.
Rana has more tattoos besides Vidrohi. Although the proverb states that we should respect our bodies as temples, Rana views hers as a journal in which she permanently inks important events from her life. After making her debut for India in 2014, she was sidelined for a year due to a knee injury that occurred around two years later. Some began to claim that her career was over. She had the phrase “I refuse to sink” tattooed next to an anchor on her left forearm at that period.
In domestic cricket, Rana continued to make ripples and stay afloat. She didn’t make a significant comeback for five years, but she did. She gave the ball a proper rip and put more body into the bowling action, which was a little more side-on.
She claimed four wickets in England’s lone innings in Bristol, her maiden match back and Test debut. She helped preserve the match by scoring 80 not out from No. 8 when India came on. She also made an impression in the T20Is and ODIs. She was referred to as “the find of the series” by Ramesh Powar, the women’s coach for India at the time.
The modest girl who grew up in the Uttarakhand town of Sinaula is in stark contrast to the modern Rana, who is outspoken, loves to talk about challenging subjects, and creates Instagram reels about the newest fashions. After a local match, the person who was requested to bowl hid behind a tree.
However, she became aware of how the world functions after leaving the state, which at the time had no women’s domestic team, to play for Haryana, Punjab, and Railways. She has cultivated the virtue of patience throughout the years.
During the 2025 WPL, batting was improved. She joined Royal Challengers Bengaluru as a replacement player after going unsold at the auction, which is unusual for an Indian international. Rana excelled in the task when the team management instructed her to get ready for “cameo roles” with the bat. In her second batting innings of the season, she hit 26 off six balls with three sixes and two fours from No. 10 against UP Warriorz.
In her five games, she also claimed six wickets at an economy rate of 8.22. She returned to the T20I squad for the England tour as a result of all of that and her performance in Sri Lanka.
The patience has paid off. Now it is time for Sneh Rana to channel her inner vidrohi.