Amit Mishra

Domestic Team: Lucknow Super Giants ( T20 )

Domestic Team: Lancashire

Date of Birth: 24.11.1982

Batting Style: Right Hand

Role: Bowler

Bowling Style: Right-arm Leg Spin

Batting

Pos. Score

Bowling

Pos. Score

All-rounder

Pos. Score

Test Rankings

78 306

25 467

28 113

ODI Rankings

234 161

12 614

75 99

T20I Rankings

268 2

42 469

Amit Mishra - Indian Ex-Cricketer

Amit Mishra is a former Indian professional cricketer and leg-spinner. He is a former player for India’s national team across all three international formats (Tests, ODIs, and T20Is). A gifted athlete who, unfortunately, remained in the shadow of other outstanding bowlers such as Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. And although his career with the Men in Blue was uneven and stop-start, in domestic cricket he managed to fully cash in on his enormous potential, setting several unique records along the way. Let’s take a closer look at a player many consider one of the most underrated Indian spin bowlers of his generation.

Amit Mishra: Biography and Sporting Career

Amit Mishra was born on November 24, 1982, in Delhi, India, into a large family. His father, Shashikant Mishra, an employee of Indian Railways, and his mother, Chandrakala Mishra, a homemaker, were raising not only Amit but also six other children. With his father earning a modest salary, supporting such a big household was no easy ride. Still, despite a very tight budget, his parents always somehow scraped together enough money to buy expensive cricket gear. An article on the official website of The Indian Express quotes the cricketer as saying the following about his childhood, financial struggles, and motivation:

“I have seen life in a one-bedroom flat with four brothers and three sisters sharing space. There were times I used to go for practice without money to even buy a bus ticket. I have seen my brothers and parents struggle to make ends meet. All that made me more determined, it made me sweat extra hours”.

Amit took his first serious steps in professional sport in Delhi, at the LB Shastri sports academy under the guidance of renowned coach Sanjay Bhardwaj. It was Bhardwaj who advised the young cricketer to focus on spin bowling rather than batting. In 2000, Mishra’s career took an unexpected turn: after facing fierce competition and failing to make the youth team of his home state, he decided to switch allegiances and moved to the Under-17 side of the neighboring state of Haryana.

In the 2000/01 season, Amit Mishra made his debut in first-class cricket and quickly caught attention with a string of strong performances in the Ranji Trophy, which opened the door for him to India’s Under-19 team. He played his first matches at junior international level in 2001 against England’s youngsters. According to some sources, Mishra, on his coach’s advice, slightly “adjusted” his age in order to get selected – a fairly common practice in Indian youth cricket at the time.

The player continued to progress steadily in domestic cricket for Haryana and was regarded as one of the country’s most promising young spinners. In April 2003, at the age of 20, Amit Mishra received a surprise call-up to India’s senior team for an ODI against South Africa in the TVS Cup. Then came a difficult stretch: because of fierce competition from the national team’s star bowlers at the time, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, Mishra was frozen out of international cricket for almost five years. His return to the national side came in October 2008, after Kumble picked up an injury. Drafted in as his replacement for a Test match against Australia, Amit immediately grabbed 5 wickets in the first innings. Even that, however, was not enough for him to nail down a permanent place in the side.

Head coach Gary Kirsten’s position was crystal clear: once Kumble recovered, his spot in the team would go straight back to him. From there, Mishra’s career followed a wave-like pattern: there were setbacks, but there were also some real high points:

• Three IPL hat-tricks (2008, 2011, 2013) for three different teams – Delhi Daredevils, Deccan Chargers, and Sunrisers Hyderabad;
• ODI series against Zimbabwe in 2013 –  18 wickets taken (matching Javagal Srinath’s world record) and best figures of 6/48;
• Member of India’s winning squad at the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy (victory over England in the final);
• Runner-up with India at the 2014 T20 World Cup; Mishra made a major contribution to the team’s run with 10 wickets;
• Winner of the “Player of the Series” award: helped India beat New Zealand in an ODI series in 2016;
• Haryana’s leading wicket-taker in the 2018-19 Vijay Hazare Trophy, with 16 wickets in 9 matches.

On September 4, 2025, the 42-year-old veteran announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. The reasons were age, injuries, and his desire to make way for the younger generation. After stepping away from top-level cricket, Amit Mishra has remained actively involved in the game. He is now coaching young and promising players while also doing expert analysis in the media, on podcasts, and on television. In early 2026, he took part in the World Legends Pro T20 League, where he played for the Pune Panthers.

Teams played by Amit Mishra:

• Delhi Capitals.
• India Blue.
• Deccan Chargers.
• Haryana.
• North Zone.
• Sunrisers Hyderabad.
• Uttar Pradesh.
• Rest of India.
• India A.
• Central Zone.
• India.
• India B.
• India Red.

Amit Mishra: Personal Life and Interesting Facts

For a long time, Amit Mishra cultivated the image of a committed bachelor, saying in interviews that his heart belonged entirely to cricket. But behind that façade, his personal life was far from straightforward. His relationship with Vandana Jain, co-owner of the Bengal Tigers (CCL), ended in a very public breakup in 2015, followed by accusations of domestic violence against the cricketer.

In 2019, the player met model Garima Tiwari through Instagram. After roughly three years of dating, they got married on April 26, 2021, but the marriage did not work out. In April 2025, Garima filed several cases against Amit Mishra and members of his family, accusing them of abuse, both physical and psychological, dowry harassment and abetment of suicide. As of now, the legal proceedings are still ongoing. The cricketer has no children.

To wrap things up, let’s step away from these dramatic chapters of the player’s biography and check out a short подборка of interesting facts and his playing statistics:

• A foodie and a fan of home-cooked meals: despite having access to some of the best restaurants in the world, Amit has always preferred simple homemade Indian food;
• Deeply religious: he is a devoted follower of Hinduism and often goes on temple pilgrimages before major life events;
• The main sponsor of his nephews and nieces: having come from a large family himself, Amit took on financial responsibility for the education of many of his nephews and nieces.

As for social media, Amit Mishra is fairly active on his accounts: Instagram (@mishiamit), X/Twitter (@MishiAmit) and his YouTube channel (@AmitMishraOfficiall), especially after retiring. He shares family moments, motivational content, cricket match breakdowns, appearances at events, and now and then even sings.