South African batter Laura Wolvaardt opens up on choosing between cricket and medicine

Ahead of the upcoming ICC Women's World T20, Sky Sports Cricket is profiling a player from each of the 10 teams competing for the trophy. In our third feature, Kalika Mehta speaks with South African opener Laura Wolvaardt about a tough choice she faces between pursuing cricket or medicine.

Being a professional cricketer was not the plan for Laura Wolvaardt as a child despite her passion and love for the sport.

Growing up in Cape Town, the opening batter spent every spare moment she had playing cricket with the boys at school.

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Wolvaardt's mother, who was born in Belgium, had no exposure to girls playing the sport until her daughter joined a gender-specific club at the age of 11.

Seeing other girls playing cricket came as a shock to the opener, who had spent her childhood up until then believing it was a sport only boys played.

"I'd always thought I was kind of a weirdo," Wolvaardt recalls. "When I was about five I was best friends with all the boys at school, they started playing cricket and I didn't want to miss out on any of the fun so I tagged along and ended up enjoying it.

"My school team were fine with me being a girl but it was always weird when we played against other schools - they would say 'you know you have a girl in your team'?

"Cricket was a boys' sport, that's what I thought, so if I wanted to play I had to play with the boys.

"When I was 11, I went to a practice session with a club and that was the first time I discovered there were other girls like me playing cricket."

Wolvaardt excelled at her club and was picked for her provincial side at the age of 14 before making her debut for South Africa less than 18 months later, against England in February 2016.

Her first foray for the international side ended after 35 minutes, having managed to make just five runs off 24 balls before being trapped lbw by Anya Shrubsole.

Undeterred and filled with the confidence of youth, Wolvaardt's struck a half-century in the next match to help South Africa ease to a five-wicket win over Charlotte Edwards' side and she reflects on how her life changed in the blink of an eye.

"I definitely didn't expect it to happen that fast," she admits. "Normally you have to make your way through the ranks and go into our national academy set-up and play in emerging teams.

"I was super-excited about making my debut but very nervous as well. Katherine Brunt was ranked No 1 in the world. I had to open the batting and face the first ball against her.

"I remember my feet weren't moving properly and I was struggling to focus, but I guess that's how it is with anyone's debut.

"I was so young, I didn't realise how much was at stake and how much pressure there was in the games - I just felt it was super-fun and I was there to enjoy myself, I hadn't let the stress get to me too much.

"All of a sudden touring the world, playing for South Africa, it was a surreal experience. Looking back I guess I was a little bit young, but then I wouldn't have the experience I have now.

This February, only two years after making her debut, she became the youngest female player to score 1,000 ODI runs and the second fastest ever - coming from just 27 innings.

Filled with undeniable talent, for such a young player Wolvaardt bats with many old school traits - often building an innings and occupying the crease for lengthy periods of time - rather than looking to tee off from ball one.

It is in stark contrast to how her Proteas opening partner Lizelle Lee bats, often clearing the field and striking boundaries during the powerplay but Wolvaardt feels the two complement each other well.

"From when I was little I chose to go in first," she explains. because then you get to face the most balls in games, I wanted to go in as soon as I could and have the longest innings.

"I don't think I knew then what I was getting myself into because now I'm going to be an opener forever!

"The way Lizelle plays, she takes so much pressure off me. I know that regardless of what I do at my end, she's going to be smashing sixes."

However, despite breaking numerous records and being regarded as one of the finest young cricketers on the women's circuit, Wolvaardt faces a challenging decision over the coming months.

After securing a place at university to study medicine, the teenager deferred her enrolment for a year to ensure she could continue playing cricket - and no less in the World Cup.

As the year comes to a close, Wolvaardt now must choose between her love of the game and her love of medicine.

"I always focused very hard on my schoolwork and getting good marks so I could get into medical school," she says.

"I started studying medicine for a month but I couldn't play cricket anymore, so I stopped and they're keeping my spot for me until next year - I have to decide between the two pretty soon.

"It's only in the past year or two I've seen cricket could really become something one day in our country. Cricket will only last me until about 30 but with medicine you can work until you're really old.

"Sport can be unreliable. I could break my ankle next week and be out for six months. It's riskier but I enjoy it more!

"When the contracts first started a few years ago it wasn't enough to make a living, but now you can have a really good life, so it's definitely a career option.

"I think I'll just go based on how much I've enjoyed my cricket this year and review how it went for me. Cricket will always be there in my life somehow, but I'm not sure if I'm ready to not have it there full-time."

Watch every match from the ICC Women's World T20 live on Sky Sports this November.