An Equal Hue - The Way Forward For The Women in Blue PDF

An Equal Hue:
The Way Forward for the Women in Blue

A Report on Growing Women’s Cricket in India
by Snehal Pradhan, Karunya Keshav
and Sidhanta Patnaik
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Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION 4
2. BARRIERS TO PARTICIPATION 7
How to mine India’s golden opportunity
3. INDIA AND THE WORLD 21

Elite performance and the World Cup dream
4. INDIA’S DOMESTIC CRICKET 35

Developing pathways
5. WOMEN’S IPL 54
The missing link
6. THE PAY ISSUE 59

Fee structures and the case for equal pay
7. ORGANISATION AND STRUCTURES 71

Building the ecosystem for women’s cricket
8. QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ACTIVE WOMEN 86

CRICKETERS IN INDIA
9. A WAY FORWARD 98
Recap of recommendations
10. IN CLOSING 102
11. ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS 103
12. ABOUT THE SPORTS LAW AND POLICY 104

CENTRE, BENGALURU
3
An Equal Hue: The Way Forward for the Women in Blue
Introduction
A ‘Nationals’ with two and a half teams, made up primarily of teenaged students brought together
by vivacity rather than sporting ambition, marked the start of organised women’s cricket in India
back in 1973. Compared to England, Australia and New Zealand, India were a few decades late to
the sport. Years later, in 2020, they’ve come far from those chaotic beginnings to be a formidable
force in the global order, able to challenge the best. India is home to the highest women’s One
Day International (ODI) wicket-taker and run-getter; in its current team, it has the youngest Indian
player to make an ODI fifty, and two prodigies who made 200 in under-19 limited-overs games
before they were 17. The women’s team has been responsible for arguably the greatest ODI knock
by an Indian, man or woman, all things considered: an audacious 171* made on prime-time TV in
the semi-final of the 2017 ICC Women’s World Cup (2017 World Cup) against the best in the world.
They have helped sell out Lord’s and broken audience records at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
(MCG), where they played in front of 86,174 people at the 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
(2020 T20 World Cup) in March this year.
All this while facing roadblocks at every step of their journey. So, imagine what more they can
achieve if they get the full support of society and administration behind them.
India’s female cricketers have come so far, and they can go so much further. They have captured
the imagination of the nation, and they deserve the best of our efforts to establish a culture of
women’s sporting excellence. This is the chance to make cricket the first sport of choice for girls,
and to ensure that players at all levels, from the grassroots to the international level, enjoy the
support they need on and off the field.
Towards this end, the authors have prepared a holistic report on women’s cricket in India, to be the
starting point of dialogue and a catalyst for a shift in approach to the women’s game, considering
everything, right from toilets at local grounds to high-performance centres.
The purpose of this report is three-fold:
i. To analyse the current situation
ii. To identify areas of work
iii. To offer suggestions on improving excellence in Indian women’s cricket and setting
up players for personal empowerment.
4
With this exercise, we aim to reach all stakeholders in women’s cricket in India, including players,
state associations, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), clubs and league franchises,
broadcasters and sponsors.
Guided by a belief that players are central to the development of the sport, the report is built on the
voices of female cricketers in the country – over 350 current players responded to a questionnaire
sent out – and propped up by experiences of the authors, industry knowledge and best practices
from around the world.
The report looks at women’s cricket in India through six lenses, centred around six main issues:
i. Barriers to participation
Social structures and physical barriers to participation in cricket and how to
mine India’s golden opportunity
ii. Elite cricket
High performance structures and how to win a World Cup
iii. Domestic and grassroots cricket
How to develop pathways
iv. Women’s IPL
Bridging the gap and what form the competition should take
v. Financial security
The pay issue and how to move towards parity
vi. Organisational structures
How to build a supportive ecosystem
In an ideal scenario, intervention will be immediate. Women’s cricket, like other women’s sports, has
enjoyed a groundswell of goodwill and growth in the past three years. For instance, in India, 42%
of people in a BBC survey said that they watched women’s sport for the first time in the second
half of 2019.1 The 2017 World Cup almost serves to bookend this burst of momentum; the potential
1 Attitudes towards women’s sports, sportswomen and women in India, Research Report (March 8, 2020) https://downloads.bbc.
co.uk/mediacentre/attitudes-towards-womens-sports-sportswomen-and-women-in-india.pdf
5
always associated with women’s cricket has found avenues to be expressed and the sport finds
itself in a positive rate of economic and skills development. However, old attitudes and roadblocks
exist; swift action will help challenge these to make the most of a sliding doors moment.
At the time of writing, the world is in the throes of a chaotic pandemic. Sport, and indeed most
other activities, are on hold as countries deal with a health crisis. The fear is that the momentum
gained in women’s sport will be lost, and it will be a casualty as sports bodies scramble to cut
deep losses. However, the crisis has also exposed the limitations of existing economic and social
structures. Questions of justice and what kind of society we want to live in, and how livelihoods
should be, are getting louder than ever, and cricket is not immune. Now is the time to not only keep
faith in everything that has carried the sport so far, but also actively promote its growth and invest
in its strengths to make lives better.
The BCCI, as a leader in world cricket, can define what women’s sporting excellence means. With its
actions, it can set the standards in performance, financial well-being, player welfare and health and
safety to be emulated by other sports bodies. Then, with its immense resources, and considering the
country’s love for cricket, it can also carry along all stakeholders in a transformational programme
for women in the country.
It is the respectful and the right thing to do.
6
Barriers to
Participation
How To Mine India’s Golden Opportunity
Barriers to
Participation:
How to Mine India’s Golden Opportunity
Indian women’s cricket has one huge advantage over most other countries: Cricket is already our
No. 1 sport. Female cricketers in countries like New Zealand, England and South Africa not only
compete with men’s cricket, but also compete with popular sports such as rugby, football, netball
and their established women’s programmes.
But while India’s female cricketers enjoy these fortunate circumstances, there are many unique
obstacles woven into the fabric of Indian society. Some of these are specific to cricket. Some of
these are faced by all sportswomen, and indeed all women.
Nonetheless, with a large population already exposed to cricket, and with the game already played
in every corner of the country, the BCCI is sitting on an untapped gold mine of women’s talent. This
first section examines what barriers exist to mining that gold, and how they may be removed. It
explores why there aren’t as many women and girls playing cricket as there could and should be,
and what the barriers to their participation are.
8
PART 1: CULTURAL BARRIERS

STEREOTYPES AROUND SPORT AND CRICKET
Even in the subliminal messaging of its terminology (batsman),

and its description as the gentleman’s game, cricket gives
clues to its male-only origins.
Like most sports, cricket too has been typecast as a pursuit of boys and men. Even in the subliminal
messaging of its terminology (batsman), and its description as the gentleman’s game, cricket gives
clues to its male-only origins. More visibility to women’s cricket in recent years has changed some
of those perceptions, but the majority of the Indian population still associates cricket with men’s
cricket.
This mindset impacts even those women who have been successful enough to represent their state.
In a survey of more than 350 domestic cricketers conducted by the authors, 20% of the respondents
reported having been discouraged by immediate family members from playing cricket.
Other
0.3%
Yes
20.1%
Has anyone in your
immediate family ever
told you not to play No
cricket? 79.6%
A more significant 33% reported that some members of society (neighbours, extended family)
discouraged them from playing cricket. The data is disturbing. If one in three women who have
reached their state teams has faced discouragement from society, it is the logical conclusion that
there are countless others who never make it to the field because of cultural barriers.
If one in three women who have reached their state teams has
faced discouragement from society, it is the logical conclusion
that there are countless others who never make it to the field
because of cultural barriers.
9
Other
0.6%
Has anyone from your Yes

33.5%
relatives/neighbours/
friends ever told you not No
65.9%
to play cricket?
Hyderabad’s Arundhati Reddy is an example. Arundhati made her India debut in 2018. When she
started playing cricket, her single mother was advised by many family members not to let Arundhati
play, and instead focus on her studies (Arundhati scored 97 out of 100 in the science paper of her
Class X board exam).
“Not many people in my family wanted me to play. They didn’t see a career in it. [But] my mom saw
I was so interested in doing something. She herself was a volleyball player, but could not continue.
So what she could not achieve, through me she wanted to do that,” Arundhati told Women’s
CricZone.2
“Not many people in my family wanted me to play. They didn’t see a career
in it. [But] my mom saw I was so interested in doing something. She herself
was a volleyball player, but could not continue. So what she could not
achieve, through me she wanted to do that,” Arundhati told Women’s
CricZone.
Arundhati’s mother cried tears of relief when her daughter was employed by South Central Railway
in 2017. A year later, the youngster made her India debut.
Studies have shown that even in countries where there exists equal infrastructure and comparable
opportunities to participate in sport, Indian communities have low rates of participation (low
participation numbers of Asian women in women’s cricket in the UK, for example).3 This phenomenon
2 Snehal Pradhan, Arundhati lives her dream with mother’s support (September 27, 2018) https://www.womenscriczone.com/
arundhati-rises-with-winds-of-mothers-support/
3 Pooja Sawrikar and Kristy Muir, The myth of a ‘fair go’: Barriers to sport and recreational participation among Indian and other
ethnic minority women in Australia (November, 2010) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1441352310000069
10
is exacerbated in India,4 where society has a greater say in the trajectory of a woman’s life.
The pressures on young girls to conform to caregiver roles, to not play in the sun for fear of their
skin darkening, and the pressure to marry early are very real. The last of these is illustrated in the
story of R. Kalpana, a Guntur-based cricketer who has represented the country. The daughter of an
auto-rickshaw driver, she recounted to The Hindu: “Once I turned 18 my family and relatives started
pressuring me for marriage. As we were struggling financially, they wanted me to get married soon
so that I could be ‘well-off’”.5
With the help and intervention of her coach, Kalpana convinced her parents to allow her to continue
with her cricket. She was selected to represent the Indian team in 2015, aged 19. Kalpana too has
since secured a job in South Central Railway and now supports her family.
“Once I turned 18 my family and relatives started pressuring me for

marriage. As we were struggling financially, they wanted me to get
married soon so that I could be ‘well-off’”.
Recommendation
Marketing campaign to change perceptions and drive mass participation:
The BCCI is fortunate to have the biggest influencers in the cricketing world on their payroll: the
men’s cricket team. Besides, they have a number of strong female role models in the women’s
team. A marketing campaign, featuring both male and female cricketers and including on-ground
activations, should be conducted to break stereotypes about cricket being primarily a men’s sport,
and drive mass participation. This should then be followed up with measures at the grassroots to
take advantage of such participation.
Of course, nothing will send a better message than action from those in power to support women
in cricket, through systematic and consistent investment. Only when all stakeholders make the
growth of women’s cricket a priority will marketing campaigns be meaningful.
5 Aishwarya Upadhye, R. Kalpana’s story: From Guntur to the national cricket team (February 23, 2019) https://www.thehindu.com/
sport/cricket/r-kalpanas-story-from-guntur-to-the-national-cricket-team/article26340918.ece
11
PART 2: PHYSICAL BARRIERS

LACK OF FACILITIES
Snehal Pradhan, former India cricketer and co-author of this report.
“For two years, I practised at a ground in Bandra where I was the only girl. After training,
the boys would change from their muddied whites into T-shirts and shorts for their journey
home. They would do so in the open. There was no changing room there, so I just pulled
a jumper over my sweat-soaked T-shirt, so that I wouldn’t get sweat and grime on my co-
travellers in the bus or train. The jumper made me sweat even more.
Later, the ground staff gave me access to a locked bathroom to change. It was small, unlit,
dingy and sometimes stank. But it had a lock, and allowed me to change out of my whites
into a clean T-shirt. It was better than the jumper.”
“After training, the boys would change from their muddied whites into
T-shirts and shorts for their journey home. They would do so in the
open. There was no changing room there, so I just pulled a jumper over
my sweat-soaked T-shirt, so that I wouldn’t get sweat and grime on my
co-travellers in the bus or train. The jumper made me sweat even more.”
Would you send your daughter to a ground where there is no women’s changing room? The reality
is that the majority of Indian cricket grounds don’t have clean dressing rooms for boys or girls.
While boys get by, by simply changing their clothes in the open, such situations can be serious
barriers to girls choosing a cricket academy.
While boys get by, by simply changing their clothes in the open, such
situations can be serious barriers to girls choosing a cricket academy.
The following passage from the book The Fire Burns Blue: A History of Women’s Cricket in India,
sums up the situation. Sanjay Gaitonde, a grassroots coach in Mumbai, explains how he maintained
a fine balance. Early on, he realised that the lack of changing rooms and toilet facilities meant that
girls couldn’t play just anywhere.
12
“I tried to rule out these things at the very start. I asked them to wear a round neck T shirt
and tights from home, so they could change anywhere. They could play in any ground, so I
never had a problem of having to cancel a match because no suitable ground was available.
I wanted to rule out all these issues that would plague women’s cricket. Not being able to
play at certain grounds, being treated differently, I wanted to remove all these thoughts
from their heads.”
In our survey, one in three respondents said they did not have places where women could change into
and out of their kit at the local ground/cricket club that they train at. Women’s toilets and changing
room facilities are some of the most ignored aspects of most grassroots sporting infrastructure.
Sometimes
1.1%
Does your local ground/ No

cricket club/place where 33.1%
you practise, have women’s Yes

changing rooms? 65.7%
Recommendation
REVIEW FACILITIES: The BCCI could issue guidelines to all state associations to review
facilities at all cricket academies and clubs that are registered with the state associations. Clubs and
associations should ensure that women’s toilets and changing facilities are available, and regularly
audited for functionality and cleanliness, irrespective of whether or not they have women’s teams.

MIXED-GENDER PARTICIPATION
Claire Polosak, the first woman to umpire in a men’s ODI
“I never played cricket, which is unusual (for an umpire). Just wasn’t interested in playing
with the boys. I never liked playing cricket with the boys.”
Claire Polosak, an Australian umpire, wanted to play cricket as a young girl but chose not to
because her local cricket clubs did not have girls’ or women’s teams. Fortunately for the game,
13
her love for cricket drove her into umpiring, but there are so many like her who turn away from the
game because the prospect of playing with the boys is uncomfortable. Especially in India.
There are numerous advantages to mixed-gender teams for children at a young age. The
International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), which supports mixed-sex football till the
age of 12, explains that it “contributes to the emancipation of the two genders, improves tolerance
and promotes mutual respect. By playing alongside boys, girls gain a more positive image of
themselves, increase their self-confidence and become more aware of their abilities”.6 Later on, in
cricket too, training with boys is a widely accepted way to progress into higher levels because the
boys’ superior physical abilities challenges the girls to develop skills to counter it.
There are numerous advantages to mixed-gender teams for children

at a young age. The International Federation of Association Football
(FIFA), which supports mixed-sex football till the age of 12, explains
that it “contributes to the emancipation of the two genders, improves
tolerance and promotes mutual respect.”
...in cricket too, training with boys is a widely accepted way to progress
into higher levels because the boys’ superior physical abilities
challenges the girls to develop skills to counter it.
However, in India, mixed-sex teams are the norm not by design to improve skills, but because
there are no exclusive structures in place for girls. A lack of a women’s and girls’ cricket team at
every academy can be a serious barrier to the participation of more women and girls in grassroots
cricket, with participants not keen on playing in mixed-gender teams. Some parents may be more
comfortable if their young girls are playing with other girls, and not boys.
Data from our survey indicates that very few clubs at the grassroots level offer all-girls teams at
the point of entry.
6 The characteristics of children and the educational approach https://grassroots.fifa.com/en/for-coach-educators/coaching-

grassroots/the-characteristics-of-children-and-the-educational-approach/mixed-sex-participation-in-football.html
14
No
8.6%
Have you ever played cricket in

boys’ teams (practice matches,
club matches, etc.)?
Yes
91.4%
Almost 17% respondents said that they have at some point felt uncomfortable playing in boys’
teams.
Other
0.6%
Yes
16.9%
Were you ever

uncomfortable playing in
No
82.6%
boys’ teams?
The examples of some of the Indian team members demonstrate this. Jemimah Rodrigues, who
made her debut at age 17 and has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the International Cricket Council
(ICC) T20I batting rankings, told Nation of Sport that she felt left out training with the boys at
around age 12.
“The boys I practised with never spoke to me badly, they never spoke to me much at all.
They used to not mix around with me. I used to be in one corner and they over there. If any
boy used to speak to me they used to start teasing him. The practice part is fine, but half of
the time you are just standing there, looking around, staring, boys have their conversations
and jokes going on.” 7
Around the same time, her father started coaching her school team, ensuring that she could play
in an all-girls team.
The lack of access to girls’ teams is more severe across schools and colleges. Among state players,
60% said they had never played in all-girls school teams, 48.5% said they had never played in all-
7 Snehal Pradhan, Master of Ton: 17 Year Old Jemimah Rodrigues Is Just Getting Started (December 26, 2017) https://www.
nationofsport.com/stories/jemimah-rodrigues
15
girls college teams and nearly 44% for university teams. These are also the stages where most
women and girls drop out of the sport, heightening the need for all-girls structures to keep them
in.
Other Other
1.1% 1.4%
Have you ever Yes No Yes No

50.4% 48.5% 54.9% 43.7%
played in an all-
girls team?
Inter-college Inter-university
Recommendation
The BCCI could incentivise state associations to increase the number of affiliated clubs that have
women’s and girls’ teams at three levels: Senior, under-16 and under-19. A nationwide contest could
be organised and publicised by the BCCI, inviting clubs to increase registration of women, with
attractive rewards to state associations that show more registrations. Women’s participation could
carry more weightage in the BCCI’s overall criteria for best performing state.
A nationwide contest could be organised and publicised by the BCCI,

inviting clubs to increase registration of women, with attractive
rewards to state associations that show more registrations. Women’s
participation could carry more weightage in the BCCI’s overall criteria
for best performing state.
Cricket clubs are always looking to boost participation numbers, but have often ignored 50% of
the population as potential members. Conversations with clubs could result in a drive to increase
women’s and girls’ participation, which would help create women’s teams, while also driving up
revenue for clubs. Guidelines could be framed allowing mixed-gender participation up to ages 10
or 12, following which players can graduate into respective boys’ and girls’ teams.
16
SAFETY
With an increase in participation of women and girls in spaces they have

not traditionally occupied, also comes the responsibility to ensure that
these spaces are safe, and see no form of abuse or harassment; either
physical, psychological or sexual.
Since 2015, the BCCI has employed female cricketers on yearly contracts, making these women
the first athletes employed full-time by the BCCI. At the state level, there have been seven new
women’s teams added to domestic cricket in 2018, significantly increasing the number of women
participating in tournaments under the aegis of the BCCI. At the grassroots level, more and more
young women and girls are entering cricket fields.
With an increase in participation of women and girls in spaces they have not traditionally occupied,
also comes the responsibility to ensure that these spaces are safe, and see no form of abuse or
harassment; either physical, psychological or sexual.
The urgent need for this cannot be stressed enough. As outlined in the book, The Fire Burns Blue:
A History of Women’s Cricket in India,
“An 18-year-old in MP had filed a complaint of sexual harassment against the convener of the
under-19 selection committee, and back in 2009, the flamboyant V. Chamundeswaranath
was removed as secretary of the Andhra Cricket Association after being named in a sexual
harassment case by a group of female cricketers. The resolution of both these cases was
deeply unsatisfying: it went to court but petered out. One of the complainants in Andhra
withdrew her case and retired. At 28, she took her own life. Newspapers reported that it
was owing to personal issues. No real conversation about the abusers on the circuit took
place at the time of these incidents.”
As recently as March 2020, the Baroda women’s team coach, a former India cricketer, was
suspended after some players lodged written complaints against him, alleging sexual harassment.
His suspension was lifted in June, but he was removed as the coach “considering the sensitivity of
the matter”.8
8 BCA lifts suspension on Atul Bedade but removes him as Baroda Women’s coach (June 3, 2020) https://www.espncricinfo.com/
story/_/id/29258272/bca-lifts-suspension-atul-bedade-removes-baroda-women-coach
17
Sexual harassment, and the fear of harassment, should be recognised as a barrier to entry. Studies
conducted in Delhi have shown that women will choose colleges that are lower ranked if they
involve less travel through unsafe areas, fearful of sexual harassment. 9
Sexual harassment, and the fear of harassment, should be recognised as

a barrier to entry. Studies conducted in Delhi have shown that women will
choose colleges that are lower ranked if they involve less travel through
unsafe areas, fearful of sexual harassment.
The ICC has since 2018 made guidelines standard issue at all their events, headlined by clear
redressal mechanisms and zero-tolerance policies towards abuse, including towards non-cricketers
working on the events. With all cricket in India being played under the BCCI’s purview, it falls to the
BCCI, a leader in sports administration, to ensure the same at all levels.
Recommendations
1. Guidelines should be formulated, outlining how the BCCI, state associations, stadiums
and academies can ensure that all spaces in which cricket is played are safe for athletes,
coaches, officials, admininstrative staff and media, and put in place stringent measures for
when things go wrong.
2. Workshops for all cricketers (women and men) participating in BCCI tournaments,
describing clear policies regarding sexual harassment, should be arranged annually. These
are just as essential as the workshops that educate players on match-fixing and anti-
corruption guidelines.
3. Female managers for women’s and girls’ teams should be appointed. In our survey,
40% of current cricketers said that they prefer a female manager for teams. Significantly, 56%
said the gender of the manager does not matter, indicating that it is more important that the
person appointed be competent and skilled at the job required. To that end, such managers
should be fully briefed on procedure to be followed in case a complaint is raised.
9 Girija Borker, Safety First: Perceived Risk of Street Harassment and Educational Choices of Women (November 3, 2017) https://
girijaborker.files.wordpress.com/2017/11/borker_jmp.pdf
18
Male
3.6%
Which gender team manager Either Female

56.3% 40.1%
do you prefer for state
teams?
PART 3: FINANCIAL BARRIERS

Cricket is an expensive sport as compared to some of the more popular games in India such as
athletics, badminton, kabaddi, table tennis and football. The high cost of entry discourages many
young girls from participating, a problem that is compounded by the patriarchy of Indian society,
which discourages families from investing in their girls. A good quality cricket bat alone can cost
at least INR 5,000, an amount that is unaffordable for many lower-middle-class families.
The high cost of entry discourages many young girls from participating,
a problem that is compounded by the patriarchy of Indian society, which
discourages families from investing in their girls.
A prime example of this is current Indian cricketer Radha Yadav. Radha was denied permission to
play cricket at her local net in Kandivali because her father, who ran a makeshift fruit and vegetable
stall on the footpath, could not afford it. Her coach then offered to cover all her costs, allowing
Radha to continue cricket. She has been India’s highest wicket taker in T20I cricket since 2019 and
has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the ICC bowling charts.
Radha’s is not a one-off case. Of the respondents in the survey, nearly 55% said that they have faced
financial difficulty in their cricketing journeys, indicating that financial barriers are real deterrents
to cricketing participation.
19
Have you ever faced

Yes No
financial difficulty to play 54.8% 45.2%
cricket?
Even after cricketers represent the state and receive match fees, more than half the domestic
cricketers surveyed said that the fees they receive do not cover the cost of their equipment.
Recommendations
1. Employment: A secure job is one of the biggest incentives that young girls, and their
families, can have. As of now, only the Indian Railways offers jobs to female cricketers,
because they are the only ones who are allowed to field a team in domestic cricket. Instead,
the BCCI should incentivise and lobby other public sector units to employ women cricketers
along with men.
As of now, only the Indian Railways offers jobs to female cricketers,

because they are the only ones who are allowed to field a team in
domestic cricket. Instead, the BCCI should incentivise and lobby other
public sector units to employ women cricketers along with men.
Public and private sector jobs that are currently open to India’s male cricketers should be
open to the women as well. This is further explained in section III.
2. Financial assistance: State associations and private bodies should set up need-based
scholarships for deserving players, provide free coaching for those who show talent, or
offer financial assistance directly or through the purchase of cricket kits. Besides the official
bodies, the wider cricket community and other stakeholders also have a role to play.
20
India and the World
`India and the World

Mithali Raj, 2017

“We definitely want to win the World Cup. It would be a revolution for Indian women’s
cricket. It gives a big impetus for young girls to take up the sport.”
Despite the many barriers, India has managed a relatively successful elite programme in women’s
cricket. Now, they are at a stage in their cricket development where the aim of that elite performance
programme should be on results.
In three ICC World Cups since 2017, India have made it to two finals, and one semi-final. However,
they have not won a World Cup yet.
In this section, we examine the standards and skills of India’s elite female cricketers, the challenges
they face competing on the world stage, and possible pathways for them to get consistent results
at the top-most level.
22
PART 1: HOW TO WIN A WORLD CUP

WHERE INDIA STAND
India were historically seen as the fourth-best team in the world, behind Australia, England and New
Zealand. In recent years, they consistently place among the top three sides, along with Australia
and England. This indicates that while the elite programme has had some success, the team still
needs to make that final jump to the top.
India’s improvement over the past few years, broadly, is testament to

the talent in the country on one hand, and the support from the BCCI
and broadcast stakeholders on the other.
India’s improvement over the past few years, broadly, is testament to the talent in the country on
one hand, and the support from the BCCI and broadcast stakeholders on the other.
The administrators, for their part, have ensured competitive matches for the Indian women’s team
– a crucial factor identified by players in elite success. Since the introduction of the ICC Women’s
Championship (IWC), which was set up in 2014 towards “creating more extensive and meaningful
bilateral playing programme for women’s cricket”10, India have been playing more matches, against
more varied opponents, with constantly improving level of competition.
India have been playing more matches, against more varied opponents,
with constantly improving level of competition.
Mithali Raj on the benefits of IWC
One reason for the standards going up is the opportunities that the ICC Women’s
Championship has provided to players. In its last edition, eight top teams got to play three
ODIs against each other. While earlier teams like England, Australia and New Zealand were
the only ones playing regularly, now we have others like South Africa, Pakistan and Sri
Lanka also getting exposure.11
10 ICC Women’s Championship set for exciting start (November 24, 2014) https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/180358
11 Mithali Raj: ‘We want to settle as a team ahead of ICC Women’s World Cup 2017’ (February 3, 2017) https://www.icc-cricket.com-
news/322962
23
Between the 2009 and 2013 ICC Women’s World Cups (before IWC): 26 ODIs
Between the 2013 and 2017 ICC Women’s World Cups (after IWC): 35 ODIs
Increase of 34.6%
But, more important than the IWC, since 2017, India have been playing more limited-overs matches
overall.
Tests T20Is ODIs
40
30
20
10
0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
MATCHES PLAYED YEAR ON YEAR
Before 2017, India used to have a spike in matches just ahead of or during a World Cup year (2009,
2013, 2017 for ODIs; 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016 for T20Is). Since 2017, there has been more
consistency in the schedule – a consistency and level of planning only matched in the 2002-2005
period under the erstwhile Women’s Cricket Association of India, when a concerted effort to play
more matches against top-quality opponents saw India make it to the 2005 International Women’s
Cricket Council (IWCC) Women’s World Cup final, for the first time ever.
Significantly, India are playing more series outside of the mandatory IWC and ICC tournaments.
This has given them an advantage over teams such as New Zealand and West Indies.
Significantly, India are playing more series outside of the mandatory

IWC and ICC tournaments.
After crashing out in the group stage at the 2012, 2014 and 2016 T20 World Cups, players identified
lack of preparatory match time as a significant factor in their performance. So, since the 2017 World
Cup, India have played more T20Is than any other top eight side.
24
So, since the 2017 World Cup, India have played more T20I s than any other
top eight side.
Consequently, since then, their performance in the T20 tournament has seen drastic improvement,
with the team going unbeaten in the group stage in the 2018 and 2020 editions, and finishing
runners-up in 2020 – vindicating to an extent, the players’ request.
LIMITED-OVERS MATCHES PLAYED OUTSIDE OF ICC TOURNAMENTS
LIMITED-OVERS MATCHES PLAYED OUTSIDE OF ICC TOURNAMENTS
25
Players, meanwhile, have used the matches and resources to improve their skills. In the past few
years in world cricket, higher strike-rates and more boundaries have been significant features
of women’s cricket. Several batting records have been smashed. India, too, have reflected this
improvement, even as their bowling remains a strong suit.
In the past few years in world cricket, higher strike-rates and more
boundaries have been significant features of women’s cricket. Several
batting records have been smashed.
In the period since after the 2017 World Cup12:
• India’s leading batters have hit more sixes in T20Is (110) than any other team. However,
the sixes hit per match (2.2) is behind that for most top teams, except England.
• Seven of India’s eight highest successful chases in T20Is have taken place. India have also
scored 11 of their top 12 totals in the format.
• India’s win % in ODIs (0.6) is an improvement on pre-World Cup figures (0.5) and only
behind Australia (0.9).
• Indian bowlers have taken more T20I wickets (302) than any other team, while their
economy rate (4.17) is only behind Australia (3.96) and South Africa (4.14) in ODIs.
Improvements in skills have carried India to the knockouts of six tri or multi-nation tournaments
since the start of 2017. However, they have won just one: the 2017 World Cup Qualifier held in
Colombo. They lost the finals of the 2017 World Cup, 2018 Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Women’s
Twenty20 Asia Cup, Women’s T20I Tri-Series final against Australia (2020 Australia T20 Tri-Series)
and 2020 T20 World Cup, and went out in the semi-final in the 2018 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
(2018 T20 World Cup).
This has raised the question, why do India struggle in knockouts? And what can be done to address
it?
12 Stats via ESPNcricinfo Statsguru tool
26
Recommendations
1. Improve bench strength: Elite cricket is only the tip of a pyramid. A robust India
A set-up, a competitive domestic structure below that, an active age-group system, and
strong club and school cricket at the bottom, are all vital to constantly replenish the pool
of players and push existing elite athletes to improve themselves. India A matches were
revived after the 2017 World Cup defeat; more experience against top teams will only
help. The importance of defining pathways, best practices for school-level cricket and the
introduction of the women’s IPL are elaborated upon in sections III and IV.
A robust India A set-up, a competitive domestic structure below that,

an active age-group system, and strong club and school cricket at the
bottom, are all vital to constantly replenish the pool of players
2. Investment: While ad hoc investment is happening in women’s cricket, the stakeholders,
led by the BCCI, and backed by the government, state associations, broadcasters and
sponsors, should make a public commitment of a time-bound, future-focused investment.
This will send the strongest message about intent, and will be the base from which any
further plans are built, and later evaluated.
3. Create a fixed-term vision plan: What does one do with the investment? An elite
programme needs a clearly defined goal. Then, as the cricketing adage goes, all stakeholders
should turn their focus on the process. Across sports, individuals and countries have learnt
that trophies and gold medals are the result of long-term planning and investment towards
a stated purpose. Any plan should be built on a stated monetary commitment, encompass
the elite level, as well as the grassroots and the feeder level in the middle, and run with
transparency and accountability, independent of the dispensation of the day. Importantly,
it should have full buy-in from players and a core administrative team.
...trophies and gold medals are the result of long-term planning and
investment towards a stated purpose. Any plan should be built on a
stated monetary commitment, encompass the elite level, as well as the
grassroots and the feeder level in the middle...
27
Case study: A group in India, under former captain Shubhangi Kulkarni, presented
an ambitious ‘Vision 2020’ document to the BCCI in 2016 to “make women’s cricket
the most popular and sought after women’s sport in India and to be the top-ranked
team globally across formats”, the authors found during interviews conducted.
Some elements of it, such as fixed tenures for support staff and more ‘A’ tours
were ultimately implemented; however, at a time when the BCCI went through
several administrative changes, the plan was never embraced in full spirit and seen
to completion. Suggestions such as school tennis-ball cricket tournaments, and
administrative structures for elite and grassroots women’s cricket, remain unfulfilled.
Best practices:
...the England and Wales Cricket Board announced a 10-point action plan
titled ‘Inspiring Generations’ to guide their women’s and girls’ cricket
programme for 2020-24. The plan is headlined by a £ 20 million investment
over two years,...
In October 2019, the England and Wales Cricket Board announced a 10-point action
plan titled ‘Inspiring Generations’ to guide their women’s and girls’ cricket programme
for 2020-24. The plan is headlined by a £ 20 million investment over two years, and
targets five main areas of increasing participation, improving performance, increasing
representation of women in cricket, developing pathways, and elevating the profile
of the sport. The plan was the result of consultation with all 38 counties and Cricket
Wales, as well as “thousands” of responses from stakeholders in the recreational and
elite game.13 Announcing the initiative, Clare Connor, England’s director of women’s
cricket, confirmed that it was driven in part by a desire to “close the gap” with
Australia at the elite level.14
13 ECB launches new plan to transform women’s and girls’ cricket (October 7, 2019) https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/1373377/ecb-
launches-new-plan-to-transform-women-s-and-girls-cricket
14 ECB launches £20m plan to transform women’s cricket and emulate Australia (October 8, 2019) https://www.theguardian.com/
sport/2019/oct/08/ecb-launches-action-plan-womens-cricket
28
4. Identify lacunae in elite performance: And develop training strategies to mitigate

them. Areas where India have seen to be traditionally lacking, include, fielding, fitness,
running between the wickets, power-hitting, pace bowling and batting depth. Coaching
strategy already aligns with this, and the team has benefited from an expanded support
staff. But it falls on the BCCI to further support the team by hiring specialist staff or short-
term consultants, developing a system of continuity across tenures for backroom personnel
and collecting and using data and technology well.
Coaches in the women’s game would benefit from more crossovers with the National Cricket
Academy (NCA) and men’s systems.
...it falls on the BCCI to further support the team by hiring specialist
staff or short-term consultants, developing a system of continuity
across tenures for backroom personnel and collecting and using data
and technology well.
5. Address mental fitness: The numbers indicate that India have a tendency to collapse
on the big stage. In the 2017 World Cup, they slipped from 191/3 to 219 all out, losing by nine
runs. In the 2018 T20 World Cup semi-final, they went from 89/2 to 112 all out. In the 2020
Australia T20 Tri-Series final, they were 115/3 before being bowled out for 144. Apart from
inadequacies in the middle order, this also demonstrates failure to soak in pressure.
While the ‘underdog’ tag has served them well as an incentive to perform,
‘favourites’ is not something that sits easy with them.
While the ‘underdog’ tag has served them well as an incentive to perform, ‘favourites’ is not
something that sits easy with them. A psychologist or performance coach can address some
of these issues. Playing more matches in front of big crowds will also help players simulate
high-pressure situations, which makes an IPL-style tournament vital.
Playing more matches in front of big crowds will also help players
simulate high-pressure situations, which makes an IPL-style tournament
vital.
29
Alyssa Healy, Australia wicketkeeper-batter, on the 2020 Australia T20 Tri-Series final
vs India:
“[I] said to the group that we are right under their skin here. The way they [India] reacted
when I got out, the way they gave me a gobful on the way off, meant that we were right
under their skin. We were right at the front of the game, and if we kept driving it hope that
we would be right.”
But it isn’t just about winning a final. Mental fitness has to be a constant conversation. Few
people can understand the pressure faced by athletes better than other athletes. Cross-
sports mentorships or workshops, and interactions with other elite athletes have proved
valuable for sportspersons, especially to help them find that extra motivation to aim for the
best results. Equally important is knowing when to switch off: a team culture that encourages
balance and all-round welfare is essential.
6. Create and publicise a women’s Future Tours Programme (FTP): The

BCCI has done well to organise more matches, but greater structure and planning will be
welcome. In 2017, the BCCI were reportedly in plans to develop a FTP for the women’s
team,15 just like the one prepared by the ICC and member nations for the men. However,
nothing has been made official about this. An FTP will give structure to women’s cricket,
provide clarity on the schedule, and help support staff, players and the media, to, prepare
with a medium to long-term view.
An FTP will give structure to women’s cricket, provide clarity on the

schedule, and help support staff, players and the media, to, prepare
with a medium to long-term view.
7. Prepare for player burn-out and injuries: From not playing enough a few years
ago, female cricketers, especially those participating in professional leagues, are potentially
in danger of playing an amount of cricket that can be too demanding on their physical and
mental health. Athlete management systems and GPS-enabled devices that monitor the
workload of top players have been recently extended to the women as well, as of 2019.
The use of technology to prevent injuries should be continued, and more women should
15 ‘BCCI planning FTP for women’s cricket’ - Ratnakar Shetty (October 2, 2017) https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/20896105/
bcci-planning-ftp-women-cricket-ratnakar-shetty
30
be included among NCA’s watchlist of players for workload management. This should help
guide a rotation policy for players, which in turn is a factor of having depth in the playing
group and a strong bench, as argued earlier in this section.
Athlete management systems and GPS-enabled devices that monitor the

workload of top players have been recently extended to the women as
well, as of 2019.
8. Schedule day/night matches: As more women’s cricket is shown on prime-time TV

and more efforts are made to get fans to come to the ground, more high-profile matches are
being scheduled as day/night affairs. Playing under lights, in front of big crowds, however, is
still something players are not fully used to. More matches, especially in a potential women’s
IPL, should be scheduled with this in mind.
Playing under lights, in front of big crowds, however, is still something

players are not fully used to.
Case study: Smriti Mandhana, after India’s loss in the 2018 T20 World Cup
semi-final, playing their first match of the tournament under lights:
“We didn’t consider the dew factor. We had played 11am matches, and had not
played any 8pm match. Even when we practised, we hadn’t seen any dew, so we
didn’t think it would play a factor. But that played a huge factor.”
After the 2018 debacle, India’s preparation included day/night T20Is against South
Africa in Surat. The well-attended matches proved instructional both in terms of
playing under lights and playing before a packed crowd.
After the 2018 debacle, India’s preparation included day/night T20I s

against South Africa in Surat. The well-attended matches proved
instructional both in terms of playing under lights and playing before
a packed crowd.
31
Harmanpreet Kaur, on the experience of playing in Surat:
“It was exciting to play the game in front of 15,000-odd spectators. Leave alone the
South African cricketers, it was something new for the Indian team too!”
PART 2: TEST CRICKET

In the past decade, just eight women’s Test matches have taken place. India (2) and South Africa
(1) are the only teams to have played a Test outside of the bi-annual women’s Ashes between
Australia and England. For all practical purposes, women no longer play Test cricket, but for the
single four-day red-ball match in the multi-format Ashes. This is a pity.
For all practical purposes, women no longer play Test cricket, but for
the single four-day red-ball match in the multi-format Ashes.
No
1.1%
Do you think India should

play Test matches with other
countries? Yes
98.9%
The argument against women’s Tests is an extension of the one frequently used even in men’s Tests:
they are too long, they don’t attract enough crowds outside of games between India, Australia and
England, they don’t make for good TV across five days and they are expensive to hold. With the
ICC and member boards keen to use T20Is as the vehicle to propagate the women’s game to more
countries and TV screens, Test cricket has been all but abandoned in boardrooms.
This contradicts players’ wishes, a majority of whom unequivocally want to play Test cricket. The
case they make for Test cricket is from a standpoint of (a) skills and (b) pride.
Test cricket is long established as the format that really ‘tests’ a

player’s physical and mental fitness, immediately exposing lacunae in
their batting or bowling, or ability to outlast the opposition.
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Firstly, Test cricket is long established as the format that really ‘tests’ a player’s physical and mental
fitness, immediately exposing lacunae in their batting or bowling, or ability to outlast the opposition.
Players, by nature keen to push boundaries, are eager to set this challenge for themselves. Long-
form cricket can be an important step in building good batsmanship in difficult conditions.
Long-form cricket can be an important step in building good batsmanship

in difficult conditions.
Jhulan Goswami on primacy of Test cricket:
“I badly miss Test cricket. It’s among the most challenging cricket I have played. You
need a lot of mental strength. ODI, T20, is all well, but Test cricket, in that switch-
off and switch-on mode, is totally different, particularly when you are bowling after
lunch or at the end of the day ... In Test cricket, you have to purchase every wicket.
You cannot attack and go for wickets from the first ball. You have to play the batter’s
mind. You have to tease out every wicket.”
Second, the pride associated with turning out in whites for their country is something most
players internalise while watching their role models in the men’s game. It is unfortunate that these
opportunities are denied to female cricketers.
Suzie Bates (New Zealand), highest T20I run-scorer
“As I’ve got older I feel a bit cheated that I haven’t had the opportunity to play in
a Test … Test matches are the pinnacle of cricket even though in women’s cricket
it has not been emphasised. I just think that the way you can learn from the longer
format, being out in the middle for a longer period of time, having to bowl longer
spells, you just learn batsmanship and patience with the ball.”16
Even among the men, Tests outside of those played by India, England and Australia are loss-
making17 and need to be subsidised by limited-overs internationals. There is no reason the same
cannot be done in women’s cricket, and in doing so, acknowledging the prestige that comes with
playing Test cricket.
16 Vishal Dikshit, ‘I feel a bit cheated that I haven’t been able to play a Test’ (July 8, 2015) https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/
id/20628853/feel-bit-cheated-able-play-test
17 Tim Wigmore, Special report: How coronavirus will change cricket as we know it forever (May 23, 2020) https://www.telegraph.
co.uk/cricket/2020/05/23/special-report-coronavirus-will-change-cricket-know-forever/
33
Recommendations
1. Re-introduce multi-day domestic cricket: As of now, no nation plays multi-day
cricket at the domestic level. Until recently, India were the only country to do so. However,
with no interest forthcoming from their opponents, the BCCI scrapped India’s three-day
and two-day tournaments from the 2018-19 season. As elaborated in section III, these
tournaments must be re-introduced to improve skills of players.
2. Organise more multi-format series: The IWC, which is now played only for ODIs,
can be a multi-format affair. Australia and England have set the template for this with
the multi-format women’s Ashes, which added context to a trophy already brimming with
prestige. Every two years, since 2013, the teams play three ODIs, three T20Is (each worth two
points for a win) and a single Test (which carries four points for a win), with the cumulative
points deciding the winner. This idea was also embraced by the England men’s team when
Sri Lanka and Pakistan visited in 2016.
Every two years, since 2013, the teams play three ODI s , three T20I s (each
worth two points for a win) and a single Test (which carries four points
for a win), with the cumulative points deciding the winner.
34
India’s
domestic cricket
Developing pathways
35
India’s
domestic cricket
Developing pathways
Smriti Mandhana, March 2019:
“There is a huge gap between international and domestic cricket. That gap needs
to be lessened. If you look at our domestic scores in T20s, it is generally around 110-
120. I think we all need to go back, step up and strengthen our domestic circuit, take
those scores to 140-150.”
After the Indian men’s team’s first ever Test series win in Australia, Virat Kohli reserved special
praise for the Indian domestic system.
“Our first-class cricket is amazing. We have tough, tough sessions where the guys
have to run in and bowl well with the old ball, that’s the skill level you saw in this game
... Credit has to go to the first-class set-up back home which provides a different
challenge.” 18
Just as a captain is only as good as her team, a national team is only as good as the domestic circuit
that feeds it. Australian women’s cricket dominance – they have won six out of eight world titles
between 2010 and 2020 – is widely attributed to them having the strongest women’s domestic
cricket in the world.
Australian women’s cricket dominance... is widely attributed to them

having the strongest women’s domestic cricket in the world.
If India is to dominate world cricket and win World Cups, it needs a domestic system that can distil
18 @7Cricket (December 30, 2018) https://twitter.com/i/status/1079206605659332608
36
talent from every corner of our vast and varied geographies. In this section, we examine the unique
strengths of India’s domestic system, and the lacunae. (The topic of a future Women’s IPL will be
dealt with in the next section.)
PART 1: THE PAST AND PRESENT

Domestic structures of Indian women’s cricket have undergone many changes over the past two
decades. To provide context to the current structure, we must understand some of the previous
structures.
Until 2005, the sport was administered by the Women’s Cricket Association of India. At different
stages of the association’s colourful history, domestic cricket has been at different levels of health.
For the purpose of this report, we focus on the period between 2000 and 2005, immediately
before the BCCI took over the game’s administration in 2006.
2000 to 2005
From 2000 to 2005, thanks to renewed interest and investment from the Women’s Cricket
Association of India, women’s cricket experienced an upswing. There were new domestic
tournaments and better facilities for the Indian team.
Highlights:
• Inter-state ‘Nationals’ were held for three age groups, under-16, under-19 and senior.
• Inter-zone tournaments, comprising the best from each state playing in teams defined
by their geographical zones, were already being held for the seniors, providing a high
standard of competition. An under-19 inter-zonal tournament was introduced as well.
• An India under-21 squad was assembled for a training camp with a foreign coach, a first,
and sent on a tour to Pakistan, another first.
• Two teams provided employment at various levels for women cricketers: Air India
and Railways. The two teams were consequently the strongest on the domestic
circuit, providing for a healthy rivalry that prepared players for international cricket.
37
• A National Champions vs Rest of India match was a regular affair.
Healthy domestic cricket, coupled with a large number of international matches played by the
Indian team as laid out in section II, led to strong performances, which reached a crescendo when
India reached their first World Cup final in 2005, and registered their first away Test series win
against England in 2006.
Healthy domestic cricket, coupled with a large number of international

matches played by the Indian team... led to strong performances, which
reached a crescendo when India reached their first World Cup final in
2005
2006 onwards
When the BCCI took over administration of women’s cricket in 2006, there were some immediate
changes to the landscape of the game.
• Facilities improved drastically (quality of grounds, travel by air, accommodation, umpiring,
and kit). A base level of remuneration was introduced in the form of match fees, a first for
domestic cricket.
A base level of remuneration was introduced in the form of match

fees, a first for domestic cricket.
• Air India could not compete under the BCCI banner, because they do not feature in the
Ranji Trophy; Railways did, and so their team continued.
• The entire under-16 age group and the under-19 inter-zonals were discontinued. There
was no Rest of India vs National Champions game.
The entire under-16 age group and the under-19 inter-zonals were
discontinued.
These moves have informed the basic structure of domestic cricket, and still hold true today.
38
Over time, various other changes were tried, and in some cases, done away with.
Highlights:
• A two-day first-class tournament was introduced from 2007-08 for each zone, and
expanded to a zonal-national format in 2008-09, and discontinued thence. First-class
cricket was re-introduced in 2014-15 as an inter-zone two-day tournament, made
a three-day tournament in 2015-16, and scrapped again from the 2018-19 season.
• T20 cricket was introduced in 2008-09.
• Challenger Trophy was introduced in 2008.
• White ball and coloured kits were used from 2013-14.
• Zonal-National structure was done away with from 2013-14 onwards, replaced by Elite-
Plate System. In 2018-19, this was restructured with the addition of teams from the
North-East.
• Introduction of under-23 age group in 2015-16.
• Match fees were increased from INR 2,500 to INR 12,500 in 2018-19.
• Senior inter-zonal tournament, a feature of the domestic calendar since 2006-07, was
discontinued in 2018-19.
• Challenger Trophy was introduced for age-group cricket as well from 2018-19.
• Under-16 tournaments were conducted by some zones, but not at the national level by
the BCCI.
39
PART 2: PRESENT CHALLENGES

THE STANDARD OF DOMESTIC CRICKET
The quality of competition is a concern, despite pitches in domestic

cricket being rated quite highly by most players surveyed in this report.
For years, the short length of the domestic season was the most immediate concern. The minimum
number of matches played by female cricketers could be as low as four (per format), with teams
organised into groups of five. With organised club cricket for women and girls held inconsistently,
the Nationals was the primary cricket tournament for young girls, and they played too little of it,
thus making it difficult to raise the overall standard.
Since 2018-19, this concern has been somewhat addressed by the restructuring of the domestic
system. With the addition of the teams from the North-East, there are now 36 teams split into four
groups of at least seven and at most ten teams in each group. Each team plays between six and
nine matches in each format.
However, the inter-zonal tournaments have been done away with, as has the first-class cricket that
was being played on and off till 2017-18.
As of 2020, women in India are playing more cricket than ever before, but they are playing more
games at the lower levels, which means there are more matches of insufficient quality. The Challenger
Trophy remains the only high-level tournament. It has been extended from a single round-robin to
a double round-robin format and expanded to lower age groups. Still, it taps into a smaller pool of
players, as it features only three teams. Previously, a top player would get to play both Challenger
and inter-zonal tournaments, which acted as a funnel and a staircase for talent sifting at every
stage.
The quality of competition is a concern, despite pitches in domestic cricket being rated quite highly
by most players surveyed in this report.
40
Excellent
Poor 5.3% Poor
0.6% 2.5%
Excellent
14.5%
How do you
rate pitches Average Average
15.6% 28.2%
in domestic
cricket? Good Good
69.4% 64%
Batting Bowling
BALANCE IN DOMESTIC CRICKET
Railways remains the only employer of female cricketers across the

country, and therefore attracts the best talent. Since 2006-07 in senior
cricket, Railways have won as many as 11 out of 13 one-day titles, and 9
out of 11 T20 titles.
Railways remains the only employer of female cricketers across the country, and therefore attracts
the best talent. Since 2006-07 in senior cricket, Railways have won as many as 11 out of 13 one-day
titles, and 9 out of 11 T20 titles. Central Zone, the zone that Railways fall under, have won 10 out
of 12 inter-zonals, across one-day and first-class formats. This creates a lopsided domestic system
that does not provide quality matches to prepare players for international cricket, as surmised in
the Wisden India Almanack 2017.
The advantages the Railways enjoyed meant that there were few who could challenge them on
the domestic circuit. Air India provided some much-needed resistance when they entered the
fray in 1991. While they did not routinely offer permanent employment, they hired players – very
often under-19s – on annual contracts. Soon, they had on their roster a strong team, with the likes
of Pramila Bhatt, Smita Harikrishna, and later Purnima Rau, Anju Jain and Anjum Chopra. The two
teams gave birth to a healthy competition in the domestic circuit.
“A fierce rivalry was born. Each side, while playing against the other, had a special kind of khunnakh
41
(determination),” said Jhulan Goswami, who represented Air India and was one of the few to whom
the airline offered permanent jobs.
The effects of a healthy rivalry in domestic cricket immediately rubbed

off internationally. In the years when the two teams locked horns, the
Indian women’s team enjoyed a period of unprecedented success.
The effects of a healthy rivalry in domestic cricket immediately rubbed off internationally. In the years
when the two teams locked horns, the Indian women’s team enjoyed a period of unprecedented
success. It began when India won the New Zealand Women’s Centenary Tournament in the 1994-
95 season. India emerged victorious in a tri-series featuring the hosts and a strong Australian team.
Skipper Rau starred in the final with 48 runs and three wickets.
Purnima Rau, captain, about the Centenary Tournament win:
“The Railways-Air India domestic rivalry helped us win that. The rivalry created
so much pressure, that we had a pool of 30 players simulating the pressures of
international cricket.”
The challenges of improving standards of domestic cricket, bridging the gap between domestic
and international cricket, and providing more balance to the domestic circuit, can be solved with
solutions that have been successfully implemented in the past in India, and in other countries.
Some of these approaches are outlined in the next section.
PART 3: BEST PRACTICES

THE ENGLAND MODEL
The most successful boards have created bridge competitions that act as a stepping stone between
domestic and international cricket. While Australia’s domestic cricket is considered the strongest,
it is not a suitable comparison, since they only have seven teams in their domestic structure.
England’s structure may offer some lessons.
42
“England have more than 40 counties with women’s teams, spread over four divisions,
all completely amateur; players earn little or nothing to play. It is far from a system
that can produce excellence. Contracts for their national team in 2014 created an elite
programme, but could not create depth in domestic cricket. And so the England and
Wales Cricket Board (ECB) built a bridge: the Kia Super League (KSL), a six team
professional T20 competition, concentrating the best domestic talent and adding
the value of overseas internationals.”
“The KSL for us, as a country, has been huge in helping develop the next crop of
players,” said England batter Lauren Winfield. “They get to pitch themselves against
international cricketers in that competition, so you see where they are at. You ideally
want 20-25 players to pick from where every single player is ready to rock and play
international cricket. It’s really important to bridge that gap.” 19
The KSL has now been replaced by The Hundred, but even below it, England have realised the
need to concentrate their talent. They have proposed an eight-team domestic structure, sitting
above the counties and below The Hundred, which will play T20 and 50-over cricket. Effectively,
the ECB are introducing their version of the inter-zonals, the very tournament the BCCI has done
away with.20
They have proposed an eight-team domestic structure, sitting above the

counties and below The Hundred, which will play T20 and 50-over cricket.
Effectively, the ECB are introducing their version of the inter-zonals,
the very tournament the BCCI has done away with.
Key takeaway:
A future Women’s IPL needs a feeder system, and the inter-zonal tournament, along with a Challenger
Trophy, is necessary to perform that role. In the player survey conducted for this report, 97.5% of
the players thought inter-zonals were necessary.
19 Snehal Pradhan, Women’s IPL is no longer a matter of good optics (March 8, 2019) https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/
sports/womens-ipl-is-no-longer-a-matter-of-good-optics/articleshow/68312937.cms?from=mdr
20 ECB launches new plan to transform women’s and girls’ cricket (October 7, 2019) https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/1373377/ecb-
launches-new-plan-to-transform-women-s-and-girls-cricket
43
No
2.5%
Do you think India should play

senior inter-zonals in domestic
cricket?
Yes
97.5%
THE PUBLIC SECTOR UNDERTAKING MODEL
From 2009-10 to 2013-14, the BCCI organised the BCCI Corporate Trophy for male cricketers,21 a
tournament in which public and private companies could field their cricket teams. “The tournament
was specially created to coax the public and private sector to provide jobs for cricketers” reported
the Indian Express in 2015.22 Private companies such as Chemplast, Madras Rubber Factory and
India Cements fielded teams in the inaugural edition, along with Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs)
including Air India, State Bank and the Comptroller & Auditor General.
The tournament was discontinued after 2013-14 due to scheduling reasons, but could be revived for
women’s cricket. At present, Indian Railways is the only company offering employment to female
cricketers and has been the lifeline of domestic cricket since they employed their first cricketer,
Diana Edulji, in 1976.
At present, Indian Railways is the only company offering employment to

female cricketers and has been the lifeline of domestic cricket since
they employed their first cricketer, Diana Edulji, in 1976.
While Railways employs enough cricketers to fill eight teams, one company is not enough, with
87.6% players surveyed conveying they are not employed. The financial situation of the players is
examined in detail in section V.
But with no tournament to field a team in, which company would employ cricketers?
21 BCCI Corporate Trophy (February, 2013) https://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/series/index.html?search=BCCI+Corporate

+Trophy;season=2012%2F13;view=season
22 Devendra Pandey, Corporate Trophy struck off calendar for second consecutive year (July 23, 2015) https://indianexpress.com/
article/sports/cricket/corporate-trophy-struck-off-calendar/
44
Key takeaway:
An announcement of intent to re-start the Corporate Trophy for women, giving private and public
companies an opportunity to hire players and field a team, could be the fillip that Indian women’s
cricket needs. Prize money can provide the financial incentive. This could also be done outside the
umbrella of the BCCI. With Railways already having a team, only one other interested party needs
to employ cricketers to get the ball rolling.
An announcement of intent to re-start the Corporate Trophy for women,

giving private and public companies an opportunity to hire players and
field a team, could be the fillip that Indian women’s cricket needs.
THE FIRST-CLASS CRICKET MODEL
No
3.1%
Do you think we should play

two-day/three-day matches
in domestic cricket?
Yes
96.9%
As mentioned in section II of the report on international cricket, India are one of only four countries
to play a women’s Test match in the last decade. But whether or not they play Tests, there is
the expectation that first-class cricket (multi-day, multi-innings cricket) at the domestic level will
improve the skill levels of the women in a way that T20 and 50-over domestic competitions cannot.
The BCCI appreciates this, which is why they have multi-day cricket for boys right from the under-16
age group, the zone-wise Vijay Merchant Trophy.
The vast majority of players are in favour of such a tournament, and to ensure a good standard
of cricket, the tournament could be played at the inter-zonal level, allowing the 75 best players in
India a chance to develop the unique fitness and skills demanded by multi-day cricket.
45
the tournament could be played at the inter-zonal level, allowing the

75 best players in India a chance to develop the unique fitness and skills
demanded by multi-day cricket.
Key takeaway:
Multi-day cricket demands the most out of cricketers. Developing the aptitude for it will no doubt
make India’s women better limited-overs cricketers. In conjunction with Test matches at the
international level to aspire to, this step could have a far-reaching impact on India’s international
performance.
PART 4: THE GRASSROOTS

The first point of contact for women and girls is their local academy, their district cricket team
or the existing boys’ cricket club in their city or town. Grassroots women’s cricket, whether club
based or school based, feeds into domestic cricket. It is also where the biggest opportunities for
meaningful reform lie. These are also the areas where there is the least data available; the authors
were unable to ascertain how many women and girls play cricket at the school and academy level.
Such data is critical to the formation of future policy, to establish baselines and measure success.
Grassroots women’s cricket, whether club based or school based, feeds

into domestic cricket. It is also where the biggest opportunities for
meaningful reform lie.
These areas are not directly under the BCCI. It is the state units’ prerogative to develop their
respective women’s cricket programmes, and there is great variation as to their successes. Private
players have also made various levels of impact. Here are some of the biggest opportunities, waiting
to be tapped:
CONSTRUCTION AND VISIBILITY OF PATHWAYS
One of the common complaints is a lack of knowledge and clarity regarding pathways i.e. how a
girl progresses from playing with her friends and family to representing the state and country.
46
This is attested to by stories of those in the current Indian national team, who talk about finding
cricket quite by accident; even the younger ones, who have grown up through the period of growth
that women’s cricket experienced. Jemimah Rodrigues, who is just 19, says she didn’t know women
played cricket when she picked up a bat and ball a decade ago. “When I started playing cricket, I
didn’t know that girls’ cricket even existed in India at that time,” she told the Cricketer magazine.23
“When I started playing cricket, I didn’t know that girls’ cricket even
existed in India at that time”
The increased visibility since 2017 has driven more young girls to their local academies, but they
do not have clear ideas as to how to progress into district and state teams. The lack of televised,
domestic cricket, advertising the stepping stone between the academies and the Indian team, could
be the reason. The BCCI and the host broadcaster, Star Sports, have, since 2017, shown greater
commitment to televising the top competitions in India, the Challenger Trophy and the inter-state
T20 competition. The IPL Women’s T20 Challenge has also been televised, and the formation of a
future Women’s IPL will no doubt strengthen visibility.
The increased visibility since 2017 has driven more young girls to their
local academies, but they do not have clear ideas as to how to progress
into district and state teams.
But there is a need for greater communication of the pathways between state teams and grassroots
academies. Young women and girls need to understand exactly how they can climb the ladder
from grassroots cricket to their state teams.
Recommendation
The BCCI should incorporate messaging of pathways into its central
marketing campaigns, laying out the pathway for young girls to follow
their role models.
The BCCI should incorporate messaging of pathways into its central marketing campaigns, laying
23 Nick Friend, Jemimah Rodrigues: “When I started playing, I didn’t know that girls’ cricket even existed in India” (August 5, 2019)
https://www.thecricketer.com/Topics/womenscricket/jemimah_rodrigues_india_cricket_teenage_star.html
47
out the pathway for young girls to follow their role models. This could run in parallel to guidelines
to state associations to establish grassroots competitions for women (inter-school, club, district)
in major cricketing centres.
INTER-SCHOOL CRICKET
The state of inter-school cricket is tied into the lack of pathways. As many as 60% of state cricketers
surveyed said that they had represented their state without having played girls inter-school cricket
before. This is partly due to lack of uniform structures in different states.
Have you ever

played inter school Yes
39.9%
women’s cricket
(fully girls’ teams)? No
60.1%
Case study
The Mumbai Cricket Association has conducted city-wide inter-school tournaments
from 2006-07 to 2017-18. For the first few years, these were run as tennis ball-
matches of less than 20 overs. Those were then upgraded to leather-ball matches of
20 overs. While about eight schools participated in the early years, the number grew
to 16 in the last few years of the tournament. Tournaments were conducted every
January, with promising players from the tournament inducted into the summer
camps conducted around the city. The best of those then feed into the state under-16
programme, which has been running since before the BCCI introduced the age group.
Mumbai recently even introduced a club cricket tournament for girls. The programme
has borne fruit, and Mumbai has dominated age-group competitions, making four
finals in the last four years across the under-19 and under-23 age groups, and winning
two titles.
Mumbai recently even introduced a club cricket tournament for girls.

The programme has borne fruit, and Mumbai has dominated age-group
competitions, making four finals in the last four years across the
under-19 and under-23 age groups, and winning two titles.
48
Despite having such a robust structure, girls such as Rodrigues were not aware of
the pathways to the Mumbai team. Rodrigues recounts discovering trials for the
Mumbai team by chance. She had gone to watch her brothers play at Shivaji Park.
That day, the coach said there was going to be selection for the girls. Because he
knew Jemimah too played cricket, he told her father to send her, she told the Edges
and Sledges podcast.24
On the other hand, the situation is even less conducive across the rest of Maharashtra.
The Maharashtra Cricket Association has no structures for inter-school tournaments
for women and girls, and only sporadically conducts inter-district tournaments
before selecting state teams. They sometimes pick state squads directly from trials.
Despite this, Maharashtra has produced four players who have represented India in
the last 10 years, most notably Smriti Mandhana. It is fair to say that such talent has
emerged not because of the system, but despite it.
It does not help that the BCCI does not conduct under-16 matches at the national
level, despite the previous body, Women’s Cricket Association of India, having a well
established under-16 tournament that produced the likes of Mithali Raj, who made
her international debut at 16.
...BCCI does not conduct under-16 matches at the national level, despite
the previous body, Women’s Cricket Association of India, having a well
established under-16 tournament that produced the likes of Mithali Raj,
who made her international debut at 16.
The BCCI currently leaves it to each zone to conduct zone-wise under-16 tournaments,
as is the case in men’s cricket (four-day Vijay Merchant Trophy). Not every zone is
proactive in this. So talent discovered in inter-school cricket does not have a national
tournament to graduate into.
Inter-school cricket is also a segment that is ripe for cricket-related

private bodies to enter.
24 The Edges & Sledges Cricket Podcast Ep. 108: In Conversation With Jemimah Rodrigues! (April 13, 2020) https://youtu.be/-
96eaqdFMAw?t=429
49
Inter-school cricket is also a segment that is ripe for cricket-related private bodies
to enter. Some IPL franchises have already identified this. Mumbai Indians have been
conducting inter-school competitions for girls as well as boys, and have recently
expanded outside Mumbai, with competitions in Pune and Nagpur. Rajasthan Royals
too had conducted training camps for talented female players, under their ‘Royal
Sparks’ program.
They expanded that to an inter-school competition in Jaipur in 2019. Royals have
also appointed former Australian World Cup winner Lisa Sthalekar as an advisor to
develop their youth programmes.
Rajasthan Royals too had conducted training camps for talented female
players, under their ‘Royal Sparks’ program.
Jake McCrum, Rajasthan Royals COO, to the authors:
“We’d have conversations with our Sparks on a regular basis. They wanted more
matches. We thought, ‘We’ve been in Rajasthan, we have good connections with
schools, so why don’t we build something?’ It was very exciting, a good way to
connect with the schools, and we were excited with how the headmasters approached
it. There was a good crowd for the final as well. The competition will now continue.”
Recommendations
The BCCI could frame guidelines for inter-school women’s cricket, and
then incentivise state associations to conduct tournaments.
The BCCI could frame guidelines for inter-school women’s cricket, and then incentivise state
associations to conduct tournaments. These could ensure maximum participation at age groups
like under-11s and under-13s, and rules may need to be adapted to this end. Shorter pitches and
boundaries, and soft balls could be used. Rules that ensure each player bats and bowls for the
same number of balls, as well as fields in all positions, could be framed.
50
And promising players from these matches should graduate into state under-16 squads, who need
a national tournament to compete in. Shafali Verma almost single-handedly batted India into a
World Cup final at the age of 16. A national under-16 tournament is a critical piece of the puzzle,
one that is currently missing from the domestic circuit.
A national under-16 tournament is a critical piece of the puzzle, one

that is currently missing from the domestic circuit.
No
9.6%
Do you think India should have

under-16 nationals?
Yes
90.4%
Non-urban talent spotting
A list of Indian players and their hometowns shows a trend that is anecdotally observed across all
Indian sports: Athletic talent is outside major cities, in India’s towns and villages. And yet, most of
the facilities are concentrated in large urban centres.
Athletic talent is outside major cities, in India’s towns and villages. And
yet, most of the facilities are concentrated in large urban centres.
51
Player Hometown
Harmanpreet Kaur Moga, Punjab
Smriti Mandhana Sangli, Maharashtra
Shafali Verma Rohtak, Haryana
Jemimah Rodrigues Mumbai, Maharashtra
Deepti Sharma Agra, Uttar Pradesh
Veda Krishnamurthy Kadur, Karnataka
Taniya Bhatia Chandigarh, Chandigarh
Shikha Pandey Panjim, Goa
Poonam Yadav Agra, Uttar Pradesh
Radha Yadav Mumbai, Maharashtra
Harleen Deol Chandigarh, Chandigarh
Rajeshwari Gayakwad Bijapur, Karnataka
Pooja Vastrakar Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh
Richa Ghosh Siliguri, West Bengal
Arundhati Reddy Hyderabad, Telangana
Having identified this fact in the early 2000s, the Karnataka State Cricket Association and later the
BCCI implemented dedicated talent spotting programmes. The BCCI’s version, the Talent Resource
Development Wing, discovered M.S. Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Irfan Pathan. They did this by having
scouts identify talent in local matches, talent that might not ordinarily have made their state teams
due to various non-cricketing reasons. Such talent hunts have also been conducted by private
parties; the 2005 competition, Scorpio Speedster, is one such example.
A similar model is not feasible for women’s cricket given the lower number of matches around
the country. But the opportunity remains. The BCCI or other parties can recruit talent from other
sports, using research to identify which athletic skills cricket needs and look for those in other
sports. The tallest young girls might make the best fast bowlers, and can be scouted from volleyball.
Girls who show talent in softball can be drafted in as batters, etc. This approach, focusing on
non-sport-specific athleticism, has been successfully demonstrated by the Australian Institute of
Sport, where athletes with desirable athletic traits were transferred into the obscure winter sport
of skeleton (racing down a hill on a sled). Two of those athletes, originally from beach-sprinting
and gymnastics, made it all the way to the Winter Olympic Games. One became World Champion
in the under-23 age group. Similarly, England’s opening batter and player of the tournament of the
2017 World Cup, Tammy Beaumont, was previously a gymnast.
52
The BCCI or other parties can recruit talent from other sports, using
research to identify which athletic skills cricket needs and look for
those in other sports. The tallest young girls might make the best fast
bowlers, and can be scouted from volleyball. Girls who show talent in
softball can be drafted in as batters, etc.
Recommendation
The BCCI could create a women’s talent committee, and use multi-sport games at school and
university level to identify athletes who have skills that might provide them better career options
in cricket. These programmes can also be expanded to rural hometowns of cricketers who have
already reached the elite level, with those cricketers acting as ambassadors for that programme.
These programmes can also be expanded to rural hometowns of

cricketers who have already reached the elite level, with those
cricketers acting as ambassadors for that programme.
This programme may also be conducted by private bodies. The fact that a talented young woman is
more likely to represent the country than a talented young man (because of the lower participation,
and therefore competition numbers in women’s cricket) is a strong incentive for private bodies
to discover India’s next superstar in women’s cricket. Setting up an online portal, where young
cricketers or their parents can send their videos, repurposes a system generally used in football to
identify promising cricketers.
53
Women’s IPL
THE MISSING LINK
Women’s IPL
THE MISSING LINK
In 2010, when the IPL was still in its infancy and the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) had not yet
been conceived, there were eager emails exchanged between women’s cricket representatives of
India, England, Australia and a few other nations. This was because, in 2010, the idea for a Women’s
IPL was first mooted.
The vision was much the same as it is now: start with an exhibition match, and then grow from
there. Two teams were drawn up and internationals were alerted. Initial discussions seemed to
have the support of the right people at the BCCI. The atmosphere, for a short while, was pregnant
with possibility. But the idea never saw the light of day.
Then in 2015, Cricket Australia launched the WBBL, which has gone on to establish itself as the best
T20 competition in women’s cricket. In 2016, the ECB launched the KSL, which will be replaced by
the planned tournament, The Hundred. India meanwhile, still have not launched a Women’s IPL,
and are now playing catch up.
...in 2015, Cricket Australia launched the WBBL, which has gone on to
establish itself as the best T20 competition in women’s cricket.
India meanwhile, still have not launched a Women’s IPL, and are now
playing catch up.
As established in the previous sections, India desperately needs better bridge tournaments to
help close the gap between inter-state and international cricket. The inter-zonals and Challenger
tournaments are essential to this, but so is a Women’s IPL, where the best Indian players can rub
shoulders with the top overseas cricketers.
India desperately needs better bridge tournaments to help close the

gap between inter-state and international cricket.
55
Other
0.9%
No
17.1%
Do you think India has enough
quality players to play an eight-
team IPL? (Assuming four
Yes
foreigners per team.) 82%
Playing alongside cricketers from different countries in leagues in England and Australia has greatly
benefited top Indian players such as Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur and Deepti Sharma.
In 2016-17, Harmanpreet became the first cricketer from India to play in the WBBL. Six months
later, in the 2017 World Cup semi-final, against Australia, she scored a blistering and undefeated 171
runs off just 115 balls. The confidence gained from excelling in the WBBL, and the familiarity with
the Australian bowlers was a key component of this knock, considered by many as the greatest
innings in women’s ODIs.
In 2016-17, Harmanpreet became the first cricketer from India to play

in the WBBL. Six months later, in the 2017 World Cup semi-final, against
Australia, she scored a blistering and undefeated 171 runs off just 115
balls.

The confidence gained from performing against the best overseas players is something that Indian
players could benefit from. The BCCI has so far conducted exhibition matches, named the IPL
Women’s T20 Challenge. The 2018 season saw two teams play one match, while 2019 saw the
tournament expanded to three teams. These matches were played in Jaipur, televised in prime-
time slots, and set new benchmarks.
According to a Star Sports press release, “The first game of the Women’s T20 Challenge between
Supernovas and Trailblazers led by Team India T20 captain Harmanpreet Kaur and left-handed
opener Smriti Mandhana saw the highest reach for any women’s T20 game at 41mn viewers. The
total reach for the four games stood at 74mn viewers.” More importantly, it gave a talent like Verma
a platform, allowing her to be fast-tracked into the Indian team. Within six months of her T20I
debut, the 16-year-old rose to the top of the ICC T20I batting rankings, and took India to a T20
World Cup final.
56
The first game of the Women’s T20 Challenge between Supernovas and
Trailblazers... saw the highest reach for any women’s T20 game at 41 mn
viewers. The total reach for the four games stood at 74 mn viewers.
The BCCI announced in 2020 that a fourth team would be added to the exhibition matches. However,
there was no clarity as to when a full-fledged Women’s IPL would be launched, and what form it
would take. The lack of depth in domestic cricket has been identified as a concern. But while India
waits for this depth to build, they lose ground to England and Australia. There is a case for starting
a scaled-down version of a Women’s IPL sooner rather than later.
The lack of depth in domestic cricket has been identified as a concern.

But while India waits for this depth to build, they lose ground to England
and Australia. There is a case for starting a scaled-down version of a
Women’s IPL sooner rather than later.
Best practices
Australia has proven to be the leader in the development of women’s sports over
the last decade, and two of their fledgling women’s sporting leagues that have been
deemed successful provide answers to some pressing questions facing a future
Women’s IPL:
1. How long before it starts?: Australian Rules Football (AFL) is played by 18 men’s
clubs in Australia. But the AFL successfully launched a women’s league, AFLW,
with only eight teams. Of the 18 teams, 13 submitted expressions of interest to a
tender floated by the AFL, and eight were granted licences. The initial seasons
were broadcast on free-to-air television. When those succeeded, interest increased
from other clubs and the public. As grassroots numbers and depth improved, the
competition added two new clubs in 2019 and four more in 2020.
2. What will it look like?: The WBBL, launched in 2015, quickly became the best
women’s sports league in Australia partly because it allowed a crossover of fan
57
loyalty by having the same teams that played in the Big Bash League (BBL). Existing
Sydney Thunder fans could identify with the Sydney WBBL team easier because
they wore the same colours. “Aligning the WBBL brands with the BBL brands
will help cricket to appeal to a broader audience and gain greater exposure,” the
then CEO of Cricket Australia, James Sutherland, explained. It was a departure
from established practice. Most women’s sporting leagues across the world, such
as the WNBA, have separate identities and organisations as compared to men’s
teams. The concept of ‘One Brand, Two Teams’ has proven to be a success, and
has been successfully replicated by the AFLW as well.
No response
3.3%
Do you think IPL should be along with Teams

separate
existing franchises (Mumbai Indians from IPL Alongside IPL
Women, Sunrisers Hyderabad Women) 39% franchises
57.7%
or separate (Trailblazers Women)?
Recommendations
The BCCI’s intention to play a four-team exhibition series in 2020 indicates that they do believe
they have enough talent for a four-team tournament. Therefore, a smaller Women’s IPL, comprising
four of the existing eight franchise teams, can and should be launched as early as 2021. A tender
can be floated inviting interest from franchises. Interviews conducted by the authors with various
franchises indicate willingness of at least three franchises to start women’s teams. The BCCI could
make it financially viable to do so. The natural progression is that Women’s IPL teams be aligned to
existing franchises, ensuring women’s teams can share facilities, branding, fan loyalty, organisation
benefits, staff etc. The tournament can be expanded to eight teams in three to five years.
The natural progression is that Women’s IPL teams be aligned to existing

franchises, ensuring women’s teams can share facilities, branding, fan
loyalty, organisation benefits, staff etc.
58
THE PAY ISSUE

FEE STRUCTURE AND THE CASE FOR EQUAL PAY
59
The pay issue

Fee structures and the case for equal pay
Cricket has always been an expensive sport to practise, while rarely being a remunerative one.
Female cricketers in India find themselves at a disadvantage as compared to their male counterparts
because while they need to spend the same amount to develop their skills, they earn a fraction
of what the men do and have fewer avenues of income through cricket. Given these constraints,
sticking to cricket past a certain age is a challenge.
Female cricketers in India find themselves at a disadvantage as compared

to their male counterparts because while they need to spend the same
amount to develop their skills, they earn a fraction of what the men do
and have fewer avenues of income through cricket.
In the late 1970s and the 1980s, the pioneers of the sport in India raised their own funds to travel
the world. They shared kits and train berths, scrimping and saving to feature in tournaments.
Today’s generation, under the BCCI, have come a long way from those days. They travel and live at
a certain standard while representing their state and country. More players, coaches and parents
agree that cricket has become financially viable as a career choice. However, we remain away from
full professionalism.
Professionalism entails more than just a salary and contract: The pay
issue for female cricketers is not just about what reaches their bank
accounts, but is also a fight against systemic discrimination.
Professionalism entails more than just a salary and contract: The pay issue for female cricketers is
not just about what reaches their bank accounts, but is also a fight against systemic discrimination.
Addressing inequalities in pay also involves tackling inequalities elsewhere. In this section, we
examine the financial situation of players at all levels and examine what equal pay would entail.
60
PAYMENT STRUCTURES
In 2018, the top female cricketers got a raise on annual contracts to become the best paid among
their counterparts in the world.
In 2018, the top female cricketers got a raise on annual contracts to

become the best paid among their counterparts in the world.
Grade 2015 - 2016 2019 - 2020

Grade A 15 lakh 50 lakh
Grade B 10 lakh 30 lakh
Grade C NA 10 lakh
However, the difference between the men’s and women’s contracts remained stark. Even the lowest
paid male cricketer earned twice what the top women earned, and 10 times what her teammates
in Grade C earned. And while 27 men were contracted, 22 women made the cut.
Even the lowest paid male cricketer earned twice what the top women
earned, and 10 times what her teammates in Grade C earned.
2019-2020 contracts Men’s Women’s

Grade A+ 7 crore NA
Grade A 5 crore 50 lakh
Grade B 3 crore 30 lakh
Grade C 1 crore 10 lakh
Meanwhile, domestic players don’t have the benefit of a contract. The good news is that they too
had their match fees raised recently. The bad news is that the match fees is still a fraction of what
the men get.
61
2016-17 (women) 2019-20 (women) 2019-20 (men)

One-day 3,500 12,500 35,000 (per day)
20-over NA 6,250 17,500
Note: Those not in the playing XI get half this amount; junior players, even in the playing XI,
get paid less
An overwhelming 84.5% of respondents to a survey conducted by the authors felt their earnings
from domestic cricket was not enough as their primary income, without having recourse to another
job.
In fact, only 42% of respondents said the fees they earned from domestic cricket even covered the
cost of equipment.
...only 42% of respondents said the fees they earned from domestic
cricket even covered the cost of equipment.
Other
1.1%
Do the fees you earn from No

Yes
domestic cricket cover the 42% 56.9%
cost of your equipment?
The maximum number of matches a senior cricketer can play in a season – i.e. a player above 23,
who features in every match for her side, whose team makes it to the final of every competition
– is 30. It earns her, as per the 2018-19 season (with senior one-day tournaments, senior one-day
Challengers, senior T20s, senior T20 Challengers competitions) INR 2.75 lakh from match fees
alone. Under-23 and under-19 players potentially have more match days because of age-group
tournaments, but their fees are lower.
This is why several top cricketers gravitate towards a job in the Railways, the biggest – and at
present only – employer for female cricketers.
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Other
Yes 1.7%
13.8%
Are the fees you earn from domestic

cricket enough as regular income (no
other job)? No
84.5%
In addition to the match fees, domestic players get a dearness allowance during tournaments for
daily expenses. Young academy talents in states such as Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Himachal
Pradesh either get a stipend or have their education and cricket costs taken care of, too. But all of
these are only supplementary and offer no security. It is also estimated that out of BCCI’s annual
media rights: men’s internationals get 13%, domestic players 10.3% and 2.7% goes to junior players
and women.25
It is also estimated that out of BCCI’s annual media rights: men’s

internationals get 13%, domestic players 10.3% and 2.7% goes to junior
players and women.
Akanksha Kohli, Karnataka cricketer, 2017
“I know so many girls who don’t spend their DA. They will not eat enough – they
have to eat, playing a 50-over game in these conditions is not easy – saying I need
to save up, I need to give it to help my family. They don’t play with a fresh mind,
they are stressed, there’s the pressure of performance, thinking about the playing XI,
thinking about the family, thinking about saving that Rs 500.”26
Other concerns raised by domestic cricketers:
• Fees not reaching them on time, before the start of the new season
• Fees not matching those received by the boys
• Drain on resources when they stay in high-end hotels during tournaments
• Fewer corporate tournaments as compared to the boys from which they can earn additional
income
• Drain on family’s resources to travel to train for cricket
25 Arun Venugopal, Players unhappy despite hike in pay (March 30, 2017) https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/19039572/
players-unhappy-hike-pay
26 p338 , Karunya Keshav and Sidhanta Patnaik, The Fire Burns Blue – A History of Women’s Cricket in India (December 7, 2018)
Westland Sport
63
This amounts to a massive pay gap when it comes to female cricketers, which is two-fold: the
gap between what men and women earn, and the gap between what international women and
domestic women earn. Both of these issues need to be addressed separately.
This amounts to a massive pay gap when it comes to female cricketers,

which is two-fold: the gap between what men and women earn, and the
gap between what international women and domestic women earn.
THE CASE FOR EQUAL PAY
Serena Williams, Winner of 23 tennis Grand Slams, 2016
“I do believe that women deserve the same pay. We work just as hard as men do.
I’ve been working, playing tennis, since I was three years old. And to be paid less
just because of my sex—it doesn’t seem fair. Will I have to explain to my daughter
that her brother is gonna make more money doing the exact same job because he’s
a man? If they both played sports since they were three years old, they both worked
just as hard, but because he’s a boy, they’re gonna give him more money? Like, how
am I gonna explain that to her?”27
Smriti Mandhana, India opener, 2020
“We need to understand that the revenue we get is through men’s cricket. The day
women’s cricket starts earning revenue, I will be the first person to say that we need
the same thing. But right now, we can’t say that. The only focus right now is to win
matches for India, get the crowd coming in and earn revenues … For that, we need to
perform. It is unfair on our part to say that we need to be paid as much as the men.”
According to a 2017 study of 68 disciplines by BBC Sport, 83% of global sports award men and
women the same prize money. Cricket is not one of these sports. But, as these opinions from
female sportspersons themselves show, the equal pay argument is not a clear cut one. This is more
so in cricket, where the men’s and women’s game have developed independently for much of their
27 Melissa Harris Perry, Serena Williams Is Unstoppable: “Am I the Greatest? I Don’t Know. I’m the Greatest That I Can Be” (June 7,
2016) https://www.glamour.com/story/serena-williams-the-worlds-greatest-athlete
64
history, and any comparison is especially fraught.
In India, while women players agree they need to be paid more, there is not yet a push from their
side to be paid equal with the men. Arguing for Smriti Mandhana to be paid the same as Rohit
Sharma – both of them are vice-captains of the national teams, after all – will be premature without
simultaneously also addressing the economic and, more importantly, skills gap between Mandhana
and any other 24-year-old representing Maharashtra in the domestic circuit.
This isn’t to say that the demand for equal pay is in itself premature; on the contrary, it is vital to
put it in front and centre of the plan to develop women’s cricket, because equal pay demands that
a system be fashioned where various other inequalities are also addressed.
The main arguments against equal pay, that:
• the women’s team play less than the men’s team
• the women aren’t as skilled as the men
• the women’s team don’t sell out stadiums or attract sponsors like the men’s team
• the women aren’t as big stars and don’t carry the same pressure of the limelight as the
men
are all factors of historic under-representation and under-funding for the women’s game. The
justifications used to pay women less are those missteps from administrators that have kept women
as second citizens in the sport; the burden of getting fans and sponsors and revenue flocking to
female sportspersons should not be on the player – the player’s focus, as the cliche goes, should
be on the process, not the results – but instead on those running and marketing the sport.
...the burden of getting fans and sponsors and revenue flocking to

female sportspersons should not be on the player ...but instead on those
running and marketing the sport.
Female sportspersons, already being penalised for historic wrongs, are thus doubly penalised by
poor pay at present. A movement towards equal pay will shift the onus back onto administrators
to market the sport, build long-term sustainability and increase accountability in its development
all around.
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Anya Alvarez, LPGA pro, 2019
“There is systematic sexism in sports that leads to unequal pay, which starts with how
women are marketed by their own leagues... The root of the problem isn’t what women
are getting paid: it is the lack of foundation that they have to build from to capitalize
on their talent. When we make equal pay the central part of the conversation, we
miss all the smaller things that enable a system that hurts women’s advancement in
sports and their opportunity to generate equal revenue, and in return warrant equal
pay.”28
Recommendations:
1. Domestic contracts: All state associations should implement annual retainers for their
players, with the BCCI setting the minimum amount. (Board president Sourav Ganguly has
indicated this is on the agenda.) BCCI should also invest in developmental contracts for junior
players.
2. Commitment to equal base pay: Contracts should be split into fixed and flexible
components, with no gender discrimination on fixed components. Elements such as match fees
and travel allowances should aim for parity across the sexes, at every level.
3. Movement towards parity in prize money:
The prize and participation money at World Cups should be the same for
men and women, who are both representing their country on the biggest
stage.
The prize and participation money at World Cups should be the same for men and women,
who are both representing their country on the biggest stage. In the domestic set-up, premier
women’s domestic events should carry a greater purse, with the long-term aim towards equality,
with the same player awards too being distributed. This will also help raise the profile of these
tournaments.
28 Anya Alvarez, I thought the main issue in women’s sports was equal pay. I was wrong (May 9, 2019) https://www.theguardian.com/
sport/2019/may/09/i-thought-the-main-issue-in-womens-sports-was-equal-pay-i-was-wrong
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4. Renegotiate share of media rights: The present distribution sidelines women, despite
the women’s team having consistently broken performance and broadcast records, and having
developed their own audience.
5. Financial literacy: The BCCI, along with the new Indian Cricketers’ Association (ICA),
should encourage financial literacy among players through counselling. Players should also
have access to emergency funds, and the boards should help with small interest-free or low-
interest loans that players can access in times of need or to add to their education/qualifications.
The board should also help remove financial barriers to enter cricket, as explained further in
section I.
6. Employment: It is difficult to envisage a scenario where domestic cricket can be fully
professional, which means players need to take up other employment. Apart from creating
opportunities within the system for athletes, the BCCI and Sports Ministry should work to
incentivise corporates and public sector units to employ female cricketers under a sports quota,
through tax breaks and permissions for corporate tournaments.
...BCCI and Sports Ministry should work to incentivise corporates and

public sector units to employ female cricketers under a sports quota,
through tax breaks and permissions for corporate tournaments.
7. Commit to investment: BCCI, in collaboration with state associations, must commit funds
towards investment in women’s sport for a 5-year or 10-year cycle, setting fixed deliverables of
viewership, participation, academies, infrastructure and skills development, to achieve inside
a fixed timeframe.
Case study: Australia – setting the standard
When Australian women won the 2020 T20 World Cup at the MCG in January, they
not only took home prize money of USD 1 million, but, in addition, also got USD
600,000 from Cricket Australia (CA), who, with the view to parity, had committed
to making up the difference in prize money between ICC’s men’s and women’s
tournament purses.
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Kevin Roberts, CA CEO, 2019
“We want to continue our commitment to equality by ensuring that any prize money
earned by the Australian women’s team in the T20 World Cup is the same as what
is on offer in the men’s side of the tournament. This will include matching the prize
money for the final, semi-finals, or group stage.” 29
It was only the latest policy from CA to make cricket “Australia’s leading sport for
women and girls”. As a result of efforts from stakeholders over the past five years,
Australia’s female cricketers are financially more secure than their colleagues around
the world, and are among the best paid female sportspersons in the country.30 They
also enjoy a level of parity with their male counterparts, and are assured a share of
revenue since a landmark 2017 MoU between Cricket Australia and the Australian
Cricketers’ Association (ACA).
As A result of efforts from stakeholders over the past five years,

Australia’s female cricketers are financially more secure than their
colleagues around the world, and are among the best paid female
sportspersons in the country.
Highlights of their pay structure, which sets Australia’s female cricketers apart:
• Equal base pay with the men
• Greater purse – payments for elite cricketers increased from AUD 7.5 million for
the 2013-2017 period to AUD 55 million between 2017 and 2022
• Minimum annual retainer for an Australian representative went from AUD 40,000
in 2016-17 to AUD 72,076 upon the introduction of the new MoU, and is set to
reach AUD 87,609 by 2022
29 CA to top up women’s T20 prize money (October 15, 2019) https://www.cricket.com.au/news/australia-womens-cricket-t20-world-

cup-prizemoney-kevin-roberts/2019-10-15
30 Daniel Brettig, Australia’s female cricketers leap ahead in pay race (September 12, 2017) https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/
id/20677365/australia-female-cricketers-leap-ahead-pay-race
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• WBBL and state-only contracts for domestic players – these players are set to
earn a minimum of AUD 38,871 a year by 2022 31
• Top-ups – payments for men and women are topped up by factors such as hours
of work, commerciality, performance bonuses; this takes into account the factor
that domestic players might have other employment during the day
• ‘Social licence’ element to all payments, to address historic underinvestment in
sport
• Players get 12 months paid parental leave and are guaranteed contract extension
the following year
Elyse Villani, Australia batter, 2017
“Eight years ago, I was 18 and my first [state] contract didn’t have a dollar amount
against it, so we were just playing for the love of it. My first Australian contract was
$5,000, so to see where we are now compared to where we were only eight years
ago it is pretty phenomenal ... The biggest shift is now there is no time bomb to the
end of your cricketing career purely because of financial reasons.”32
The benefits of this system have been evident for the last few years:
• Dominant international side: Australia’s women’s team won and defended their
T20 World Cup title, comfortably topped the IWC ODI table, retained the women’s
Ashes and remain a dominant No. 1 across formats.
• High-quality player pool: WBBL and state tournaments give Australia an enviable
bench, while domestic contracts make cricket a viable career prospect.
• Improved participation: The latest CA 2018-19 census noted 57% growth in girls
31 Cricket pay deal huge for women as Australia’s female cricketers get massive windfall (August 3, 2017) https://www.abc.net.au/
news/2017-08-03/cricket-pay-deal-lauded-womens-pay/8772186
32 Clint Thomas, Australia’s female cricketers reaping benefits of new pay deal (September 12, 2017) https://www.abc.net.au/
news/2017-09-12/female-cricketers-seeing-benefits-of-new-pay-deal/8893850
69
cricket from 2015-16, with 873 new girls’ teams formed as against the previous
year and girls/women accounting for 30% of total participation in the sport in
the country.33
The latest CA 2018-19 census noted 57% growth in girls cricket from
2015-16, with 873 new girls’ teams formed as against the previous year
and girls/women accounting for 30% of total participation in the sport
in the country.
33 Andrew Ramsey, World Cup, Ashes to inspire more than hope (June 30, 2019) https://www.cricket.com.au/news/australian-cricket-
census-participation-numbers-cricket-clubs-grassroots-world-cup-ashes/2019-06-30
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Organisation
and structures
71
Organisation and
structures
In many ways, women’s cricket is a different game to the men’s. It is also in a different period of
development, and this growth is happening in a different environment than the one the men’s
game occupied. Hence, while in some aspects, systems and structures that worked for men can be
extended to women, in many others, it needs to have a unique plan driving it forward.
In this section, we examine aspects of the women’s cricket ecosystem and see what it takes to
make the sport a welcoming and gratifying one for women.
PART 1: ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE

The BCCI’s women’s cricket committee handles most aspects of the women’s game in India, with
the national women’s selection panel weighing in on matters of selection of support staff. There is
less understanding of their functioning than with aspects of the men’s game, where board members
and selection panel representatives face up to the media; the announcement of the women’s team
has never in recent times been accompanied by a press conference to explain the selection choices.
Women’s matters are restricted to this small group, as is women’s representation in the BCCI, ignoring
diverse voices on all cricket-related matters. The same is the case in state associations. While the
lack of women in leadership positions is not unusual, it is far from ideal or truly representative.
There is a vicious cycle at play here: lower women’s participation at the grassroots results in lower
representation in administration, which again results in lower participation.
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There is a vicious cycle at play here: lower women’s participation at the

grassroots results in lower representation in administration, which
again results in lower participation.
Recommendations
1. Women’s cricket vertical: One person should be put in charge of women’s cricket
operations in the BCCI, reporting to the CEO and board, and held accountable for its development.
They should have a separate workforce and marketing team working for them. This will reflect
the separation of governance and management functions as suggested in the Supreme Court-
mandated reforms. The BCCI should also encourage associations to develop a network of
women’s cricket development officers working at the state levels.
One person should be put in charge of women’s cricket operations in

the BCCI, reporting to the CEO and board, and held accountable for its
development.
2. More women in decision-making roles: By some estimates, less than 10% women
are board members of national sports federations world over.34 The lack of diversity is a serious
impediment when bodies are trying to grow the game, reach new audiences and open up post-
retirement roles for players. The BCCI should ensure one woman on all BCCI committees, and
require the constitutions of the state associations to include the same.
The BCCI should ensure one woman on all BCCI committees, and require
the constitutions of the state associations to include the same.
34 Main LC, Rowe K, Schoenberg G, Gastin P, Walsh J, Women in sport: Challenges and solutions in India, International Journal of
Sport, Exercise and Health Research (2018) http://www.sportscienceresearch.com/IJSEHR_201821_01.pdf
73
Case study:
A 2016 study commissioned by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) found that only 6.4%
of governance roles in the body were filled by women, compared to 38% in 1993
(under the erstwhile women’s cricket association).35 NZC quickly moved to make
amends, implementing the ‘Women and Governance Project’. As of July 2018, they
were able to take representation on the NZC board from 11% to 44% women, among
Major Associations from 4% to 28%, and District Associations from 7% to 14%. They
also developed resources and communication tools on how to find and encourage
female candidates for roles, and instituted a ‘Females in Governance Induction Day’ -
“to build the knowledge, confidence and connections amongst the female directors
involved in cricket across each region.” As of writing, the board is led by Debbie
Hockley, a former captain.
PART 2: PLAYER WELFARE

Wanting to play cricket for a living is only the start. Remaining in the sport is a whole different
challenge, as is preparing for life after. A BBC study found that 54% of unmarried respondents
participated in sports as against 30% of those married; having children resulted in a drop in
participation in sports by 20 percentage points.36 So, a holistic approach is essential to identify
those concerns of female players, which are likely very different from those faced by male athletes,
and catch them if they fall.
A BBC study found that 54% of unmarried respondents participated in

sports as against 30% of those married; having children resulted in a
drop in participation in sports by 20 percentage points.
35 Women and Cricket, Cricket and Women (November 2016) https://www.nzc.nz/media/7756/nzcr_j000080_women-and-cricket-

document_digital_d1.pdf
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Recommendations
1. Prioritise health: Studies have consistently shown that less resources are dedicated to
understanding women’s health. As a consequence, traditional training and recovery methods
often reflect learning from men’s sport, without acknowledging the differences in women’s
bodies. For example, women are seen to have more ACL (knee) injuries and stress fractures
than men; the Female Athlete Triad which links nutrition, menstruation and bone mass is a
significant concern for developing girls; and gender-specific nutrition deficiencies in general
populations are reflected in sports as well. There is also the big question of pregnancy and
maternity health, which is a very specific concern to female athletes’ careers.
traditional training and recovery methods often reflect learning from

men’s sport, without acknowledging the differences in women’s bodies.
Our survey showed that several state cricketers aren’t sure of the resources available to
them via associations. A quarter of the respondents said that if they got injured, they didn’t
get help from their states with their recovery, or that the help was available only during
tournaments, or they simply didn’t know. And only 68% of them followed a nutrition plan.
Other
8.4%
No
If you get injured, does your state 17.8%
association help you in recovery?

Yes
73.8%
A quarter of the respondents said that if they got injured, they didn’t
get help from their states with their recovery, or that the help was
available only during tournaments, or they simply didn’t know.
The BCCI should constantly aim to improve the understanding of these issues and encourage
their physios and nutritionists to conduct research as well as keep up with changing
worldwide trends.
75
Best practices: New Zealand Cricket announced that pregnant athletes would
retain their annual contracts in full with no expectation to train, only possibly fulfilling
off-field contractual obligations. Skipper Amy Satterthwaite became the first to take
this option. In Australia, expecting mothers are granted 12 months paid leave, assured
of a contract extension and financial support for a child minder to travel with the
mother until the child is four.
In 2019, Chelsea Women began tailoring training programmes around players’
menstrual cycles to help cut down injuries and optimise performance. Players’
symptoms were tracked, and their nutrition and exercise routines adjusted as per
the inflammation expected at different times in their cycle.
2. Guidelines for hyperandrogenism, intersex athletes and trans athletes:

Women’s cricket is built on the pillars of inclusivity, and the idea that cricket is a sport for
everyone. But unlike high-profile cases in athletics, cricket hasn’t been really tested on how
it will uphold this inclusivity if a top player is found to have hyperandrogenism (a high level
of ‘androgens’ or male sex hormones, more than what is found in the majority of biological
females), or is an intersex person (those born with physical sex characteristics that don’t fit
medical and social norms for female or male bodies). Various sporting codes have attempted
to deal with some aspects of this, such as by setting permissible testosterone limits while
pursuing studies to fully understand the effects of the hormone. While the ICC too has set a
limit, there are fewer specific studies for cricket, and not all bodies at domestic levels have
clear-cut policies on permissible levels. Fewer have the expertise on how to deal with a case
that comes up.
cricket hasn’t been really tested on how it will uphold this inclusivity if
a top player is found to have hyperandrogenism or is an intersex person.
Then there is the question of trans athletes. If ‘hyperandrogenism’ and ‘intersex’ refer to
factors of physical sex characteristics, and is generally addressed as such, for trans athletes,
the central question is about gender identity. Separate guidelines are essential for both and
cannot be done retrospectively once there is a high-profile case.
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If ‘hyperandrogenism’ and ‘intersex’ refer to factors of physical sex

characteristics, and is generally addressed as such, for trans athletes,
the central question is about gender identity. Separate guidelines are
essential for both and cannot be done retrospectively once there is a
high-profile case.
Both sets of athletes are likely to face discrimination and higher barriers to entry and growth
in the sport, and guidelines should be built out of sensitive, rights-based discussions. Neither
policy can take just a biological bent. The idea that identity on one hand, and sex, on the
other, is complex and multi-layered should be central to any conversation. There cannot
be any place for discrimination or derogatory language and it is the responsibility of the
authorities to ensure the athlete’s confidentiality and mental health is protected.
Best practices:
In August 2019, Cricket Australia passed a policy on inclusion of

transgender and gender diverse athletes in top level and grassroots
cricket. It requires blood testosterone levels maintained below 10 nano-
moles per litre (nmol/L) for a year, in line with ICC’s policy.
In August 2019, Cricket Australia passed a policy on inclusion of transgender
and gender diverse athletes in top level and grassroots cricket. It requires blood
testosterone levels maintained below 10 nano-moles per litre (nmol/L) for a year, in
line with ICC’s policy. It also pledged to re-evaluate this level every year based on
latest medical findings. No testing is required at the grassroots level, with players
allowed to participate in the gender they identify with.
3. Livelihood: As discussed in section V, not many cricketers can expect to run a household
simply with what they earn from cricket. The BCCI would do well to support initiatives to
encourage education and vocational training, especially to keep athletes within the fold once
they retire. Tie-ups with institutes of higher education and scholarships for education will help
young athletes plan for their future, while also arguably helping with their cricket if it is a
sports-related course.
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Tie-ups with institutes of higher education and scholarships for

education will help young athletes plan for their future
Senior players should be provided resources and know how to train to be coaches, match
officials, umpires, trainers, team managers, scouts and programme coordinators. For
instance, a complaint from senior and former players is that the BCCI rarely conducts
coaching courses. While the job profile for the head coach of the women’s team requires a
level 3 certificate, none of the former players who pursue coaching at the state level have
had the chance to improve on their level 2 certification, in years. This means that years of
knowledge and experience isn’t being put to full use. Contrast this with Australian captain
Meg Lanning, who in her mid-20s, is already a level 3 coach, which she says also helps her
lead the team.
Senior players should be provided resources and know how to train to

be coaches, match officials, umpires, trainers, team managers, scouts
and programme coordinators
Best practices: In Australia, the cricketers’ association, working with the national
board, offers career transition resources for players. These include paid internships
within cricketing bodies, education grants, and resources for job seekers.
Best practices: Mumbai Cricket Association has pushed former players into
scoring courses. One of them, Vrinda Rathi has since progressed into umpiring, and
is a rare Asian woman on the ICC development panel of umpires.
4. Representation: The Indian Cricketers Association (ICA) was finally set up in September
2019. It remains to be seen how much the BCCI and the ICA can work together for the
welfare of players. As against an initial grant request of INR 5 crore, it received INR 2 crore
from the BCCI. A wholesome relationship between the two bodies is vital to protect the
interests of players, and the sport as a whole.
78
Best practices:
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission represents the
athletes in all decisions related to the Olympics movement and aims to provide them
with resources to support them in sporting and non-sporting careers. This includes
everything from holding a consultation process to clarify what kinds of protests or
actions of a political nature will be allowed at the Olympic Games, to helping athletes
become AirBnB hosts for an additional income stream following IOC’s partnership
with the company, and offering career or mental health advice.
In cricket, the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) has spearheaded contract
negotiations with Cricket Australia, advocating on behalf of women, first-class and
grassroots cricketers as well as male players for a landmark revenue sharing formula.
As part of this MoU, AUD 13.4 million was also committed to ‘GamePlan’37, the ACA’s
well-being and education programme, tailored to suit the stage of a career a cricketer
is in (early, middle or later stages). With high-profile players as its executive members,
the body has also been able to consistently question the board on its finances and
plans.
PART 3: SELLING THE SPORT

When Lord’s was sold out for the 2017 World Cup final, with around 27,000 people watching India
and England tussle for the title, it marked a watershed moment in the history of sport, and stood as
a symbol of the kind of attraction women’s cricket could be. Two and a half years later, when 86,174
fans came through the MCG turnstiles to watch India and Australia play another final, it marked just
how far the sport has increased in value in a short period.
It’s not just cricket: women’s sport has enjoyed an influx of goodwill and support in the past two
years. This is partly down to the zeitgeist, partly because of the hard work put in by athletes and
stakeholders over decades to shatter stereotypes about performance and acceptance, and partly
because it makes economic sense.
37 GamePlan: Member Wellbeing and Education Program, https://auscricket.com.au/gameplan
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Several sponsors have come forward to both benefit from, and further raise the value of women’s
sport.
Case study:
...Procter & Gamble urged the federation “to be on the right side of
history” and donated more than USD 500,000 to the players association.
Nike declared the USA Women’s home jersey was the No.1-selling soccer
jersey, men’s or women’s, ever sold on Nike.com in a season;
In the context of a record-breaking Women’s Football World Cup in 2019, sponsors
benefitted commercially, even as they were convinced to increase their investments.
In the US, Visa mandated that 50% of its official sponsorship go towards the US
national women’s team in its new deal with US Soccer.38 Taking a stand against the
soccer federation’s case against their own female players, who went to court asking
for equal pay, Procter & Gamble urged the federation “to be on the right side of
history” and donated more than USD 500,000 to the players association.39 Nike
declared the USA Women’s home jersey was the No. 1-selling soccer jersey, men’s or
women’s, ever sold on Nike.com in a season; the company drove wholesale revenues
in its women’s segment up 11% to USD 7.4 billion in a year.40
Cricket too has had its eyes opened to the marketability of women’s sport. In fact, the return on
investment for female cricketers in India might be greater than for many of the male stars. In the
industry, Smriti Mandhana, for example, reportedly has one of the highest rates of ‘engagement’
on social media, which brands are keen to tap into. Higher profile for their athletes can only benefit
BCCI’s brand too.
38 Visa Increases Global Investment in Women’s Soccer (May 30, 2019) https://usa.visa.com/about-visa/newsroom/press-releases.
releaseId.16391.html
39 Andrew Das, U.S. Soccer Sponsor Enters Equal Pay Fight on Women’s Side (July 14, 2019) https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/14/
sports/soccer/uswnt-equal-pay-ad.html
40 Theron Mohamed, Nike is selling a record number of USA women’s soccer jerseys thanks to World Cup fever (June 28, 2019) https:/
/markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/nike-sells-record-number-of-usa-soccer-jerseys-due-to- womens-world-cup-2019-6-1028317598
80
Recommendations:
1. Bring in crowds: A good crowd at a women’s game looks good on TV, gives fans an experience
to remember, and players an incentive to put on a show. The onus is on the host association
to pull in the crowds, while the BCCI can incentivise it with hosting fees and regular audits of
the stadiums and matches. It is also up to the BCCI to schedule the matches appropriately,
and encourage venues in smaller cities where the appetite for cricket is not satisfied by the
rare men’s games they get. For instance, the 2018 women’s T20 exhibition match was held in
peak summer, during a weekday, mid-morning, in Mumbai. In 2019, the BCCI learned its lesson,
hosting the games before excited crowds in Jaipur, with three day/night games. Around 15,000
people came in for the last match.
It is also up to the BCCI to schedule the matches appropriately, and

encourage venues in smaller cities where the appetite for cricket is
not satisfied by the rare men’s games they get.
Case study:
During the India v Australia ODIs in Vadodara in March 2018, the local association
enlisted a marketing company to help bring in the crowds, and it resulted in 4,000-
7,000 people packing the small ground every match day for a spectacular atmosphere.
Entry was free. They put up hoardings around the city, distributed passes to schools,
colleges and academies, served free lunch to spectators, and plotted a record human
chain at the ground. The Baroda Cricket Association were driven to do this not only
because of their relatively strong women’s programme, but also because it proved
their ability, as a tier-II city, to pull off a spectacle for a cricket match and hopefully
get more games in the future.
2. Separate secondary sponsorship rights: While having the same sponsor on
the men’s, women’s and junior jerseys sends out the message that everyone is playing for
India, there is also the argument for some sponsorship deals to be decoupled with men’s
rights. It allows brands with a specific focus on women, or without the resources to invest
in more expensive men’s rights, a way in to run specific activations.
81
The Deloitte Sports Business Group expects that 100% of football clubs in France, Germany,
UK and USA will have a different front-of-shirt sponsor to the men’s teams by the 2023
Women’s World Cup.41 As explained previously, the optics of this strategy is not desirable
for a national team, but it does indicate the potential for female-specific marketing. If
secondary sponsorships for the women’s teams are clearly defined, and a proportion of
primary sponsorship funds (such as shirt sponsorships) are clearly allocated for women’s
games, there will be a greater incentive to showcase more matches and players on TV and
digital platforms.
there is also the argument for some sponsorship deals to be decoupled

with men’s rights. It allows brands with a specific focus on women, or
without the resources to invest in more expensive men’s rights, a way in
to run specific activations.
3. Expand broadcast and digital offerings:
The average audience for the final in India was 9.02 million, with digital
streaming figures peaking at 3.1 million concurrent users on Hotstar,
the highest ever on the streaming platform for a women’s game.
Video views for the 2020 T20 World Cup across ICC digital channels totalled 1.1 billion video
views – only behind the men’s World Cup last year. The average audience for the final in
India was 9.02 million, with digital streaming figures peaking at 3.1 million concurrent users
on Hotstar, the highest ever on the streaming platform for a women’s game.42 This confirms
the appetite for women’s sport is growing, if it is packaged and marketed well. While all
international matches at home are generally broadcast now, the BCCI should commit to giving
them better billing, through prime-time slots, thoughtful scheduling around weekends and
public holidays, and evening matches. There is also further scope to improve the broadcast
of important domestic matches too, via live streaming and edited highlights.
41 Izzy Wray, Unbundling rights key to long-term financial success of women’s football – Deloitte Sports Business Group https://www2.
deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/sports-business-group/articles/unbundling-rights-key-to-long-term-financial-success-of-womens-football.html
42 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup by the numbers (April 2, 2020) https://www.t20worldcup.com/media-releases/1651971
82
...BCCI should commit to giving them better billing, through prime-time

slots, thoughtful scheduling around weekends and public holidays,
and evening matches.
PART 4: OUTREACH INITIATIVES

‘You can’t be what you can’t see’ is a mantra often associated with women’s sport, to stress the
importance of being visible in the media to inspire the next generations.
‘You can’t be what you can’t see’ is a mantra often associated with
women’s sport, to stress the importance of being visible in the media to
inspire the next generations.
The BCCI has done well to acknowledge the successes of the women’s team, and also including
them in sponsor and digital campaigns. However, while female cricketers get more coverage in the
media than before, there are still drastically fewer newspaper column inches and TV news minutes
devoted to them as compared to that spent on their male counterparts. Efforts to actively raise the
stature of the women’s game, recognise its rich history, and work to inspire the next generation,
have been limited.
Recommendations
1. Media personnel for the women’s team: Currently, the team manager, who
already has plenty on her plate, doubles up with limited media duties. Members of the BCCI
media team don’t regularly travel with the women’s team, especially if there’s an overlap
with men’s assignments. The BCCI has come in for criticism for failing to even provide
match updates for non-broadcast domestic and international games. No press releases are
sent to mark the start and end of significant domestic tournaments or even international
wins. This has several implications, and puts India’s cricketers at a disadvantage compared
to their counterparts elsewhere in the world, who benefit financially and in the currency of
83
recognition from having the spotlight on them. A media manager for the women’s side will
help streamline this flow of information, improve representation of the women in the media,
and help raise the brand of the players, the board, and the country. It will also be the first
step in developing a content strategy that can become a future source of revenue for the
board.
No press releases are sent to mark the start and end of significant
domestic tournaments or even international wins. This has several
implications, and puts India’s cricketers at a disadvantage compared to
their counterparts elsewhere in the world
A media manager for the women’s side will help streamline this flow of
information, improve representation of the women in the media, and help
raise the brand of the players
2. Media investment into women’s sport:
Media coverage will improve when the trophies come. But in the meantime,
the media too has a duty of representation.
Media coverage will improve when the trophies come. But in the meantime, the media too has
a duty of representation. The media industry in India is among those under acute financial
stress, with budgets, even (or especially) in legacy media houses tight for sports coverage.
However, editors and journalists should make efforts to ensure that women’s sport is not a
casualty of this, and instead ringfence time and resources to sustain reporting. Diversity in
the newsroom is important, as is improved sensitivity to the use of gender-neutral language
while talking about sport. The aim should be in treating women’s sport with the same rigour
as the men’s game, while also being perceptive enough to highlight those issues unique to
women and girls.
The aim should be in treating women’s sport with the same rigour as the
men’s game, while also being perceptive enough to highlight those issues
unique to women and girls.
84
Case study:
The Telegraph in the UK began an award-winning women’s sport vertical across digital
and print in March 2019 to tackle the big issues in women sport. Groundbreaking
reporting into aspects such as female mental and physical health, body image and
sports pathways were supported by campaigns to close the gender gap in physical
activity among children, with the support of the government and civic groups.
The media house claimed to have 45% of women’s sports stories online in 201943
compared to its competition and boasted of several female writers.
3. Awards:
Among the most recent BCCI awards, just 7 of the 25 categories were for
women.
Among the most recent BCCI awards, just 7 of the 25 categories were for women. This
is an improvement over the previous year, when just four awards, including a lifetime
achievement award, went to women. Recognising the efforts of more domestic players will
put the women’s game on a higher standing.
Recognising the efforts of more domestic players will put the women’s
game on a higher standing.
The one-time benefit granted to former players a few years ago, on the sidelines of the
IPL, and the introduction of lifetime achievement awards separately for women are both
welcome recognition of the greats on whose shoulders today’s game rests. The visibility of
past players should be increased by including them in promotional campaigns.
4. Create role models of current players: The BCCI should invite present and former
internationals to visit upcoming players in schools and academies, lifting them up as positive
role models for a new generation.
43 @WomensSport (March 19, 2020) https://twitter.com/WomensSport/status/1240572072566407168
85
Questionnaire
for active
women
cricketers in
India
86
Questionnaire
for active women
cricketers in
India
The authors circulated a questionnaire among domestic teams, with active cricketers invited to
respond. Their responses formed the basis of an informal survey.
Respondents weren’t screened on age or location to form, so aren’t equitably distributed across
states and age groups; thus, the sample isn’t representative of the whole population of female
cricketers in India. Participants were welcome to respond anonymously.
While multiple choices were provided for responses, participants were given a chance to also
express their views and situation outside of the template. Several have made use of that, making
for some especially interesting insight.
Responses are as follows.

NO. OF RESPONDENTS BY AGE
50
1. Age
40
30
20
10
0
12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
AGE
87
2. Which State team do you play for? (If multiple, please mention)
Team Respondents
Odisha 38
Baroda 31
Mumbai 18
Madhya Pradesh 26
Goa 15
Mizoram 13
Uttar Pradesh 43
Maharashtra 16
Punjab 14
Tamil Nadu 16
Saurashtra 18
Hyderabad 11
Himachal 13
Haryana 9
Uttarakhand 7
Pondicherry 6
Karnataka 9
Jharkhand 6
Himachal Pradesh 4
Delhi 7
Railways 8
Vidarbha 3
Bengal 8
Andhra 4
Tripura 2
Bihar 1
Gujarat 2
Kerala 1
Assam 1
Chattisgarh 3
Sikkim 3
88
3. Do you have an immediate family Yes

30.5%
member who played cricket because of
whom you started playing cricket (eg: No

69.5%
father, brother)?
No
8.6%
4. Have you ever played cricket in boys’
teams (practice matches, club matches,

Yes
etc.)? 91.4%
Other
0.6%
Yes
16.9%
5. Were you ever uncomfortable playing

No
in boys’ teams? 82.6%
Sometimes
1.1%
6. Does your local ground/cricket club/ No

33.1%
place where you practise have women’s Yes

65.7%
changing rooms?
89
7. Have you ever played inter-school Yes

39.9%
women’s cricket (fully girls’ teams)?
No
60.1%
Other
1.1%
8. Have you ever played inter-college

No Yes
girls’ cricket (fully girls’ teams)? 48.5% 50.4%
‘Other’ includes those still in school.
Other
1.4%
9. Have you ever played inter-university No Yes

43.7% 54.9%
girls cricket (fully girls’ teams)?
‘Other’ includes those still in school.
1-3
days
10. On average, how many days a week 7.5%
do you practise?
4-6 days
92.5%
90
Other
1.1%
11. Do you have a personal coach?
‘Other’ includes those with friends and family coaching No Yes

52.2% 46.6%
part-time, and those who had a personal coach in the past.
12. On average, how many days a week 7 days

3.1%
1-3
do you work on your fitness? days
26.5%
4-6 days
69.8%
13. Do you have a personal fitness trainer?

Yes
26.5%
No
73.5%
14. Do you have year round access to a
fitness trainer through your state team? Other

3.1%
‘Other’ includes no responses and ‘don’t know’.
No Yes
41.2% 55.7%
91
15. If you get injured, does your state

Other
8.4%
association help you in recovery?
No
17.8%
‘Other’ includes those who have not been injured, and,
significantly, those who don’t know the policies of their
Yes
association. Respondents under this category also clarified 73.8%
that support was only available for injuries picked up during
tournaments.
Responses of ‘no’ complained of delayed reimbursement

for out-of-pocket expenses.
Other
2.0%
16. Do you follow a nutrition plan? No

29.7%
‘Other’ includes those who do not follow a meal plan Yes

68.4%
consistently, or do it only in certain circumstances.
Other
2.8%
17. Do you have access to a psychologist/
counsellor through your state team?

No Yes
62.1% 35.1%
Among those who answered ‘yes’, access might be for a

session or tournament. ‘Other’ didn’t know if they had this
facility.
18. Are you employed with the Railways Other

0.8% Yes
or any other government body through 11.5%
sports quota?
‘Other’ includes those who are still studying. No

87.7%
92
Other
0.3%
19. Has anyone in your immediate family Yes

20.1%
ever told you not to play cricket?
No
79.6%
Other
0.6%
20. Has anyone from your relatives/
neighbours/friends ever told you not to Yes

33.5%
play cricket? No
65.9%
Interestingly, a respondent made the difference between

support for playing at an amateur level, but not as much
for building a long-term career out of it.
21. Have you ever faced financial

Yes No
difficulty to play cricket? 54.8% 45.2%
Poor
0.6%
Excellent
14.5%
22. How do you rate pitches for batting
Average
in domestic cricket? 15.6%
Good
69.4%
93
Excellent
5.3% Poor
2.5%
23. How do you rate pitches for bowling
in domestic cricket?
Average
28.2%
Good
64%
No
3.1%
24. Do you think we should play two-day/
three-day matches in domestic cricket?

Yes
96.9%
No
2.5%
25. Do you think India should play senior
inter-zonals in domestic cricket?
Yes
97.5%
26. What do you think Indian cricket

Other
6.5%
needs more of?
Challenger
29.3%
Many of those in the ‘other’ category stressed that more Inter-state

40%
of all kinds of matches were needed. Some batted for
multi-day cricket, some for club cricket, some for age-
Inter-zonal
group games, while others felt an IPL should be prioritised. 24.2%
One player said that irrespective of the kind of matches,

transparent selection was paramount.
94
No
9.6%
27. Do you think India should have
under-16 nationals?
Yes
90.4%
Other Yes
1.1% 5.9%
28. Do you think a cricket ball is
dangerous for under-16 players?
‘Other’ responses include those who pointed out that a ball No

93%
was dangerous for anyone, irrespective of age, and others
who said it was a factor of training.
Other
1.1%
29. Do the fees you earn from domestic
cricket cover the cost of your equipment? Yes

42%
No
Respondents pointed out this varied season to season, and
56.9%
also that there are delays in payments being made which
means they have to cover the costs themselves.
Other
1.7%
30. Are the fees you earn from domestic Yes
13.8%
cricket enough as regular income (no
other job)?
No
84.5%
‘Other’ includes students, not looking for employment.
95
31. Which gender coach do you prefer Male

15.9%
for state teams?

Either Female
72.4% 11.7%
Male
32. Which gender team manager do you 3.6%
prefer for state teams?

Either Female
56.3% 40.1%
Several respondents added that it was the approach and
mindset that mattered, rather than the gender.
No
33. Have you ever played alongside a 19%
cricketer who is currently playing for
India? Yes
81%
No
1.1%
34. Do you think India should play Test
matches with other countries?

Yes
98.9%
96
Other
0.9%
35. Do you think India has enough quality No
17.1%
players to play an eight-team IPL?
(Assuming four foreigners per team.)

Yes
82%
Among players, a six-team IPL was a popular suggestion.
No response
3.3%
36. Do you think IPL should be along
with existing franchises (Mumbai Indians Teams

separate
from IPL Alongside IPL
Women, Sunrisers Hyderabad Women) 39% franchises
57.7%
or separate (Trailblazers Women)?
97
A way
forward
A way forward
HOW TO REMOVE BARRIERS TO PARTICIPATION

• Implement a marketing campaign and ground activations to change perceptions and
drive mass participation.
• Increase all-women’s teams at club and academy level, and make women’s participation
a key element of evaluating state associations.
• Ensure every cricket ground has girls’ toilets and changing room facilities.
• Formulate guidelines making cricket matches and facilities safe spaces and free of any
physical, psychological or sexual harassment.
• Hold workshops to educate players on policies regarding harassment.
• Increase employment opportunities and set up scholarships to overcome financial barriers.
HOW TO IMPROVE ELITE PERFORMANCE

• Commit to investment amounts and deadlines, sending out a strong message of intent.
• Create a fixed-term vision plan with a clearly defined goal and execute it with transparency
and accountability.
• Identify lacunae in elite performance, with best use of data and technology, and appoint
the right resources to address them.
• Develop a strong bench through a robust India A set-up, with competitive domestic, age-
group, club and school cricket below that.
• Prioritise mental fitness to help players deal with high-pressure situations.
• Give structure to the calendar with a well-publicised women’s FTP.
• Prepare for player burn-out and injuries with a data-driven workload management
programme and rotation policy.
• Schedule more day/night matches, which can be played under lights and shown on prime-
time TV.
99
HOW TO REVIVE TEST CRICKET

• Reintroduce multi-day domestic cricket to improve skills of players.
• Organise more multi-format series in the template of the women’s Ashes.
HOW TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN DOMESTIC AND

INTERNATIONAL CRICKET
• Develop bridge tournaments to serve as a feeder system to the Indian team and a future
Women’s IPL.
• Hold a corporate trophy, which will also encourage public and private sector companies
to employ female cricketers.
• Re-introduce multi-day cricket.
HOW TO DEVELOP GRASSROOTS PATHWAYS

• Define clear pathways for young women to aspire to.
• Develop inter-school cricket and under-16 national tournaments.
• Set up a non-urban talent spotting programme to scout talent.
HOW TO SET UP A WOMEN’S IPL

• Start with a mini-Women’s IPL in 2021 with four teams, inviting interest from existing IPL
franchises.
HOW TO EQUITABLY SUPPORT PLAYERS

• Implement domestic contracts and annual retainers, as well as developmental contracts
for junior players.
• Incentivise corporates and public sector units to employ female cricketers under a sports
quota, through tax breaks and permissions for corporate tournaments.
• Offer equal prize and participation money at World Cups for men and women; re-evaluate
the purse of domestic tournaments.
• Commit to equal base pay for men and women, aiming for parity in match fees and travel
allowances at every level.
• Renegotiate share of media rights that goes to women.
• Encourage financial literacy among players through counselling, and provide access to
emergency funds and loans.
• Commit to investment for a 5-year or 10-year cycle, setting fixed deliverables of viewership,
100
participation, academies, infrastructure and skills development, to achieve inside a fixed
timeframe.
HOW TO REBUILD ORGANISATIONS

• Develop a women’s cricket vertical, with one person in charge of women’s cricket
operations; develop a network of women’s cricket development officers at the state levels.
• Empower more women to be in decision-making roles and improve diversity in
administration.
HOW TO PRIORITISE PLAYER WELFARE

• Dedicate resources to understanding women’s health and its effects on performance,
with a focus on injury prevention, nutrition, menstruation and pregnancy.
• Support initiatives to encourage education and vocational training, especially to keep
athletes within the fold once they retire.
• Support the ICA to give players a voice.
HOW TO SELL THE SPORT

• Bring in crowds and give fans a stadium experience to remember.
• Evaluate the possibility of separate secondary sponsorship rights to encourage a new
category of sponsors.
• Expand broadcast and digital offerings through prime-time slots, thoughtful scheduling
around weekends and public holidays, and evening matches. There is also further scope
to improve the broadcast of important domestic matches too, via live streaming and
edited highlights.
HOW TO REACH OUT AND INSPIRE

• Press on media to invest in women’s sports reporting, be sensitive on the use of gender-
neutral language while talking about sport and highlight those issues unique to women
and girls.
• Institute more awards for female cricketers, to recognise the efforts of more domestic
players.
• Have a separate media manager for the women’s team to streamline this flow of information
and develop a new content strategy.
• Create role models of current players by visiting upcoming players in schools and
academies.
101
In closing
The idea for the report was conceived by Sidhanta Patnaik, in a conversation with Nandan Kamath
of the Sports Law and Policy Centre (SLPC) in March 2019. A few months after starting work on it,
Sidhanta passed away aged 34, succumbing to cancer.
Sidhanta spent the last few years of his career championing women’s cricket. He co-authored a
book chronicling Indian women’s cricket’s rich history, thus giving many unsung heroes of past
eras the recognition they deserved. Always in the corner of the underdog, Sidhanta believed in
the incredible potential of the women who represented and represent the country, without being
blindly nationalistic. (He once remarked that Bangladesh dethroning India in the Asia Cup was a
good thing, in the larger scheme of things.) He believed that a strong Indian women’s cricket team
is good for the global game. And despite keenly understanding the obstacles in Indian cricket’s
path, he always had hope that things will improve.
This report has been compiled in that same spirit: the belief in India’s world-beating potential, and
a hope that India’s rise in cricketing ranks also means more for Indian society. It is now the hope of
the authors that this report starts conversations at the very least, and at most helps to transform
the face of women’s cricket in the country. Much of the focus has been on chronicling the current
state of the sport, for only when we know the ground under our feet can we venture to leap.
The final draft of this report was submitted to SLPC on June 1, 2020, exactly a year after Sidhanta’s
passing.
102
About the
contributors
SIDHANTA PATNAIK
Sidhanta Patnaik gave up a life as an experiential marketer to be a cricket journalist and author. He
reported on cricket for Wisden India, News18 and Women’s CricZone, and co-authored The Fire
Burns Blue: A History of Women’s Cricket in India.
SNEHAL PRADHAN
Snehal Pradhan is a former India cricketer, now working in the media as a columnist and commentator.
She has authored more than 350 articles on women’s cricket for various major publications. She
also makes cricket tutorial videos on YouTube.
KARUNYA KESHAV
Karunya Keshav is the co-author of The Fire Burns Blue: A History of Women’s Cricket in India. She
was a reporter and senior editor at Wisden India Almanack, and is editor-at-large at wisden.com.
Thank You:
SHARDA UGRA
We would like to thank Ms. Sharda Ugra, Senior Editor, ESPNcricinfo for reviewing this Report while
in draft form. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential. The review should
not be read as an endorsement of the Report by the reviewer nor as reflecting the views of the
reviewer.
Designed by: Vaarta (4th Main, Indiranagar, Bengaluru)
103
The Sports Law & Policy Centre, Bengaluru is an independent think-tank focused
on interdisciplinary research, scholarship, education and institutional support for
public and private enterprises in areas relating to the legal, policy and ethical issues
affecting sport in India.
The Centre comprises a group of professionals with extensive knowledge of and
experience in working within the sports ecosystem in India. While sport in India is
developing at a rapid pace, there exists room for legal debate and inquiry into the
laws and policies that surround organised sports.
The Centre aims to provide thought leadership, to encourage public debate and to
bring knowledge-backed decision making into the national sports ecosystem by
creating a forum for study, analysis and sharing of expertise.
Our Recent Publications
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An Equal Hue:

The Way Forward for the Women in Blue

© 2020 The Sports Law and Policy Centre, Bengaluru

FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY

3. INDIA AND THE WORLD 21

4. INDIA’S DOMESTIC CRICKET 35

6. THE PAY ISSUE 59

7. ORGANISATION AND STRUCTURES 71

8. QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ACTIVE WOMEN 86

10. IN CLOSING 102

11. ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS 103

12. ABOUT THE SPORTS LAW AND POLICY 104

(2020 T20 World Cup) in March this year.

support they need on and off the field.

everything, right from toilets at local grounds to high-performance centres.

The purpose of this report is three-fold:

i. To analyse the current situation

ii. To identify areas of work

up players for personal empowerment.

broadcasters and sponsors.

from around the world.

Social structures and physical barriers to participation in cricket and how to

mine India’s golden opportunity

ii. Elite cricket

High performance structures and how to win a World Cup

iii. Domestic and grassroots cricket

How to develop pathways

iv. Women’s IPL

The pay issue and how to move towards parity

vi. Organisational structures

How to build a supportive ecosystem

in its strengths to make lives better.

for women in the country.

It is the respectful and the right thing to do.

and their established women’s programmes.

these are faced by all sportswomen, and indeed all women.

and what the barriers to their participation are.

PART 1: CULTURAL BARRIERS

Even in the subliminal messaging of its terminology (batsman),

Has anyone from your Yes

Class X board exam).

in 2017. A year later, the youngster made her India debut.

so that I could be ‘well-off’”.5

“Once I turned 18 my family and relatives started pressuring me for

take advantage of such participation.

growth of women’s cricket a priority will marketing campaigns be meaningful.

PART 2: PHYSICAL BARRIERS

Snehal Pradhan, former India cricketer and co-author of this report.

into a clean T-shirt. It was better than the jumper.”

barriers to girls choosing a cricket academy.

girls couldn’t play just anywhere.

from their heads.”

Does your local ground/ No

you practise, have women’s Yes

Claire Polosak, the first woman to umpire in a men’s ODI

There are numerous advantages to mixed-gender teams for children

the point of entry.

6 The characteristics of children and the educational approach https://grassroots.fifa.com/en/for-coach-educators/coaching-

Have you ever played cricket in

Were you ever

around age 12.

and jokes going on.” 7

Have you ever Yes No Yes No

when things go wrong.