The Daily Fix: Women’s cricket in India is on the verge of greater things but is the BCCI listening?

The Big Story: Talking about a revolution

England are the champions of the world but India, in their own way, are champions too. Mithali Raj and her band of warriors did not automatically enter the Women’s World Cup: they had to qualify for it. After a bright start, they looked like they were fading away. But then they made an incredible comeback where they beat sides ranked higher than them in four straight matches. They were magnificent but in the final on Sunday the vicious cocktail of pressure and nerves got to them.

It was heartbreaking, but the journey to the final might have done more for women’s cricket in India than anything that the Board of Control for Cricket in India has managed in a long time. That is why this cannot be an end, it has to be a beginning.

The sport may be the same, but Indian cricket lives in two different worlds.

One world, the one that men inhabit, is glamorous and high profile. It is a world where players receive multi-million dollar contracts for playing in the two-month Indian Premier League, a world where endorsements for elite cricketers are rarely in short supply. If you are a Grade A cricketer in the Board of Control for Cricket’s central contracts pool, you can expect to receive a cool Rs 2 crore per year.

By comparison, the cricket board announced central contracts for women cricketers for the first time only in 2015. The players in the highest grade receive Rs 15 lakh. It is a glaring difference, one that needs to be addressed if this triumph is to become the forebear of something greater. A professional women’s league on the lines of the Indian Premier League will also help the sport in a big way. But is the BCCI listening? Does it care?

Women’s cricket is on the cusp of a revolution, one which has to be encouraged. To do that, the BCCI cannot let this golden opportunity slip. For one, they must try to ensure the broadcast of all international matches featuring the Indian team. If they are wondering how else to go about it, they could think about listening to the captain herself.

“The BCCI has made an effort that the last two home series have been televised and social media has improved a lot of it but there is a still a lot of catch-up to do in terms of recognition,” Mithali Raj said at the beginning of the tournament. “I believe that if you are representing your country, your country should get the best of the best.”

That’s the key word: “best of the best”. It’s not asking much: just ensure your national team gets the best facilities they can. And while that starts with broadcasting their matches, it also means ensuring they have enough training camps, enough tours abroad and dedicated support staff.

If Kapil’s Devils set off a cricket revolution in 1983, Raj’s team – despite their loss in the final – has already the done the same in 2017. It’s time they get their due.

The Big Scroll

Before the world cup final, Vinayakk Mohanarangan spoke to former women’s team coach Purnima Rau, who said the team had already proved they were champions.

Punditry

1. In the Indian Express, Imad Ul Riyaz writes that, as a Muslim and a Kashmiri, he finds the middle ground disappearing.
2. In the Hindu, Peter Ronald Desouza argues that the race for the vice president’s post is a contest between two ideas of India.
3. In the Telegraph, Manini Chatterjee says Mayawati has the chance to galvanise the Dalit movement again.

Giggles

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