WOMEN’S

VOL 1 | ISSUE 1 | 2019 WWW.WOMENSCRICZONE.COM

LOOKING
AHEAD:
LISA STHALEKAR
ON THE 2020 T20 THE
WORLD CUP
WIDENING GAP
Adam Collins on
Australia’s dominance

RAF NICHOLSON
On the need to
revive Test cricket

CONFIDENCE
& CHARISMA An exclusive interview with India’s
golden girl, Smriti Mandhana.
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PUBLISHER’S NOTE
I
would like to briefly share with
you the story behind the creation of
Women’s CricZone, so that you may
understand its context and history
before you dive in.
My interest in cricket is just like
any other Indian kid. I first watched a
women’s cricket match in 2009 when
England faced New Zealand in the
finals of the World Cup. After that, I
had always tried to follow as much
women’s cricket as possible through
every source of media I could find:
from TV to newspaper to the internet.
However, one thing was always
evident— the quality, quantity, and
frequency of the content made available
wasn’t enough.
The 2017 Women’s World Cup
For us, publishing in England was a pathbreaking
tournament not only for India, but
Women’s CricZone it was the shot in the arm to all the
Magazine has been a nations across the world. It meant they
understood the need to channelize their
natural progression. efforts in organizing and promoting
First we tried to women’s cricket.
connect the fans It is around that time that Women’s
CricZone took shape as a media portal.
with the game, As an avid cricket fan, I was keen
and now we want that the rest of the world gain easy
access to information regarding
to make the elites women’s cricket. Since I wasn’t quite
and stakeholders sure what could be done, my friends
a part of it. and well-wishers encouraged us to
launch a website and a social media
handle giving updates on the game.
A dedicated effort to develop the
coverage of the women’s cricket led
me to meet Sidhanta Patnaik, who has
unparalleled knowledge about the
women’s game and other stakeholders.
I found that we had a similar vision,
and requested him to come on board.
That was when things really took off…
The first giant step in our relentless
quest to connect the game with the fans
was taken when we toured Sri Lanka
to cover India’s tour in September
2018. Subsequently, we grew bolder
and braver when we covered the ICC
Women’s T20 World Cup from the
Caribbean, and then steadily added
more reputed journalists in our
editorial team to cover every series
around the globe.
For us, publishing Women’s CricZone
Magazine— the first magazine of its
kind— has been a natural progression
to our digital arsenal. First, we tried
to connect the fans with the game and
now, we plan to make the elites and the
stakeholders a huge part of it.
I would like to thank my Editor
in Chief Sidhanta Patnaik, Magazine
Editor Ananya Upendran, Smriti
Mandhana, advisors, sponsors, the
entire women’s cricket fraternity, ICC
and lastly but importantly BCCI for all
their support in making this magazine
take a real shape.
Yash Lahoti
E-mail: yash@womenscriczone.com
Twitter: @YvLahoti
www.womenscriczone.com 5
FROM THE EDITOR
TAKING CENTRESTAGE
M
y earliest memories of watching
women’s cricket on television
are from 2003, when Maia
Lewis’ New Zealand toured
India for one Test and five ODIs.
I didn’t watch the Test— I don’t even know
if it was televised— but I saw every single
one-day game on DD Sports.
A year later, when Australia toured India
ahead of the 2005 Women’s World Cup in
South Africa, I followed the games again—
this time a little more keenly because I had
just started playing competitive cricket. The
day after every game I would pore over the
newspaper searching for a sign that the the
country knew the women were playing.
Sometimes, I found a 150-200-word article
with brief scores at the bottom— that was a
best case scenario.
In 2013, when India hosted the ICC
Women’s World Cup in Mumbai, the
situation was much the same— token
coverage, but this time, with the odd picture.
Through the tournament, there were, at
best, a couple of Indian journalists in the
Cricket Club of India press box. Far more
had covered the Ranji Trophy final at the
Wankhede Stadium that ended only a day
before the women’s tournament began.
Four years later, upon their return from
England, the Indian team were greeted in
the middle of the night at the airport by
hundreds of cheering fans and dozens of
eager journalists. After the 2017 World Cup
it seemed the women’s game had finally
found its own identity.
Through this period of transition, there
have been a few constant voices. Sidhanta
Patnaik, one of only three Indian journalists
in the press box during the World Cup final
at Lord’s, was one of them. After years of
dedicatedly covering women’s cricket, he
was now seeing it blossom into something
bigger and better.
Long before that change happened,
Sidhanta was trying to do his bit to promote
the women’s game. “The game needs a
voice,” he told me during my first few
months at Wisden India. “It is our job to try
and give it that voice— cover every aspect,
from multiple angles. We have a chance
to bring about a change. We can grow the
game.” For someone who doesn’t hold a
stake in the sport, it amazed me how much,
and how deeply he thought about ways It took a great deal of
to improve the standards and coverage of work to put this magazine
women’s cricket. together. Working on a
From covering matches in far corners very tight schedule made
of the country to being in the Lord’s press it feel like everything was
box for a World Cup final— Sidhanta has going at super speed. Late
seen his fair share of matches and ticked nights, early mornings,
off a number of milestones. His unbridled endless hours of staring
passion for the game was the reason for at a computer screen and
the development of Women’s CricZone as
many, many discussions
a website, and he is also the reason for the
creation and launch of this magazine.
later, we finally made it!
Back in 2004 when I scanned through A huge thank you to
every newspaper searching for news on everyone involved in the
women’s cricket, all I wanted to do was creation of this magazine—
find a way to make the world aware of the contributors,
the women’s game. To be involved in the advertisers, advisors,
publication of this magazine is a dream design team, and the
come true. It wouldn’t have been possible entire WCZ family. And to
without Sidhanta, who unwittingly became you, our readers, we hope
something of a mentor to me, and his you enjoy the content.
influence and commitment to the women’s
game infuses these pages.
Although the women are still jostling
for space in the media, they have firmly
carved out their place in the public
imagination. Women’s CricZone is meant to
be a celebration of all the people involved
in the women’s game— their time waiting
in the wings is done. Now they must take
centre stage.
Ananya Upendran
E-mail: ananya@womenscriczone.com
Twitter: @a_upendran11
www.womenscriczone.com 7
 TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S

WOMEN’S CRICZONE
MAGAZINE
email: support@womenscriczone.com
website: www.womenscriczone.com

PUBLISHER
Yash Lahoti

05 42
34
EDITORIAL
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Sidhanta Patnaik
PUBLISHER’S NOTE BEYOND THE BOUNDARY
- Yash Lahoti
MAGAZINE EDITOR DRIVING THE FUTURE OF
Ananya Upendran WOMEN’S CRICKET IN THE OUTPOSTS -
ART DIRECTOR
Jittendra Chillal
07 Karunya Keshav

PHOTOGRAPHER
FROM THE EDITOR
Ananya Upendran
44
Ryan Martis

CONTRIBUTORS
Adam Collins
Anuja Dalvi
Anand Date
10 FROM BACKYARD TO BIG LEAGUES:
MAKING THE JUMP FROM DOMESTIC TO
Marina Iqbal THE OPENER INTERNATIONAL CRICKET - Frances Mackay,
Karuna Jain
Karunya Keshav A CASE FOR THE REVIVAL Karuna Jain, Marin Iqbal
John Leather OF TEST CRICKET - Raf Nicholson
Frances Mackay
Reema Malhotra
Kass Naidoo
Raf Nicholson
Lisa Sthalekar
14 50
Rama Subramanian (Quiz) AUSTRALIA: STANDARD BEARER FOR ATHLETICISM: A GAME-CHANGER
THE WORLD - Adam Collins
ADVISORY BOARD FOR WOMEN’S CRICKET IN
CONSULTING EDITOR INDIA - Anuja Dalvi, Anand Date

20
Sunandan Lele

LEGAL ADVISOR
Adv. Dr. Chinmay S. Bhosale FROM THE ARCHIVES
ADVISORS BEST OF WOMEN’S CRICZONE WEBSITE
Abhishek Kulkarni
Kailash Mundada

24
Kamal Rungta
Vineet Patni
Vinit Deo

ADVERTISING AND PROMOTIONS

COVER STORY
‘IF YOU SCORE, PEOPLE WILL
ADVERTISING MANAGER
Akshay Mhaskar
RESPECT YOU’ - Ananya Upendran
akshay@womenscriczone.com

Published by
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Chintamani Pride Building, Near City Pride,
NUMBERS GAME
Kothrud, Pune, Maharashtra, India – 411038 DECODING THE NUMBERS
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8 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
54
IN THE FRAME
PHOTO SECTION
70
62
OPINION
INDIA IS READY FOR A
WOMEN’S IPL - Reema Malhotra

66
PERSPECTIVE
NOTHING BEATS LIVE TV
COVERAGE - Kass Naidoo

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ROUND-UP
THE WOMEN TO WATCH - Shweta Haranhalli

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THE YEAR AT A GLANCE: SERIES SUMMARIES

76
LOOKING AHEAD
2020 WOMEN’S T20 WORLD CUP: AUSTRALIA
READIES ITSELF - Lisa Sthalekar

82
SUPER OVER
QUIZ: TESTING TIMES -
Rama Subrahmanian

24

www.womenscriczone.com 9
 THE OPENER
A CASE FOR THE
REVIVAL OF TEST
Before it becomes a mere pastime of yesteryear, consigned to the dustbin of history,
it is important that the ICC revives women’s Test cricket— a format that most players
believe is the pinnacle of the game.
I
• R AF NICHOL SON n August 2014, India
Women played their first
Test match in eight years.
Derided in the media
before they took to the field,
their hopes against the newly-
professional England team were
widely thought to be zero: a true
David v Goliath encounter.
I covered that match,
and what I saw was truly
astounding. Over the four days
of play (the standard number
for women’s Tests), the Indian
team made a mockery of all
10 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
CRICKET
pre-match expectations, routing
England for 92 in their first
innings, and eventually winning
by 6 wickets.
The star of the show? An
18-year-old bespectacled Smriti
Mandhana, on her very first
tour of England. Afterwards, I
spoke to the dazed teenager as
she reflected on the events of the
past few days, including hitting
a half-century in India’s second
innings as they chased down
their target of 181. She described
the Test win for her side as “a
PHOTOGR APHS: DON MILE S
dream come true”. “The win
is important - it is more than
everything else,” she said.
Three months later, in
November 2014, India played
another Test, facing up to South
Africa in Mysore. This time
around, MD Thirushkamini
and Punam Raut starred with
a record-breaking 275-run
second-wicket partnership.
India thrashed their opponents
by an innings: suddenly, they
are the all-reigning queens of
the multi-day format.
 They have not played
another Test since.
D
uring that August
2014 England v India
Test, Chair of the ICC
Women’s Committee Clare
Connor gave an interview in
which she described women’s
Test cricket as “hanging
by a thread”. It was an apt
summation. India are not alone
in being strangers to the Test
format: New Zealand and West
Indies have not played a single
Test since 2004. Indeed, in the
last decade, only eight women’s
Tests have been played. Regular
women’s Test cricket currently
survives only between England
and Australia as part of the
multi-format Women’s Ashes,
whereby a single Test is given
a points weighting and used
alongside three ODIs and three
T20Is to decide the overall series
winner.
Why? Of course it is partly at
the discretion of the individual
Left: Meg Lanning
is keen on playing
more Test cricket, and
like most Australian
cricketers, says the baggy
green ‘holds a special
place in her heart.’
(PC: Don Miles)
Right: Regular women’s
Test cricket currently
survives only between
England and Australia as
part of the multi-format
Women’s Ashes.
(PC: Don Miles)
cricket boards. However, the
ICC have made it clear that they
do not see women’s Test cricket
as a priority: their focus has
been on growing the women’s
game through the T20 format,
and they argue that this makes
more sense from a commercial
perspective. During the last
women’s Test to be played, at
Sydney in November 2017, a
member of the ICC Women’s
Committee Belinda Clark
reiterated that the policy going
forward is to continue to focus
on the shorter formats of the
game, with no intention to
increase the amount of Test
cricket played.
“If we’re thinking about
growth of the international
game, the answer to that
question is T20,” she said. “The
one-day game also has a place
– the World Cup in England
shows that. But I’m not sure that
women’s Test cricket holds a
place in people’s hearts.”
It was a deeply
disappointing statement from
someone whose own career
centred around the Test match
format. Clark represented
Kohli said recently Australia between 1991 and
that he wants 2005, playing in 15 Tests; she is
second on the list of most Test
India to be a runs scored by an Australian
“superpower in female. Yet she is now part of
two governing bodies, Cricket
Test cricket”. It Australia and the ICC, who
seems likely that have overseen a rapid decline
in women’s Tests— ensuring
India’s women’s no young player today will ever
team— judging have a chance of getting close to
by their double her record.
It is no coincidence that
Test victory in Clark retired in 2005— the same
2014— could be a year that the ICC took over
the running of international
fundamental part women’s cricket. Prior to that,
of that vision, if the multi-Test series’ were the norm
in the women’s game. Until the
BCCI would only ICC takeover, the International
give them a shot Women’s Cricket Council
at it. (IWCC)— a body staffed by
female administrators, generally
ex-players— had responsibility
for the Future Tours
www.womenscriczone.com 11
 THE OPENER

Programme; and they were fully

supportive of women’s Test
match cricket. An IWCC survey
conducted in 2000, five years
before the merger, showed that
“all countries indicated support
for a combination of Test and
one-day cricket”; the Women’s
Cricket Association of India felt
that “without Tests, women’s
cricket would be seen as having
no Test players and the game
would suffer”. But the Women’s
Cricket Association of India no
longer has a voice: it is the BCCI,
and the ICC, who call the shots
these days.
In fact Clark’s statement
that Test cricket does not hold
a place in people’s hearts
just does not stack up. Had
she paused for a minute to
speak to the Australian side,
she might have realised that.
Current Australian captain
Meg Lanning, in a recent
interview, was unequivocal
about the issue: “We’d love to
play more Test matches.” She
went on to advocate the future
involvement of the Indian team
in women’s Test cricket. “I think
India would be great at playing
Test matches. I think they’d
probably be the big fish to get the possibility of that experience their country in Test cricket as
involved because they’ve got being taken away. the pinnacle of their career. It is
such a big influence in cricket. Above: An 18-year-old For female players, Tests called “Test” cricket for a reason.
If that was the case, I think that Smriti Mandhana, who And yet the ICC appear to think
are career-defining moments:
scored a half-century in
would definitely help that side there is nothing else like them. that women should be denied
India’s Test win in 2014,
of the game grow.” described it as “a dream Mithali Raj, who has led her that privilege. Strange, isn’t it?
“Putting on that baggy

green is a very special moment
for all our group, and we
always look forward to that
opportunity,” she concluded.
Lanning is in no way alone.
The treasured memory of
receiving their first Test cap is a
common memory among female
players (just as it is amongst
their male counterparts). “As
a kid, it’s the first thing that
you want to do,” England’s
Kate Cross, who received hers
in Perth in January 2014, told
me in an interview. The more
you talk to players, the more
intensely sad it is to think about
come true” and “more team to two World Cup finals,
than anything else”. says that beating England in
(PC: Don Miles) the 2014 Test at Wormsley was
the highlight of her career to
date. Why? Because it came in
a Test match. Smriti’s comment
in the wake of that Indian Test
win against England being
“more than everything else”
speaks volumes about the way
players view the format. I have
interviewed countless female
players over the years, and they
are 100% unified in their desire
to play more Tests.
None of this is really
surprising. Most male cricketers
would also see representing
T
he ICC’s argument
would likely be that
regardless of the players’
feelings, women’s Test cricket
is expensive and provides little
financial return: T20 should
therefore be the focus as we seek
to grow the women’s game. I
beg to differ. Growing women’s
cricket requires more women’s
Test cricket, not less.
A recent survey of 13,000
cricket fans across the world
conducted by the MCC revealed
that 86% felt that Test cricket
was their preferred format to
watch, trumping ODIs, T20Is

12 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
and domestic matches. This is
fairly conclusive. But if women
are unable to participate in the
format of the sport which the
vast majority of fans consider
to be their preferred format,
what message does that send
about the relative value of
women’s cricket compared to
its male counterpart? Equality
in women’s cricket must surely
involve participation in all
formats. Expanding the fan
base of the sport depends at
least partly on credibility— and
credibility in turn depends on
the opportunity to participate in
the pinnacle format.
Most fans would agree that
there is something unique and
special about the Test match
format. For four days, different
teams edge their way in front,
then fall behind; tactics are
carefully reconsidered, over
by over, session by session;
there is time, so much time, for
thinking, and for nerves, and
for great innings; for the gentle
unfolding of a narrative which
no one could have predicted.
It is not rocket
science: if we want
female cricketers
to be the best
players they
can be— and to
produce the kind
of cricket which
attracts people
to watch them—
then Test cricket
needs to be in
their vocabulary.
Test cricket also showcases the
players’ talents like nothing
else. When else would an
Indian woman be able to take
541 minutes to patiently acquire
192 runs, as Thirushkamini
did in November 2014 against
South Africa?
The women’s Ashes Test at
Perth in January 2014 is a case
in point: it is the most exciting
cricket match, men’s or women’s,
which I have ever had the
privilege of witnessing. Across
four days at the WACA, the
players produced the kind of Test
cricket— men’s or women’s—
that is utterly captivating from
first to last ball. It was a low-
scoring game, in which the
highest score was Australia’s
first-innings 207; a game
where the fast bowlers could
rip through a side when they
had a new ball in their hands,
where momentum ebbed and
flowed between the two teams,
with either looking capable of
victory right up until the final
morning. It was a game where
even those in the press box who
are supposed to display a facade
of neutrality, myself included,
could not prevent themselves
from suffering regular heart
palpitations.
The ICC want to increase
the fanbase of women’s cricket:
I do not believe that anyone
who watched that England-
Australia Test match at the
WACA can have failed to be
converted to women’s cricket,
to be impressed and excited by
its participants. And the proof of
this is there, if you look for it. All
the evidence is that audiences
at women’s Test cricket are
growing, year on year; there is a
real public appetite for women’s
Test cricket. The most recent
Test to be played, at Sydney in
November 2017, was attended
by 12,600 people— a record
for modern-day women’s Test
cricket. Pre-ticket sales for the
forthcoming women’s Ashes
Test at Taunton in England this
For four days,
different teams
edge their way
in front, then fall
behind; tactics
are carefully
reconsidered,
over by over,
session by
session; there
is time, so
much time, for
thinking, and for
nerves, and for
great innings;
for the gentle
unfolding of a
narrative which
no one could
have predicted.
Test cricket also
showcases the
players’ talents
like nothing else.
summer are said to be very
positive indeed.
A related point is that
participating in multi-day
cricket undoubtedly produces
better all-round cricketers: it
develops their patience and
tactical nous, gives them time to
practice the fundamentals over
and over in a match situation.
Virat Kohli, a great advocate
of men’s Test cricket, has been
vocal about this recently. “If
we focus too much on shorter
formats,” he has said, “then
there’ll start being a mental
problem with the cricketers
coming up.” No doubt this
applies to players of both
genders. It is not rocket science:
if we want female cricketers
to be the best players they can
be— and to produce the kind of
cricket which attracts people to
watch them— then Test cricket
needs to be in their vocabulary.
I
t need not be difficult to
revive women’s Test cricket.
The ICC already mandates
that the top eight nations all
play each other in three ODIs
across each four-year World
Cup cycle, as part of the process
to determine who qualifies for
the next tournament. Why not
go one step further and state
that in addition to these ODIs,
teams must also participate in
a Test and three T20s, all worth
a specified number of points?
If the will was there, there is no
doubt that a way could be found.
Kohli said recently that he wants
India to be a “superpower in
Test cricket”. It seems likely that
India’s women’s team— judging
by their double Test victory in
2014— could be a fundamental
part of that vision, if the BCCI
would only give them a shot at it.
As I say, it need not be
difficult to revive the format,
but it is imperative that it
happens soon. Otherwise
women’s Test cricket will
become a mere pastime of
yesteryear, consigned to the
dustbin of history.
And if commercialism is
allowed to dictate our sport’s
future, maybe men’s Test
cricket (which the boards freely
admit is rarely profit-making)
wouldn’t be too far behind it.
Raf Nicholson is a women’s cricket
writer and historian, currently
working on a history of the
women’s game in England. She
is editor of the women’s cricket
website www.crickether.com. She
tweets @RafNicholson.
www.womenscriczone.com 13
 THE OPENER
AUSTRALIA: STANDARD
BEARER FOR THE WORLD
The team’s success comes down to bold ambition and considered decisions that have seen
their on-field dominance extend to hegemony in every corner of the international game.
• A DA M CO L L I N S
S
o goes the basic
theory: when seeking a
competitive advantage
in a new market, it
serves well to be first. When it
comes to Australian women’s
cricket, being first is just
what they do. Over the last
generation, this has extended
from simple on-field dominance
to hegemony in every corner of
the international game— with
no signs of abating.
Australia remains the most
successful and formidable
team in the international
arena, shown most recently
by their comprehensive T20
World Cup triumph in the
Caribbean last November. But
this is a story that goes well
beyond that, and on to the big
decisions off the field that have
made it possible— a world-
leading domestic competition,
and an unprecedented pay
deal morphing into record
participation.
At Cricket Australia (CA)
headquarters, there are many
people who can take credit for
the advances made over the last
five years, but in terms of who
it gives the most satisfaction,
it is hard to look past Belinda
Clark, the current Executive
General Manager for Team
Performance.
The former captain was
a giant in her playing days; a
glittering career spanning 15
years, in which she twice held
the World Cup, concluding in
2005. There was nothing she
did not achieve with the bat as
Australia’s best player of her
generation, but for the most
part, it was a career that took
place away from the viewing
public. By contrast, in her career
off the field, Clark works for an
organisation that has ensured
the women’s cricket revolution
has been televised.
“Sometimes, you’ve just got
to do stuff,” Clark tells Women’s
CricZone about the surge of
activity that has defined CA’s
push to grow women’s cricket
over the last five years. “You
can always find arguments to
say that it isn’t the right time
or we are not ready. You can
keep doing that for a long
time.” Specifically, she is
addressing the thinking that
underpinned the decision to
go ahead with the Women’s
Big Bash League (WBBL) in
the summer of 2015-16— the
very first semi-professional
T20 women’s league.
Clark goes on to explain
why it had to be about more
than cash and cameras. The
women’s game in Australia
was already on a new and
improved journey but it was

the WBBL that turbocharged
Above: The women’s it. “Philosophically, we have
game in Australia was been working towards it for
already on a new and quite some time. Each strategy
improved journey but that had been developed went
it was the WBBL that deeper into making sure that the
turbocharged it-- leading sport is accessible and inclusive.
to the rapid rise of One of the obvious things was
talents like Asheligh
to make sure our female players
Gardner. (PC: Cricket
Australia) were playing appropriate levels
of cricket in order to inspire
the next generation of kids
Left: The growth of in Australia and that was the
the women’s game genesis of the WBBL.”
in Australia has been What the WBBL proved to
rapid-- attracting more the market-at-large was a signal
fans and viewers than
that decision-makers meant
one previously thought
possible. (PC: ICC/CA)
business. “If we wanted other
people to believe that cricket
was for boys and girls then we
needed to demonstrate actions
that led the way,” she explains.
“It was the realization that
we couldn’t wait for someone
else, whether that’s the public
or a commercial partner or
broadcaster. We couldn’t wait
for other people to come to
that conclusion; we needed to
be proactive. We believed that
we needed to invest in order to
create that momentum.”
Even so, expectations
were measured. A free-to-air
television deal had been struck
with Network Ten, and it was
huge. However, roughly only
one in five games were set to be
screened that opening season,
and all on a secondary station.
Internal estimates were for
40,000 domestic viewers per
game that went to air. It was
not so. Quickly, games were
being rescheduled to the main
station with audiences peaking
at 700,000 during the final.
“That first year it was a
bit of a leap of faith and it has
turned out very well for us,”
says Clark, modestly. “What I
was most proud of was sports
fans in this country just went for
it and we are now reaping the
“The genesis of
the championship
was essentially
trying to ensure
that every country
in the top eight
plays similar
amounts of
cricket. There have
been a number
of countries that
have benefitted
from that; India
is obviously one
of them and that
is great for the
game.”
benefits of that. As a result, the
investment in that competition
has risen significantly from that
first edition.”
While each subsequent
WBBL season has increased
player payments, it was the 2017
collective bargaining agreement
with CA that proved to be
the next landmark moment
for the women. Granted,
the pay deal was delayed
due to botched negotiations
relating to the men, but when
it was eventually finalised,
average salaries for nationally
contracted women leapt 125 per
cent to 180,000 AUD, swelling
to 200,000 AUD over five years
of the arrangement; and as for
contracted state players, they
had their annual payments
doubled to 52,000 AUD.
www.womenscriczone.com 15
 THE OPENER
“To put that into context,
our nationally contracted
players today, in their first
year, are earning more money
than I did as a physiotherapist
working in a full-time job.
That is a significant leap in
a reasonably short space of
time. But the attitude shift, the
cultural piece, needed to occur
first for that to take place. That
had been brewing.”
While the pay deal was
emblematic of all that was good
about the changing world of
women cricketers, equally
important was the scheduling
of more international cricket
that went with it. “There is no
point paying our players if we
are not then going to provide
them a platform to inspire
people,” Clark elaborates.
“That inspiration comes from
playing, talking about them,
promoting them and getting
them on television. All that goes
hand in hand.”
With each passing year,
16 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
there is a growing belief that
more teams can credibly
compete on the big stage
and win tournaments. From
Australia’s perspective, they
welcome this. Sure, winning
in Australian cricket is a big
deal, make no mistake, but
there is an understanding of
commercial necessity that this
rising tide lifts the boats of their
competitors too.
“This is a dilemma in some
respects. While we have strong
ambitions to be successful in
national uniform we are also
conscious that internationally
the game needs to be strong.”
Where Australia does its bit
again comes back to the WBBL,
where four international players
are permitted to turn out for
each team in each game. In the
case of India, for instance, Smriti
Mandhana, recently named
Wisden Almanack’s leading
player in the world, has turned
out in the WBBL, where her
male counterparts are banned.
The same goes for Harmanpreet
Kaur, India’s T20I skipper, who
Above: Just as
has been a dominant force for
important for the
Sydney Thunder. broader growth of
On a similar theme, the game, was India’s
Australia’s involvement was stunning victory
integral for the establishment over Australia in the
of the ICC Women’s ODI semi-final of the 2017
championship, which has Women’s World Cup.
underpinned a process for (PC: ICC)
home and away fixtures to be
played between every World
Cup cycle since 2014. They
won the inaugural title, but
faltered in the 2017 World
Cup that it built towards. Just
as important for the broader
growth of the game, however,
was India’s stunning victory
over Australia in the semi-
final—the sort of result that
would have been inconceivable
before the initiation of the ICC
championship.
“There is a direct
relationship between the
amount of cricket you play
and the quality of your
performances,” notes Clark
 THE OPENER
when reflecting on India’s
rise. “The genesis of the
championship was essentially
trying to ensure that every
country in the top eight plays
similar amounts of cricket.
There have been a number of
countries that have benefitted
from that; India is obviously
one of them and that is great for
the game.”
When the next major
tournament rolls around in
early 2020, the rebranded T20
World Cup, it will be Australia’s
first turn to play host to a
women’s ICC tournament since
2009. Back then, as England
players have described their
victory at North Sydney Oval,
the crowd in attendance barely
extended beyond direct family
members. This time around,
CA has proudly set a goal
of filling the MCG to the full
90,000 attendance for the final
on 8 March— International
Women’s Day.
“With what we are seeing,
such a rise in women’s sport
proves that it (the target of
having a crowd of 90,000) is
absolutely achievable,” Clark
believes. If successful, it will
set a new benchmark for the
most number of people to
ever witness a women’s team
sport event. “Putting the bold
statement out to people to tell
them what we want to do will
leave a legacy. It shows that in
this country female athletes are
valued. The Australian public is
going to be right behind us and
I suspect we will have a lot of
international visitors who want
to be part of that world record
too.”
With rapid growth usually
comes some pain too, and one
of those is the race to talent
that has been an indirect
consequence the women’s
cricket leap. It is flattering that
Australia domestic football
codes — the Australian Football
League, most noticeably —
have poured their resources
into a semi-professional
domestic competition (which
is also on television) after
seeing what was possible in
the WBBL. It has led to some
cricketers trying their hand at
football.
“This is all part of the
change of culture that is
supportive of women playing
sport,” Clark says. “It is a
necessary part of the evolution
that I am really excited about.
Young girls growing up in
Australia, can be bullish about
what the world is going to look
like, and about making choices
for what sport they might play.
I think it’s wonderful. Our
players have played a really big
role in this. They do a lot more
than just hit cricket balls. They
are part of this whole movement
and have played an absolutely
pivotal part in that.”
Considering all that has
happened in a relatively short
window of time, it is a tad
unfair to ask Clark to pick
one moment that defines the
trailblazing era. Although
when pressed, she cites the
WBBL semi-finals and grand
final earlier in 2019— three
stunning T20 games that saw
“To put that
into context,
our nationally
contracted players
today, in their first
year, are earning
more money
than I did as a
physiotherapist
working in a full-
time job. That is a
significant leap in
a reasonably short
space of time,”
says Clark.
Below: Australia remains the most
successful and formidable team in
the international arena, shown most
recently by their comprehensive T20
World Cup triumph in the Caribbean
last November. (PC: ICC)
people race to their television
sets. “It was a real statement,”
she says. “The inspiration for
young boys and girls around
that ground and watching on
television. So that for me stands
out as a fairly pivotal moment
and something we are all very
proud of.”
One catch with first-
mover advantage is that it
doesn’t always play out that
way. Indeed, sometimes, the
market leader is overtaken by
the next big fish to enter the
pond who brings lessons from
the initial entrant’s failures.
That, however, is hard to see
here, in the short term at least,
because Australia’s success is a
product of bold ambition and
considered choices. Instead,
they serve as a standard bearer
for the rest of the world. Good
luck keeping up.
Adam Collins didn’t come to this
caper the conventional way, earlier
advising Australian politicians
including a Prime Minister. When
they got voted out of office he
started following the sun writing
and talking about cricket for a
living. He likes that much better.
He tweets @collinsadam.
www.womenscriczone.com 17
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 T H E A R C H I V E S
BEST OF WOMEN’S
CRICZONE WEBSITE
A selection of the best articles from our website
WBBL find, World T20 star— Gardner
is Australian captain in the making
Adam Collins
“I like to see myself as a role model for
young indigenous cricketers, to show
they can achieve whatever they put their
mind to and whatever they are determined
to achieve,” Gardner had said when
appointed captain of the Aboriginal squad.
“Most Indigenous people are quite proud
of their culture, and being able to represent
my country and my people back home
is a massive thing”. Both as a product of
a flourishing system and a human being
of considerable integrity, this is, surely,
only the beginning. Whisper it, but one
day Gardner won’t just be one part of the
team that brings a global trophy home
to Australia. She will also be the skipper
lifting it high.
Shared injury pain and comeback joy
for Joshi and Lokusooriya
Snehal Pradhan
One is nearly six feet tall, lean, and look
like she has lost weight, though she tells
you she shed the fat and converted it to
muscle. The other makes no such claims
about her more boxy physique, yet she
certainly looks, fitter, than she has in the
last few years. Divided by countries, they
are united by their familiarity with pain,
by revolts by their bodies in the last year.
Weeks spent in lonely hotel rooms, away
from family. Naps on the physio’s table, as
familiar now as your own bed. Both know
these, thanks to cartilage injuries in their
knees.
Mandhana-Rodrigues pair strengthen
their credentials at the top
Ananya Upendran
That run out was the only chance
Rodrigues would give the New Zealanders
over the next 32.2 overs. After she got
off the mark, batting seemed to become
simple. A push through extra cover off
20 www.womenscriczone.com
Hannah Rowe, followed by a lovely,
flowing cover drive off Tahuhu in the third
over and she was off and running. The
feet moved more decisively, her calls were
louder and more confident, and she pierced
the gaps with ease.
Women’s cricket arrived in 2017, 2018
showed it belongs
Snehal Pradhan
The spotlight also casts shadows, and the
distance between the few haves and rest of
the have-nots in the game was more visible
this year. England and Australia made
the final of the 2018 T20 WC, the only two
countries with professional T20 domestic
leagues, benefitting from a decade long
head start. There were glimmers of a more
balanced future: Bangladesh’s Jahanara
Alam became one of the faces of the
tournament, as much for her unlikely
catching as for her sincere rendition of
her life story. And Ireland’s Laura Delany
captured the essence of the amateur game
as she broke into tears after failing to secure
automatic qualification for the next T20
World Cup.
Ekta Bisht of old is back; much smarter
and sharper
Ananya Upendran
In the period following the World Cup,
Bisht found herself in and out of the Indian
setup, unsure of not only her place in the
XI, but in the squad of 15 as well. Between
January 1, 2018 to January 1, 2019, India
played 12 ODIs, of which Bisht featured in
only six. Her returns during that period,
read: 54 overs, 4 maiden, 271 runs and
eight wickets, at an average of 33.87 and
strike-rate of 40.5. Bisht’s economy was
5.01— close to one-and-a-half times her
career figure. She was bowling much
slower through the air, as if trying to mimic
her more successful teammates, and looked
to have lost the plot— low on confidence,
desperate to make an impression and
unsure of what she needed to do to get a
longer run.
Record setting Harmanpreet Kaur and
India’s inventiveness
Sidhanta Patnaik
In the context of Kaur’s career, this is a
massive knock considering there was a
lot riding on her after India’s not exactly
impressive performances since that
nine-run loss in the WC final, and we
have spoken about the impact of such
performances earlier also. But the bigger
story of the day probably was India’s
preparedness for the occasion. Look at the
number of surprises they threw at New
Zealand even before Kaur had taken guard.
Bismah Maroof- Nida Dar: A
partnership of perception and passion
Marina Iqbal
Both Bismah and Nida have been around
for a while now, and they have not only
evolved as players but have also helped
others grow around them. I have immense
respect for Bismah. She is the most
hardworking and committed person I
have seen, and those attributes reflect in
her game. It’s not just about what she does
on the field, but even the way she carries
herself off the field offers a lot of lessons
– always looking to improve and guide
others. She had to miss the majority of the
2017 WC campaign after hurting a finger,
and looked doubtful for the ongoing World
T20 because of a sinus surgery. But she was
determined to recover on time to make it to
the Caribbean.
Shillington, Joyce twins and Metcalfe
made cricket richer
Sidhanta Patnaik
Shillington’s career spanned 7773 days,
during which Ireland played only 166
matches across three formats. In other
words, she potentially had a chance to
wear the Irish jersey for an official fixture
once in 47 days. In the similar time period,
Australia Women’s team played 356 games
– one every 22nd day. In corporate jargon,
it’s called disparity or discrimination.
Belief, clarity and rollicking support
drive Windies at St.Lucia
Adam Collins
The music is the cream on the cake, the
Johnson Charles Stand setting the tempo
with their drums and melody through
their trumpets, with a healthy dose of
Christmas music woven through between
overs. They say that 5400 were though
the gates on Friday night, a figure they
expect to surpass when the locals play
England on Sunday (November 19). Good
luck reproducing those numbers when
England’s men visit the country early in the
New Year for a Test Match.
The up and down life of Jemimah
Rodrigues in 15 balls
Snehal Pradhan
This is where the tough part is supposed
to start: a debut tour, to South Africa of
all places. This is where the bowlers get
quicker, the pitches get bouncier, and the
pressure gets too much for a 17-year old.
This is where all you’re expected to do is
spend time finding your feet. And hope
you’re not found out before that.
Instead Rodrigues makes runs. She bats
just three innings in the T20Is but is India’s
third highest scorer in the series. She shows
ability, intent and smarts. She hits over the
top, she looks to turn dots into ones, she
takes catches only taller athletes should be
able to. She is busy. She is dangerous. She
helps India win a T20 series abroad. She
makes it look easy. She is 17.
India’s over dependence on Mandhana
and Harmanpreet raises questions over
team composition
Ananya Upendran
When Meg Lanning or Ellyse Perry—
arguably two of the best batters in the
world at the moment— bat, there is an
intensity in everything they do. Every
movement is purposeful and calculated.
It’s easy to recognise the ruthlessness in
the way they achieve dominance. With
Mandhana, on the other hand, everything
just seems to flow. Her footwork is
graceful, almost an afterthought, her bat
comes down perfectly through the line of
the ball, and the ball pings off her blade. It
is as if it is all happening in slow motion.
Her shot-making is not brutal. She never
appears to bludgeon her way to a score, but
before you know it, via trademark back-
foot punches, well timed pull shots, and
silken strokes over extra-cover and mid-
wicket, she has flown to a half century, at a
strike-rate of 200.
EXCLUSIVE: Jhulan Goswami breaks
down Bengal’s journey to the top
Sidhanta Patnaik
Exactly 21 years and two days since she
walked starry eyed into Eden Gardens,
Jhulan Goswami has lived one of her
dreams – winning a title for Bengal.
Through the campaign, she gave her
everything, bowling 18 maidens for 11
wickets in 73.5 overs to go along with 149
crucial runs in 11 matches. Her economy of
2.28 was impeccable, as was her captaincy
as she carried the team along.
The time has arrived for Smriti
Mandhana to be India’s new leader
Ananya Upendran
For someone so young, Mandhana
showed a great sense of grace and poise
– acknowledging the small, yet very
impactful, contributions of those around
her. She was a bespectacled youth who
seemed eager to learn, improve and
become the best cricketer she could be.
Her aim was simple even back then – win
matches for India.
While 2016 may have been a tad too
early for Mandhana to have taken over
the reins of the batting unit, India’s tour
of New Zealand in 2019 seemed like the
perfect stage. New Zealand was where
Mithali, in the 2000 Cricinfo World Cup,
first showed glimpses of her ability with the
bat; it therefore seemed only apt that New
Zealand was where it finally happened.
India have a lot of screws to tighten
before the next series
Reema Malhotra
The tables have turned quickly. Less than
a fortnight ago, England were staring at a
0-3 whitewash against India in the One-
Day International series. They had lost the
first two matches to concede the series,
but stormed back in the third ODI and
carried the momentum to win the first two
Twenty20 Internationals. Now India have
allowed England to inflict a whitewash
on them by losing the third T20I from
a position of strength. It must be really
disappointing for the team management
considering the target was 120 and the
game was all but won till Smriti Mandhana
and Mithali Raj were batting together.
Arundhati lives her dream with
mother’s support
Snehal Pradhan
Some athletes have a magnetic power in
their performance. A glimpse, even just
a glance in their direction, can kindle a
forest-fire of ambition. Watching them is
like listening to your favourite artist’s latest
song, and finding that it was written just
for you. Every word resonates, every high
note causes a tremor. That was what it was
like for Reddy to watch Goswami in action
for the first time.
“It was in a practice game in Bangalore,
before the series against South Africa (in
2014). I was so mad about her that when I
saw her bowl, I went in a corner and started
crying.” She laughs about it now, slightly
embarrassed. Reddy was 17 then; four
years later, she would be picked by the
coach as one who could replace Goswami
in the long run.
www.womenscriczone.com 21
 2years
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 C O V E R S T O R Y

‘IF YOU
SCORE,
PEOPLE ARE
GOING TO
RESPECT
YOU’
Smriti Mandhana talks about her rise to
superstardom and becoming India’s batting
centrepiece— a change in mindset that triggered a
tremendous 15 months, the awards that followed,
and her elevation to a leadership position.

• A N A N YA U P E N D R A N

I
ndian women’s cricket has
had its share of superstars.
At her peak, Neetu
David was one of the
most feared bowlers on the
international circuit, taking 182
wickets in 107 matches with her
left-arm spin. In 2004 and 2005,
she finished the highest wicket-
taker in ODIs with 33 wickets
on both occasions.
to their maiden Test series win
in England— a performance
that saw her become the first
Indian to win the ICC Women’s
Cricketer of the Year award in
2007.
The inimitable Mithali
Raj, arguably India’s greatest
ever batter, continues to break
batting records. Through
the early 2000s and well
Photography: Ryan Martis

The following year, 2006, into the second decade of

Jhulan Goswami was proving
to the world why she is India’s
greatest ever fast bowler— she
topped the wicket charts in both
Tests and ODIs with 19 and
23 wickets respectively. Her
Test tally included a historic
10-wicket haul that led India
the 21st century, Raj has
effortlessly shouldered the
weight of India’s batting. Her
consistency— she boasts of
an ODI average of 51.29— is
unmatched, and on only three
occasions over 20 years has her
ODI average dropped below 40

24 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
www.womenscriczone.com 25
 C O V E R S T O R Y
in a calendar year.
While David, Goswami
and Raj’s numbers are
certainly beyond compare,
they never quite dominated
the international circuit, or
commanded a presence like
Smriti Mandhana has done over
the last 15 months.
Between 1 January 2018
and 31 March 2019, Mandhana
played 49 international
matches, and scored 1,892
runs at an average of 44 and
an impressive strike rate of
106.89, two centuries and 18
half-centuries. To put her
performances into perspective,
Suzie Bates, New Zealand’s
opening batter, was the second
highest run getter across
formats with 1,348 runs.
26 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
Mandhana’s domination
has been absolute. She amassed
1,018 runs in ODIs, 874 runs
in T20Is, 421 runs for Western
Storm in the Women’s Cricket
Super League (WCSL) in
England, and 318 runs for
Hobart Hurricanes in the
Women’s Big Bash League
(WBBL) in Australia.
“Personally, the last year
or so has been good for me,”
Mandhana told Women’s
CricZone reflecting on the year
gone by. “Some things which
I felt were lacking in me as a
batter two years back, I tried
to improve on. I trained really
hard on those aspects, and to
come out and do that in the
matches was a good feeling.”
To add to her prolific run
on the field, the 22-year-old has
also won a number of awards
and accolades. In September
2018, Mandhana received the
Arjuna Award for achievement
in sport; in December, she
was crowned ICC Women’s
ODI Cricketer of the Year,
and was awarded the Rachael
Heyhoe Flint Medal as the
ICC Women’s Cricketer of the
Year. Following her impressive
performances against the
Kiwis in which India secured Right:
a historic ODI series win over Mandhana started
New Zealand in New Zealand, 2018 with a
the left-hander became the bang— registering
her third ODI
No.1 ranked batter in ODIs.
century against
In April 2019, Wisden named South Arica in
Mandhana Leading Woman South Africa.
Cricketer of the Year. (PC: CSA)
“Getting these awards was
 “The ICC award
really meant a lot to
me and it motivated
me to work even
harder and be a
better player. The
important thing now
is to maintain that
level of performance.
It’s been a good
15 months, but I
still think winning
matches for India is
much more important
than personal
performance.”

a small tick to (my) bucket-

list. When Jhulu di had got
her (ICC) award, I was still a
kid (11-years-old). Back then,
I really felt so proud that
someone from India is getting
such a huge award. So, to be the
second person to do that was
really something.”
“The ICC award really
meant a lot to me and it
motivated me to work even
harder and be a better player.
The important thing now
is to maintain that level of
performance. It’s been a good
15 months, but I still think
winning matches for India is
much more important than
personal performance. I am
Photography: Ryan Martis

really aiming for winning

matches and taking India
through.”
Based on numbers alone
Mandhana’s game has come
leaps and bounds since the
2017 Women’s World Cup. She
has more than doubled both
her ODI and T20I run tallies,
drastically improved her strike
rate in both formats, increased

www.womenscriczone.com 27
 C O V E R S T O R Y
her boundary count, and
found a consistency that was
previously lacking.
‘TRYING TO ENJOY
MY CRICKET’
Even before she had played her
first full season of senior cricket
for Maharashtra, Mandhana’s
name was doing the rounds—
“Watch out for this girl”, they
whispered. “She is special”. In
only her second match for the
senior state team, the 15-year-
old left-handed batter, blasted a
124-ball 155 against Saurashtra.
Soon afterwards, in 2013,
she broke into the Indian team
having run riot in the domestic
age-group tournaments, but
it took “one or two years” to
get used to the demands of
international cricket. One of the
problems she had in the early
stages of her career was her
inability to rotate the strike—
hard hands being thrown at
the ball in an effort to find the
28 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
boundary, meant singles were
hard to come by. She realised
that the “fielders are so much
quicker. What would probably
be a boundary, or at least a
two in domestic cricket, is
sometimes only a single! You
really need to be spot on with
your placement, otherwise it
is easy to get blocked at one
end.” This, coupled with her
desire to dispatch every ball
to the fence, meant that her
first few years in international
cricket were littered with starts
that showed glimpses of her
potential, but not much else.
She looked a million dollars
every time she walked in to bat,
but the youngster’s tendency to
get carried away often got the
better of her.
Experience taught her that
“it was not easy to come in and
straight away score.” She began
to look at others as potential
role models: “I actually kept
looking at Meg Lanning—
how consistently she scores at
that strike rate. It’s just about Above: Mandhana wants
watching people and constantly her improvement to reflect
learning. That is the best thing I in India’s performances,
feel… As a player, the best way otherwise it counts for little.
you can improve is to watch (PC: ICC)
and learn.”
And learn she did;
Right: When in full flow,
Mandhana’s meteoric rise,
Mandhana looks a million
however cannot be attributed dollars-- her off-side play
entirely to her buckling down is arguably the best in the
and focusing extra hard. She world. (PC: ICC)
was always sincere about her
game— putting in the extra
batting hours at the nets and
making sure to train in the gym.
She had proven that she was
capable of developing into the
team’s batting centrepiece—
half-centuries in England, a
century in Australia and match-
winning performances at home
against New Zealand and
Sri Lanka. But inconsistency
plagued her.
Her transformation into
Ms. Consistent began when she
suffered an anterior cruciate
“Now, even if I am T20I CAREER

not looking good, TIME PERIOD M I R HS AVG SR 100S 50S FOURS SIXES
or not timing the Debut - 31 Dec 2017 27 27 424 52 17.66 96.58 0 1 49 3
ball well, I know 1 Jan 2018- 31 Mar 2019 31 29 874 86 31.21 134.25 0 8 107 26
I have to stick Career 58 56 1298 86 24.96 119.08 0 9 156 29
around. I can’t just
throw my wicket stroke-maker— strong shots
away. If the team off the back-foot, a crisp push
through the off-side on the
wants me to stay front foot, and an effective
on the wicket, shovel pull. If the conditions
suited her, she made the most
then that is what I of them, but sometimes lacked
think.” the patience to eke out runs
on tougher surfaces or against
more disciplined attacks. Her
ligament injury during her batting was a lot of wonderful

Photography: Ryan Martis

first WBBL stint with Brisbane things, but she needed to learn
Heat, barely five months before to get ‘ugly runs’.
the 2017 Women’s World Cup. “You know, earlier, I had
Mandhana used her time off to this thing in me that if I am
reflect on her game. batting well, I have to middle
“I used to feel like not every ball,” Mandhana says.
scoring runs is the worst thing “That thought process has
in life but (after the injury) I definitely changed over the last
started thinking: ‘No, at least couple of years. Now, even if
I’m getting to go out on the field I am not looking good, or not
wearing the Indian jersey.’ Not timing the ball well, I know I
many get to do that. I am lucky. have to stick around. I can’t just
Now, if I get runs or don’t get throw my wicket away. If the
runs, I’m just going out there team wants me to stay on the
trying to enjoy my cricket.” she wicket, then that is what I think.
told The Guardian during her So I guess that’s one major thing
WCSL stint last July. that has changed for me… and
She went to the 2017 World the responsibility also helps—
Cup with this changed attitude; to be a bit mature and not just
and the moment she struck throw your wicket away.”
Katherine Brunt for her first Mandhana’s journey to
boundary, Mandhana became improvement continued once
the new face of Indian women’s the Indian team returned from
cricket. Her fresh outlook England. While the country was
saw her start with scores of celebrating the achievements
90 and 106 not out, but form of it’s women cricketers in the
deserted her as the tournament World Cup, and her teammates
progressed. Opposition bowlers were enjoying their well earned
attacked the stumps, refusing to rest after six testing months of
give her anything short or wide,
and the left-hander often tried
ODI CAREER
to hit her way out of it.
TIME PERIOD M I R HS AVG SR 100S 50S FOURS SIXES
LEARNING TO BAT UGLY
Debut - 31 Dec 2017 32 32 933 106* 30.09 76.66 2 6 118 6
Graceful, elegant, regal, and
classical: words that are often 1 Jan 2018- 31 Mar 2019 18 18 1018 135 67.86 90.97 2 10 120 16
used to describe Mandhana’s
Career 50 50 1951 135 42.41 83.51 4 16 238 22
batting. She was always a

www.womenscriczone.com 29
 C O V E R S T O R Y

continuous cricket, the left-

hander went straight back to
work at the National Cricket
Academy in Bangalore.
Her routine was rigorous—
training in the morning, batting
in the afternoon sometimes,
and then going through her
rehabilitation program in the
evening. It was painful and a lot
of hard work, but she knew it
was necessary to make sure her
body would hold up under the
stressful demands of the season
ahead.
In addition to all the
technical tweaks she made
after the World Cup— the
slightly open stance, a small
grip adjustment, and a more
conscious effort to push on
to the front foot first— it was
Mandhana’s change in her
attitude towards the game that
led her to this consistency.
“I think the batting
approach was still the same.
The only thing which I had to
focus on was trying to bat for
longer periods— whether I
was ‘looking good’ or not,” she
explains. “It was about picking
the right shot, understanding
when to play the attacking
shots and when to curb your
instincts. I have begun to
understand my responsibility
within the team… I want to win
more matches for India.”
While the left-hander’s
stocks have risen meteorically
since 2017, the rest of India’s
batting unit has failed to
register a similar consistency.
Aside from Mithali Raj (530
runs) and Deepti Sharma (419
runs), no other Indian batter has
managed to cross the 250-run
mark in ODIs since January
Photography: Ryan Martis

2018. Although their T20I

records have been a tad better—
Harmanpreet Kaur (687 runs),
Raj (656 runs) and Rodrigues
(608 runs)— India have largely
struggled to string together
consistent wins in that format.
The weight of the batting
line-up therefore has rested

30 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m

largely on Mandhana’s young
shoulders— a responsibility
that she has thoroughly
enjoyed.
“As a 10 or 11-year-old I
used to always think that I
should be winning matches for
India or my state team. I wanted
the other team (opposition)
players to really celebrate
my wicket— like, dance or
something! I used to think that
I should have the responsibility
of the entire batting order…
All these things, I wanted
them. Now that I have them I
don’t want to take pressure or
anything like that.”
“It’s a good feeling that
the team is a bit dependent—
maybe 10-20% —on me. I think
it actually helps me when I
bat. Like, in ODIs when I am
in the zone, and then I play
four dot balls, then I am all like
‘abhi toh maarungi mein!’ (I’m
going to smash the next one),
it (that extra responsibility)
makes me think that I have to
Left: In the last 15 months,
Mandhana has doubled her
run tally, drastically improved
her strike rate, increased
her boundary count, and
found a consistency that was
previously lacking. (PC: ICC)
Below: Smriti has often
spoken about the role
that her parents, Shrinivas
and Smita, and brother,
Shravan, have played in her
development.
(PC: Ryan Martis)
play till 50 overs and take the
team through. It’s good for my
game.”
If there is one innings
that showcases Mandhana’s
development through this
period it is her 109-ball 86 that
guided India to a one-wicket
win over England in Nagpur in
April last year. “I would never
speak about any of my innings,
but I brag about that knock (the
86 v England),” Mandhana told
The Cricket Monthly. “If I have
to feel proud of one knock, it’d
be that one, because I had to bat
out of my skin in that game. I
had a bit of pressure on myself
because wickets were falling
at the other end, and the pitch
wasn’t easy to bat on at all. The
ball was turning square, one
ball was bouncing, the next
ball was keeping low. So to
be able to go on the front foot
and just do a dead defence was
something I felt prouder of than
hitting a straight drive. That’s
not my game. So I had to take
www.womenscriczone.com 31
 C O V E R S T O R Y
the responsibility of changing
my game and play that kind
of a knock, and India won the
match. So that counts.”
LEADERSHIP ROLE
Mandhana became India’s fifth
T20I captain when she walked
out for the toss in the 1st T20I
against England in Guwahati
on 4 March 2019. Although she
had the experience of leading
various domestic teams for
close to five years, the 22-year-
old was visibly nervous and
uncharacteristically, always a
step or two behind the batters.
“It (captaincy) was a good
experience. I learnt a lot about
myself. In the first match, I was
very nervous because it was the
first time I was leading (India). I
normally don’t get nervous, so I
was not able to handle that. I was
really hard on myself as well.”
As the series wore on,
however, Mandhana showed
signs of being comfortable in
her new role. Although she
was unable to register her first
win as skipper, India put up
improved performances in
the field and looked tactically
more aware. Mandhana gave
a glimpse of what she has to
offer as a leader: the ability to
bring people together and instill
within them a sense of belief
and common purpose.
“In the first game when
I was batting I was thinking
about taking responsibility, but
Raman sir told me something
that helped me overcome those
feelings. After that— second
and third match— I was really
calm. I was not nervous at all.
I was thinking that it’s just a
match… I was all normal. I
definitely would have loved to
win the series but then…”
In the final game of the
series, Mandhana scored a
scintillating 58 off 33 balls,
finding the boundary with ease,
but also making sure that she
kept the scoreboard ticking
32 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
with the ones and twos. She
was making clear that captaincy
would not affect her output
with the bat.
“For me, captaincy doesn’t
really relate anything to my
batting,” she says. “I have
always been taught by my
coaches that whenever you bat,
think that you are the captain.
You have that responsibility.
If you are going out to bat,
you have to think that you are
leading the team and you have
to finish the match. I don’t think
batting and captainship… It
doesn’t really relate to me that
much.”
This is a very different
Mandhana of the early years:
“Initially, it (people’s opinions)
used to bother me a lot. Two
years back I actually used to
keep thinking what people
think about my batting, how
I am as a player or a person
and all. I used to always worry
when I thought someone didn’t
think highly of me! It also used
to bother me that people think
I am a back foot player, so I
thought I should stop playing
back foot and start playing front
foot. All these things I had in
my mind! But two years back
I just sat down and thought
you know, if you play that ball
on the back foot and still time
the ball, middle it, and it goes
for boundary, there will be a
time where people will try and
play like that… Rather than
changing your own game, you
stick to your strength.”
“So I told myself, you know
what, you bat the way you
want to… If you score, people
are going to respect you, and if
Photography: Ryan Martis
you don’t, people are anyways
not going to respect you. So
it’s just about going out there
and doing your job rather than
thinking what people have to
say about you.”
Mandhana’s maturity and
growth as a leader not only
shows in her batting, but also in
 the way she speaks. She is very
“As a 10 or forthright, her tone is always
11-year-old I used measured, and her answers well
to always think thought out. The fact that she
acknowledges every player’s
that I should be contribution, however big or
winning matches small, and understands their
uniqueness, is what separates
for India or my her from the rest. More
state team. I importantly, she is aware of the
need to be patient with the new
wanted the other crop of players coming in.
team (opposition) “I think it’s unfair to
players to expect the girls coming in
now to adjust (to the scoring
really celebrate rates of international cricket)
my wicket— immediately… They have not
played that kind of batting in
like, dance or last six years (at the domestic
something!” level), so you can’t expect them
to start it in two or three days. It
took us all a while to make the
jump, but approach and intent
is important.”
“Everyone has that fear of
failure, but for me, the fear of
failure should not change the
way you bat. That is one thing
that I always tell everyone.
There is a thin line between
careless and fearless. You
have to be fearless but not
careless— there should be a
balance between them. If I say
fearless and then they go first
ball and do something that is
not their strength… That is not
something which I want them to
do. Whatever I have spoken to
them, it is just about how they
are as players— sticking to their
strengths, not what people are
talking about you.”
Mandhana is undeniably
someone who is hungry for
success, always looking to get
better, and aware of the team’s
interests. Personal success
matters little if the team does
not register a win – it is a belief
which she is instilling in the
younger group. She sets aims,
not just for herself, but for
the team as well. She wants
her improvement to reflect in
India’s performances, otherwise
it counts for little.
Not one to rest on her
laurels, she is now back to work
and looking ahead with her
sights firmly fixed on the next
target.
“World Cup, yaar!
Definitely World Cup,” she
says without any hesitation.
“To win the World Cup… That
has always been the case! Only
after winning World Cups will
the dream of playing for India
be fulfilled!”
Ananya Upendran is an India A,
Hyderabad and Sikkim allrounder
who also works as a freelance
journalist. Her writing has
appeared in Wisden India, First
Post and CricketCountry. She
tweets @a_upendran11.
PC: ICC
www.womenscriczone.com 33
 NUMBERS GAME
DECODING THE
NUMBERS BEHIND
THE BATTING
REVOLUTION
Rising run rates, boundary counts and
team totals— T20I cricket has triggered
a massive change to the way the women
now approach ODIs.
• J O H N L E AT H E R
I
n the first decade of the
21st century, only in 2007
was the women’s ODI
run rate in a calendar year
more than four runs per over
(rpo). In the current decade,
that marker has been crossed
seven times with the years
between 2016 and 2019 having
the highest ODI run rates
ever. 2018 at 4.67 rpo set a new
record, while the run rate in
2019 is currently third highest
at 4.33 rpo.
At first glance, women’s
T20Is don’t seem to follow
this trend. The run rate in
2019 which reads 4.97 rpo, the
lowest for any calendar year,
is misleading. After all it has
come on the back of the ICC’s
decision, made in June 2017, to
extend international status to
all T20s played by its member
nations. For matches played
34 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
between the established top ten
nations, the run rate in 2018,
6.72 rpo, was the highest for a
calendar year in which more
than 10 matches were played,
and the rate in 2019, 6.63 rpo, is
second by that criteria.
RECORDS TUMBLE
The 2018 Women’s T20 World
Cup broke the record for most
sixes at a single edition of the
tournament—75 sixes at a rate
of one six per 65 balls faced
—comfortably beating the
previous best of 57 in the 2014
edition. The opening match saw
Harmanpreet Kaur’s century,
the first by an Indian woman in
T20Is, propel her team to 194/5
against New Zealand— a new
highest total for the Women’s
T20 World Cup.
The run rate for the
tournament as a whole (6.03
www.womenscriczone.com 35
 NUMBERS GAME

WOMEN’S ODI RUN RATE BY CALENDAR YEAR WOMEN’S T20 CENTURIES BY YEAR

Note:- Unless otherwise stated, T20I stats mentioned from here on will be in reference to matches played between the established top ten sides only.

36 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
 WOMEN’S ODI BALLS FACED
PER SIX BY CALENDAR YEAR IN THE T20I ERA
Left: Boasting of the
strongest and best
developed domestic
setup, Australia continue
to set the pace in
women’s cricket’s nascent
professional era.
(PC: Cricket Australia)
Opening Page: Danielle
Wyatt has scored two T20I
centuries, both of which
have come in successful
chases. (PC: ICC)
rpo) didn’t break any records,
because persistent wet weather
in Antigua (5.98 rpo) and St
Lucia (5.29 rpo) created largely
bowler friendly conditions.
However, the run rate in
Providence Guyana (6.58 rpo),
which hosted half the group
games, was the highest for a
ground where more than one
match was played in a single
edition of the Women’s T20
World Cup.
Following that, the 2018-19
Women’s Big Bash League,
which concluded in January,
rewrote the record books—the
tournament run rate soared at
7.31 rpo, 1,577 fours and 270
sixes were hit,there were a
record six centuries and 63 half-
centuries, and Ellyse Perry who
finished with an astonishing
tally of 777 runs comfortably
beat the previous record of
most runs in a season by a
margin of 217 runs.
Since January 2017, as
many as 33 T20 centuries have
been made, including a record
19 in 2018 alone. Less than a
third of the way through 2019,
there have already been five
women’s T20 centuries, four
AVERAGE WOMEN’S ODI
1ST INNING TOTAL BY WORLD CUP CYCLE
of which have come in India’s
domestic competition— there
had only been one previous
century in all previous Indian When the first
domestic seasons combined.
T20I was played
THE T20 EFFECT at Hove in 2004
This batting revolution didn’t
occur overnight. While the
—a game which
ODI run rate has been on an didn’t feature a
upward trend since the 1993 six— sixes in
World Cup when all ODIs were
standardised to 50 overs, it’s women’s ODIs
the developments since the were hit at an
introduction of T20 cricket that
have been most striking. When
average rate of
the first T20I was played at 1,092 Bp6. In 2018
Hove in 2004 —a game which
didn’t feature a six— sixes in
and 2019 that rate
women’s ODIs were hit at an has increased
average rate of 1,092 balls faced almost seven fold
per six (Bp6). In 2018 and 2019
that rate has increased almost to 162 Bp6.
seven fold to 162 Bp6.
The rate at which Australia
women currently hit ODI sixes
(115 Bp6 in the last 12 months)
is now comparable to the rate
at which they cleared the ropes
in T20Is a decade ago (107 Bp6
in 2009). The same is true for
New Zealand — a current ODI
rate of 110 Bp6 vs 100 Bp6 in
T20Is in 2009. England (200 vs
www.womenscriczone.com 37
 NUMBERS GAME

38 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
255) and South Africa (105 vs
143) now hit sixes more often
in ODIs than they did during
T20Is in 2009. The most eye-
catching improvement though
has been by India, who now
hit ODI sixes over three times
more often (149 Bp6) than
they did in T20Is during 2009
(449 Bp6). Once a somewhat
underpowered side, since the
start of 2018, only West Indies
(38 Bp6) and South Africa (39)
have hit sixes more often in
T20Is than India (41).
Since the 2017 World Cup
the average women’s ODI
first innings total has been 226
and the average winning 1st
innings total 282, compared
with 203 and 241 respectively
in the 2013-17 cycle. The only
bigger rise between previous
Women’s World Cup cycles
was between the 1988-93 and
1993-97 cycles, which coincided
with the standardisation of
ODIs to 50 overs a side.
Although T20Is first made
their appearance in 2004, it
wasn’t until 2009 that more
than a handful of matches were
played per year— the start of
the Women’s T20 World Cup
was the reason for that. In many
ways it appears that the shortest
format has been the catalyst for
the change in approach in ODIs,
but the numbers suggest that
the brand of T20I cricket didn’t
change much between 2009
and 2013. During that period
the average batting strike rate
hovered around 90 and sixes
came at a rate of over 120 Bp6.
CONTRACTS AND
PROFESSIONALISM
In 2013, following their ODI
World Cup win, Australia
introduced improved national
contracts which set off a wave
of increased remuneration
among the other established
nations. The first to respond
were England in 2014, and
the most recent have been
Ireland, whose first batch of
professional national contracts
begin this year. Further
increases in 2017, as well as
having by far the strongest and
best developed domestic setup,
means Australia continue to set
the pace in women’s cricket’s
nascent professional era.
2013 was also notable
in being the first time the
women’s Ashes was played as a
multi-format series, which was
quickly followed by a return
series in Australia in 2014.
These series were notable not
so much for the influence of the
format as for the fact that all
the limited overs matches were
televised, a rarity for bilateral
women’s cricket at the time.
The increased visibility and
viability of women’s cricket
as a media product outside
of major tournaments paved
the way for developments in
Australia’s domestic setup in
the near future.
The ODI leg of the 2014
Ashes also marked the
start of the ICC Women’s
Championship (ICCWC)— the
new format for World Cup
qualification which required
the top eight sides to play series
against each other during each
World Cup cycle. This has
been the key to improving the
competitiveness of nations
formerly on the fringes.
Before the ICCWC,
Pakistan had played a
combined total of five
www.womenscriczone.com 39
 NUMBERS GAME
bilateral ODI fixtures against
WOMEN’S T20 BALLS FACED PER SIX BY CALENDAR YEAR Australia, England and New
Stats for matches played between the established top ten sides only.
Zealand over the course of
seventeen years. Since the
start of the championship,
however, Pakistan have
played eighteen bilateral ODIs
against those nations. During
the 2017-2021 cycle of the
ICCWC, Pakistan recorded
their first international win
against New Zealand, beat
the West Indies in a series for
the first time, and are well
placed to gain automatic
qualification for the 2021
World Cup in New Zealand.
40 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
Since the 2017
World Cup
the average
women’s ODI
first innings total
has been 226
and the average
winning first
innings total
282, compared
with 203 and
241 respectively
in the 2013-17
cycle.
The next major
development in women’s
cricket came in December 2015,
when the first WBBL season
was played in Australia. It was
the first professional domestic
T20 league in the women’s
game, and was shortly followed
by England’s Women’s Cricket
Super League in 2016.
Both these leagues have
been characterised by year
on year increases in batting
strike rates, boundary rates—
particularly six-hitting— and
rising totals. The most recent
WBBL season saw a rate
 TOTAL TEAM OPPOSITION VENUE DATE TOTAL TEAM OPPOSITION VENUE DATE

Total Team Opposition Venue Date 250/3 England South Africa Taunton 20-Jun-18
199/3 England India Mumbai 25-Mar-18 216/1 New Zealand South Africa Taunton 20-Jun-18
181/6 England Australia Canberra 21-Nov-17 210/5 Namibia Lesotho Gaborne 23-Aug-18
168/3 India South Africa Potchefstroom 13-Feb-18 209/4 Australia England Mumbai 31-Mar-18
166/4 South Africa England Taunton 23-Jun-18 205/1 South Africa Netherlands Potchefstroom 14-Oct-10
165/2 England Australia The Oval 19-Jun-09 204/2 England Sri Lanka Colombo 28-Mar-19
164/4 Australia New Zealand Sydney 28-Sep-18 203/3 United Arab Emirates China Bangkok 13-Jan-19
156/4 Australia India Mumbai 22-Mar-18 199/3 England India Mumbai 25-Mar-18
156/7 South Africa West Indies Tarouba 6-Oct-18 198/4 India England Mumbai 25-Mar-18
154/4 West Indies India Vijayawada 18-Nov-16 195/3 Australia Pakistan Kuala Lumpur 25-Oct-18
153/3 Australia England Taunton 2-Sep-05 194/5 India New Zealand Providence 9-Nov-18

of 49 Bp6. This high strike
rate, boundary-heavy brand
of cricket being played in
Australia closely resembles
the game being played at top
echelons of international cricket
in recent times. In fact, the
average winning 1st innings
total in the 2018 WCSL, and the
2018-19 WBBL was 159— the
same as T20Is in 2019 so far.
CHANGE IN PLAYING
CONDITIONS
After the record breaking
2017 World Cup, the ICC
made a significant change to
the women’s international
playing conditions: the number
of fielders allowed outside
the inner circle during non-
WOMEN’S T20 AVERAGE 1ST INN. TOTAL BY CALENDAR YEAR
Stats for matches played between the established top ten sides only.
powerplay overs was reduced
from five to four. These
conditions had been in place
in the WBBL since the second
season in 2016-17.
Whether this change
was necessary in a sport that
was already moving in the
direction of increased power
and boundary hitting is up for
debate, but what is clear though
is that this, combined with
increased professionalism, as
well as generally better playing
surfaces, has led to a notably
more aggressive intent from
batters.
In T20Is the rate of six
hitting increased by at least 10%
compared with the previous
calendar year in every year
between 2014-18. The rate for
2019 is currently 65 Bp6.
Since the end of the first
WBBL season in 2015/16,
four of the ten current ODI
nations have made their
highest ODI total —including
New Zealand’s world record
491/4 vs Ireland— and seven
have achieved their highest
successful chase. Between
1973-2015 there had been eight
successful 250+ women’s ODI
chases, but since the start of
2016 a further eight 250+ targets
have been successfully chased
down— the most recent being
Sri Lanka’s win over India
at Katunayake in September
last year; their 257/7 was the
highest ever ODI chase by an
Asian side.
The developments in T20Is
have been even more dramatic,
particularity since the change
of playing conditions post the
2017 World Cup. The average
winning 1st innings total in
T20Is hovered around the 130s
for the best part of a decade,
before leaping to 156 last year
and reaching a record high of
159 in 2019 so far. Ten of the
eleven highest women’s T20I
totals, including England’s
record 250/3 vs South Africa,
have occurred since the 2017
World Cup. Seven of the
established top ten have set
newest highest totals, and
seven of the ten have also made
their record successful T20I
chases during this period.
Nine of the fifteen
successful T20I chases of
targets exceeding 150 have
occurred since the 2017 World
Cup, including England’s
record 199 vs India at Mumbai
in March 2018. Eight of the
nine women’s T20I series or
tournaments with the highest
overall run rate have taken
place during this period.
The remarkable
developments in recent years
will not have been welcomed
by bowlers, whose averages
and economy rates have taken
a beating. However, increased
aggression means increased
risk. The collective strike rate
of women’s ODI bowlers in
2018, 38.1, was the lowest for
any calendar year. In T20Is,
bowlers collective strike rate
of 20.5 was the second best for
any year in which more than
ten matches were played.
It seems the women are
adapting nicely to the fast paced
style of the shortest format— the
2020 Women’s World T20 in
Australia will most likely see the
next peak scaled.
John Leather lives in the UK and
watches too much cricket. He
tweets at @_hypocaust.

www.womenscriczone.com 41
 BEYOND THE BOUNDARY
DRIVING THE FUTURE OF
WOMEN’S CRICKET IN THE OUTPOSTS
Associate nations have gained visibility and validation thanks to the ICC’s move to
declare all T20 games between national teams as T20Is, now they must find a way
to sustain a livelihood and interest in the sport.
M
• K A R U N YA K E S H AV as Elysa was a
regular cricket-
loving, hijab-
wearing 17-year-
old in Malaysia with a wide,
bright smile – until suddenly one
day there was nothing regular
about her. Elysa’s leg-breaks
catapulted her to the record
books – the very top of the
honours board for best bowling
performances in a Twenty20
International – when she took 6
for 3 against China in early 2019.
One month later, Nepal’s
Nary Thapa took 6 for 8. Four
months previously, Botswana’s
42 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
Botsogo Mpedi had raised the
bar for best innings figures, also
with 6 for 8, but in just 15 balls.
They’ve joined players from
Myanmar, UAE, Thailand and
China, who since August 2018
have given cricket’s stats-heads a
cornucopia of thrills in rewriting
the superlatives of the game –
highest, best, first; but also, on
the other side of the coin, lowest
and worst – and driving the
future of women’s cricket in the
outposts.
All this was down to a
revolutionary change: ICC’s
move to declare all T20 games
between national teams as
internationals.
Rankings algorithms,
eligibility criteria, standardised
scoring platforms, anti-
corruption systems all had to
hasten to catch up, and concerns
remain, but that paled under
the fact that the likes of Belize
and Bhutan and Swaziland and
Argentina found space in the
records books, ranking charts
and consciousness.
The immediate effect, apart
from validation, was visibility.
The next challenge for these
teams is to build on it. ‘If you
can’t see it, you can’t be it’ is one
of rallying calls of this brave
new world that is promising to
take its women more seriously
than before. The world now sees
the scores, the next step is to see
the faces beyond the names, the
actions behind the records, the
context behind the careers.
The vehicle, for now, has to
be T20. For better or for worse,
cricket administrators see T20
as the way forward for the
women’s game. The ICC recently
made public its intent to bid for
women’s cricket to be included
in the 2022 Commonwealth
Games. “It was part of the global
strategy for cricket to inspire
and empower women and girls
around the world and to drive
greater levels of inclusivity and
opportunity throughout the
sport,” a statement said. The
monetary boost it would give
boards scrambling for a share of
Left: Bangladesh, Ireland,
Netherlands, Papua
New Guinea, Scotland,
Thailand, Uganda and
United Arab Emirates
pose for a photograph
during the 2018 ICC
World T20 Qualifiers in
Netherlands. (PC: ICC)
Right: ICC’s move to
declare all T20 games
between national teams
as internationals means
that there is greater
recognition for the
performances of teams
like Thailand. (PC: ICC)
the Associate pie was left unsaid,
but easily understood.
The distinction between
cricket’s haves and have-nots
has always been stark, and are
amplified for the female players
who are fighting to bridge
the gulf between not only the
wallets of their parent boards
but also the social mores they
find themselves in. Forget about
the Associates, all teams outside
the top six struggle with this.
“It’s so incredibly frustrating,” a
tearful Laura Delany, Ireland’s
captain, said after a Women’s
T20 World Cup loss to Pakistan,
the one match-up they dared
to target. “Because if we were
professional, I wonder what the
score would’ve been out there
today.”
Becoming ‘professional’ is
the ideal for all sportspersons;
but Associate nations have a
chance to show a more rounded
way to sustain a livelihood and
interest in the sport. Thailand,
for instance, links cricket to
also getting a higher education, The distinction
PNG offers players vocational
training, China is creating
between cricket’s
opportunities for potential haves and have-
coaches. nots has always
After the Women’s T20
World Cup, Ireland got their been stark, and are
contracts. It was welcome. amplified for the
Now, though, they continue
to wait for their opportunities. female players who
Finding avenues outside the are fighting to bridge
ICC qualifying events is, like
for so many Associate teams, a
the gulf between not
challenge. Mas Elysa and her ilk only the wallets of
are ready; the cricket world now their parent boards
has to make room for them.
but also the social
Karunya Keshav is co-author of mores they find
The Fire Burns Blue – A History
of Women’s Cricket in India. Her themselves in.
writing on sports and lifestyle has
appeared in Wisden, the Hindu and
Outlook. She tweets @kuks.
www.womenscriczone.com 43
 BEYOND THE BOUNDARY

FROM BACKYARD TO BIG LEAGUES

MAKING THE JUMP FROM DOMESTIC TO
INTERNATIONAL CRICKET

What does it take

to succeed at
the international
level? Three
cricketers discuss
their initial
experiences at
the highest level,
how they made
the adjustment
from domestic
cricket, and
ways to ease
the transition.

BECOMING COMFORTABLE IN MY OWN SKIN • F R A N C E S M AC K AY

S
un on your back, runs
are easy to come by, the
bowler looks fatigued
and you are full of
confidence, as you should
pick up a few wickets, try out when you are sitting alone better than those I was used to
your new variations and walk dissecting the day’s events, the facing in domestic cricket, but
off the park happy.  doubts begin creeping into your the biggest difference was the
Next, you reach the mind, tearing your confidence fact that everyone who bowled
international level, and it’s to shreds. was equally good— there

be, playing a backyard game
against your younger siblings.
The best comparison that can be
made when talking about the
difference between domestic
and international cricket is
comparing it with backyard
cricket games. Domestic cricket
is like when you are playing
against your younger siblings,
where you are better, more
skillful, stronger and faster.
You bat for a long time only
choosing to let go when you
have grown bored, or make a
mistake playing an adventurous
shot. Then you have a bowl,
like playing against your older
siblings. They are better— way
better! They bat and bat and bat
some more— they pick your
variations and hit you around
the park. You aren’t used to
going this long without taking
a wicket or bowling a maiden.
The day just doesn’t seem to
end but passes you by in a blur.
When you walk in to bat, runs
are suddenly hard to come by.
The bowling is faster, more
accurate, and the fielders form
an impenetrable ring around
you. Your innings is short, and
mostly edgy. After it’s all over,
W
hen I made my
international debut in
2011 (an ODI against
Australia in Brisbane) I was a
bundle of nerves. The first ball
I faced was a knee high full toss
that I solidly defended to extra
cover. My first international
runs came a few deliveries later,
via an edge through the slip
cordon for four. Not the most
promising of starts; everything
felt like it was happening at
hyper speed.
Honestly, Australia’s
opening bowlers weren’t any
wasn’t a weak bowler I could
look to target. Although I made
a solid 36 in my first game
before being run out, it felt as
though that was just beginners
luck. I was constantly filled
with doubts about whether I
was actually good enough to be
playing at that level.
In a sport where it often
feels like you are playing
an individual game in a
team environment, dealing
with failure as a cricketer is
extremely hard. In my first stint
of playing for New Zealand,
where failure happened more

44 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
often than it did in domestic
cricket, I certainly did not cope
well. I was desperate for success
and put so much pressure on
myself that it had a negative
effect on my performances.
On the one hand I believed I
deserved some success because
I was training incredibly hard,
but on the other, I didn’t truly
believe I belonged. The step
between domestic cricket and
international cricket felt so great
that it was almost like playing a
different sport.
Strangely enough, it was in
the series before I was dropped
that it all clicked into place. It
was during New Zealand’s
first league match of the 2014
World T20 against Australia.
I was bowling the last over,
and they needed 10 runs to
win with two wickets in hand.
I held my nerve and got the
team over the line with three
balls to spare. The feeling
of winning a game for your
country is second to none— it
gave me a lot of confidence
and showed me I was good
enough to succeed at this level.
Unfortunately I wasn’t selected
for New Zealand again for
quite some time, but I was able
to bank away this experience
and took great confidence and
determination into my domestic
cricket where I flourished and
have averaged over 55 with the
bat across both formats over the
last five years.  therefore don’t build up the
One thing that I learnt
through my time out of the
international circuit was
to enjoy the game and not
carry the weight of my own
expectation anymore. Training
hard, putting myself out of
my comfort zone, developing
good situational awareness and
most importantly, becoming
comfortable with exactly who I
am as a person and as a cricketer
helped me return to the
international setup. This left me
able to think clearly and react
purely on instinct when I took
the field for domestic cricket
and then international cricket
against India earlier this year.
Over the years, I have had
plenty of domestic successes
as well as failures and learnt
how to better ride the waves
that come with top level
sport. Understanding what is
important to me and staying
true to my values made me
not only a better cricketer but
a better teammate and person
as well. I spent almost five
years outside of the national
side, initially desperate to be
reselected and get another go;
later, these feelings transferred
to a belief and understanding
that I had the game and mental
skills to be successful if I were
to get another international
opportunity and that my
energies were better spent
sharing my knowledge with
others and enjoying my cricket
and my teammates’ company.
I spent less time concerned
with what people might
think of me and more time
focused on what I was doing
and offering to the team.
I
nternational cricket is a
tough school— you are not
only battling the opposition,
but also the demons inside your
head. More often than not this is
because of the relative ease with
which players (myself included)
succeed at domestic level— they
mental strength, resilience or
deep understanding of their
game to initially crack it at the
next level.
Due to a smaller number of
players in the women’s setup,
young players often are selected
for their country after one good
breakout season— this often
means that the jump feels huge.
Where governing bodies can
help with this is by having ‘A’
and underage programmes. It
is here, in these development
sides that players can build
their experience and skills so
Left: Frances Mackay
celebrates a series victory
with her teammates
at the start of her
international career. (PC:
Frances Mackay)
Top: Mackay, who took
a while to start believing
in her ability at the
international level, is seen
here celebrating a wicket
with her New Zealand
teammates. (PC: Frances
Mackay)
when they make it to the highest
level it isn’t such a shock to
the system, and they can trust
that they have the ability both
physically and mentally to be
successful. 
The more steps that can
be put in place leading up
to international cricket will
make for a better success rate
amongst debutants and offer
international teams more
stability within their side, rather
than just a revolving door of
selections. At the end of the day
a gap will always exist between
domestic and international
cricket but it doesn’t have to be
insurmountable. However, it
is easier to walk up a carefully
planned out and supported set of
steps and into the international
game rather than attempting
to jump from the bottom rung
and cling onto the ledge by your
fingertips hoping for the best.
Frances Mackay is the Canterbury
Magicians captain, injured
NZ White Fern, top order bat
and off-spin bowler who longs
to one day be able to bowl left
handed too. She is a complete
cricket geek who is now dipping
her toes in the world of sports
media and cricket commentary.
She tweets @FrankieMac71.
www.womenscriczone.com 45
 BEYOND THE BOUNDARY
COMPLACENCY CAN BE THE END OF YOU
W
hen I made my
international debut in
2004 (an ODI against
West Indies in Lucknow) I had
already played close to six years
of domestic cricket; one of those
was for Air India— one of the
best, and most professional
teams on the circuit. The Air
India team boasted of many
international stars, including
Anju Jain, Anjum Chopra and
Jhulan Goswami— rubbing
shoulders with them certainly
helped me grow as a cricketer.
At 18, I was a confident
young player with a lot of runs
under my belt, and the backing
of some of the best players in
the country, so to be honest,
when I played my first game
for India I didn’t really feel
the pressure. After all, I had
the complete support of my
parents, and had trained under
a coach, Irfan Sait, who had
prepared me to play against the
very best. Also, there was Anju
di, who made my transition
to international cricket much
46 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
easier than it would have
otherwise been. When we
trained together, she always
set high standards and pushed
me to get better everyday. She
was the kind of person who had
the ability to instill confidence
in everyone she worked with.
Of course, compared to
domestic cricket there was quite
a big difference in the standard
of game at the international
level, especially when it came to
facing the fast bowlers. I don’t
remember playing against pace
bowlers in domestic cricket who
bowled so quick and were so
consistent. I would not say that
it was hard to negotiate them,
but the challenge was finding
ways to be better than them.
The initial years at the
international level were quite
tough for me. As a wicket-
keeper and opening batter I
had to make sure that I was
both physically ready and
mentally switched on at all
times. Since international series
didn’t happen as often as they
do now, it took a great deal of
work to get used to the pace of
the game at the highest level.
International cricket is not
only about skill and fitness,
but also how mentally strong
you are— how quickly you
can dig yourself out of a hole
when things aren’t going well.
The biggest difference
for me as a batter at the
international level was the
standard of fielding. Singles
taken at domestic level were
easily cut off in international
cricket. That is when I had to
learn to be more aggressive
and start playing lofted shots
to try and push the field back.
Like I said, the challenge was to
constantly find ways to be better
than the opponents. At domestic
level you are often in your
comfort zone and sometimes
can play on cruise control, but
in international cricket, every
ball is a battle and you have
to constantly make sure your
game is evolving. Complacency
can often be the end of you.
• K ARUNA JAIN
I suppose in many ways I
was lucky to have spent a couple
of years in an environment as
professional as Air India. Since
the squad was filled with high
quality players, we were always
pushing each other for places.
When I came back to Karnataka
I continued to make sure that
I was improving everyday— I
understood my responsibility to
try and consistently win games
for my team. I always believed
that if you want to succeed at
the top level, you have to be
able to dominate at the level
below— that helps build a great
deal of confidence in a player,
and makes you feel like you
are ready to make the step up.
It is not uncommon to
feel out of your depth when
you first make the step up
to international cricket, but
what matters is how quickly
you adapt to the demands
of the game and your team’s
requirements. That is where I
believe ‘A’ series— both home
and away— can make a big
difference in the current set
up. I was lucky enough to play
a few India A games myself,
and also tour Pakistan with the
India Under-21 team, so those
experiences certainly helped me
identify the skills I needed to
sharpen to make the transition
to the top level easier.
Karuna Jain is a former
Indian wicket-keeper batter
and a proud Air Indian. She
tweets @VKarunaJain
Left: Karuna Jain
poses with the 2006
npower Test series
trophy in England. (PC:
Karuna Jain/ Facebook)
www.womenscriczone.com 47
 BEYOND THE BOUNDARY
N
othing can quite
prepare you for
the pressures of
international cricket. I
remember one of the early
games in my career— a
match against England in
the inaugural edition of the
Women’s World T20 in 2009—
it was a surreal feeling, going
on to the ground, reflecting on
my journey into the national
side. I remember the adrenaline
rush when I walked out to
open the batting alongside
Bismah Maroof. We were
chasing 123, and there I was
facing up to Isa Guha… I was
desperate to make an impact
on the game. I started with
a solid defensive stroke, a
wild waft outside off stump,
and then a lofted shot over
extra cover. When Guha came
back at me with a short ball, I
remember swinging blindly at
it. In those few minutes it was
like my brain had shut down,
and I was relying solely on my
instincts to get me through…
Until 2005, when women’s
cricket came under the purview
of the Pakistan Cricket Board,
there was no competitive
domestic structure in Pakistan.
We had a pool of around 30
players, who were selected via
48 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
• MARINA IQBAL
GETTING USED TO THE PACE OF THE GAME
trials— these were the players
who made up the national team.
In such a setup the jump
to the international level was
immense— the pace of the
game was different, the quality
of cricket was different. The
professionalism and skills
were nothing that we had
experienced before, so the gap
was quite visible. However,
as a team, and as individual
players, we realised what
we needed to work on to be
able to compete at that level.
With the limited resources
and facilities we possessed we
implemented all the things
we learnt in our sessions—
the fitness, conditioning
and practice routines were
totally different for all of us.
In those days, regional
cricket was the route into the
national team. I represented
Lahore for three years before
getting selected for my first
national camp. My first day at
the National Cricket Academy
was mesmerizing— seeing
the senior players, who I
had heard so much about,
walking by was quite thrilling.
I learnt a lot at the academy—
understood my game, worked
on my shortcomings and
saw what the game looked
like at the highest level.
Looking back, I believe at
the start of my international
career, the lack of good, hard
competitive cricket meant I
took a while to gain confidence
at the top level, but the more
I played, the more confident I
became. Back then, we didn’t
play too many (international)
tournaments, so it was about
trying to create match scenarios
in practice and test yourself
there. Most often, that is not
enough, but we had to make do.
Personally, my transition
to international cricket
became easier only when
I started to practice and
train keeping in mind what
international players do.
When I developed the right
mindset, my game at the
domestic level also changed—
that did the trick for me, not
just in terms of confidence,
but skill level as well— I
became more consistent.
Over the last few years,
things have changed quite
significantly in Pakistan. The
domestic tournaments— we
play a 50-over challenge and a
Departmental T20 tournament
now— are well organised,
high quality matches with
many more young girls coming
through the ranks. Straight
away, since the number of girls
playing the sport has increased,
the domestic setup too, is
becoming more competitive.
Of course, that has in no
way completely closed the
gap between domestic and
international cricket, but it has
made things slightly easier.
What I learnt through
my career is that apart from
having a positive mindset and
understanding the technical
and tactical side of the game,
it is very important to have a
strong base and understanding
of what it is to play good, hard
competitive cricket. The more
competitive domestic matches
are, the easier the transition
will be. Needless to say, the
atmosphere and pressure of an
international match will always
get to you, at the start, no matter
how good a player you are, but
a solid base/ years of playing in
challenging/ pressure situations
makes the transition slightly
less nerve-wracking.
Marina Iqbal is a former Pakistan
opening batter and leg-spin bowler.
She served as vice-captain of
the Pakistan team in 2010, and
is now a cricket commentator.
She tweets @MarinaMI_24.
 BEYOND THE BOUNDARY

ATHLETICISM
A GAME CHANGER FOR
Bottom: The Indian
women are now well
aware of the importance
WOMEN’S CRICKET IN INDIA?
of fitness, and the different
standards of fitness Traditionally, cricket was always dependent on innate skills,
expected even in the ‘’skill-
based’’ game of cricket. but with the evolution of T20 cricket, fitness standards and
(PC : ICC) athleticism have become equally important.

ATHLETICISM IS DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL

• A N U J A DA LV I TO VIEWERSHIP

2
3 July 2017— a date that
fans of women’s cricket
will remember for a long
time. A well balanced
England team faced off against
a young, resurgent Indian
team at Lord’s, the mecca of
cricket. While England may
have held their nerve to win
the high-stakes game by just
nine runs, leaving millions
of Indians heartbroken,
it was Mithali Raj’s team
who had won millions of
fans back home. On their
return to India, the team was
swallowed in a sea of affection
and admiration from the
cricketing world. They became
household names, attended
talk shows, walked down
fashion show ramps looking
dead gorgeous, and started
receiving hefty endorsement
deals. The stage was set— for
more action and more glory!
Incredibly, the 2017
Women’s World Cup reached
180 million global viewers,
hitting a 300% increase in
viewing hours of women’s
cricket. It also attracted
almost 50,000 articles in
print and digital media over
four weeks. How exciting!
Let’s take a pause here
and ask ourselves, what
makes women’s sport
popular and how can it
gain more viewership?
According to 2018 Nielsen
study, women’s sports
viewership is on the rise and
cricket is ranked 7th on the
global stage— first being
track and field, followed
very closely by tennis.
Even if you don’t look
at the statistics, over past
few years, it has become
evident that there is a striking
increase in the number of
viewers of T20 cricket as
compared to men’s Test and
One-Day Internationals.
One of the main reasons is
the athleticism portrayed
on field in the shortest
format— athleticism is directly
proportional to viewership.
With this equation in mind,
women’s cricket can see a
significant rise in popularity
if the fitness standards
improve along with the skills.
Women’s cricket probably has
the greatest potential to be
in the league of sports where
gender difference doesn’t
interfere in the popularity
and excitement of the game.
Endurance, strength,

50 w w w.wo m e n s c r ic zo n e.co m
speed & power, flexibility,
agility, balance & coordination,
body composition, reaction
time, analytic & tactical
ability, motivation & self
confidence, and the ability to
cope with pressure, are the
prominent traits observed
in any successful athletes.
Traditionally, cricket has
always been dependent on
innate skills or talent over
fitness and athleticism. A
successful cricketer is normally
one who exhibits technique,
talent, patience, timing &
placement rather than sheer
force. Hence the duty of a
sports medicine personnel
has always been to develop
cricket specific fitness.
Let’s look at some
physiological facts:
Lean Body Mass (LBM)
changes after puberty and
is one of the most important
factors in deciding athleticism
in a male or female athlete.
Genetic factors governing
these changes are currently
beyond our control, but
what one can do is to utilise
various strategies from sports
medicine to induce better
fitness standards in a given
pool of players who can be
monitored over a longer
time. This requires setting up
evidence based guidelines
and choosing the player
Even if you pool at a younger age.
don’t look at the In my experience diet and
nutrition is the prime factor
statistics, over the in making these big changes.
past few years, Some of the current prominent
names who travelled for the
it has become Women’s Big Bash League
evident that there in Australia made significant
changes to their diet and
is a striking within a year or two noticed
increase in the an improvement in their
fitness and subsequently
number of viewers in their performances.  cricketing journeys playing
of T20 cricket Monitoring hormonal
activities and related issues
as compared to such as iron deficiency, B12
men’s Test and deficiency and associated
megaloblastic anaemia, etc. is
ODIs. One of the also very important. Relative
main reasons is energy deficiency in sports
(RED-S) syndrome, is an entity
the athleticism formerly known as female
portrayed athlete triad, is very common
and needs early diagnosis
on field in the and intervention. It demands
shortest format— managing perceptional
issues and psychological
athleticism needs is in these girls.
is directly Considering few of the
inevitable physical differences,
proportional to anterior cruciate ligament
viewership. (ACL) traumas in women’s
cricket needs a special
mention. This can be tackled by
implementing ACL prevention
programs from younger age.
ICC Chief Executive David
Richardson recently said, “sport
must now work collectively to
maintain interest and continue
to drive growth.” One of the
administrative strategies to
achieve betterment in women’s
cricket would be promoting
mixed gender U14 - U16 cricket
at school and state level. Mithali
Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur and
many others started their
among boys which not only
improved their cricketing sense
but cricket specific fitness as
the game is traditionally much
faster and more competitive.
Anuja Dalvi is a post-graduate
from University of South
Australia in Musculoskeletal
and Sports Physiotherapy.
She has been involved with
women’s cricket since 2009. She
was previously associated with
NCA - BCCI and Bangladesh
Cricket. She is co-founder of the
LiveActive Physiotherapy and
Sports Injury clinic in
Mumbai and PhysioConcepts
Education LLP.

THE NEED FOR SYSTEMATIC AND CONSISTENT

• A N A N D DAT E TRAINING FROM A DEVELOPMENTAL AGE

T
he second consecutive
edition of Women’s
IPL is really good news
for women’s cricket as
it will foster the overall growth
of the game, but how many will
be watching these matches?
The number will definitely
be more than it was last year,
but, probably still some way
short of men’s tournament.  final. However, this is just an
Yes, it is unfair to compare
women’s cricket with the men’s
game, so instead, let’s compare
women’s cricket with other
women’s sports.
Last year’s Wimbledon
women’s finals saw a
viewership of 4.6 million
according to The Times; and
this, incidentally surpassed
the viewership of the men’s
exception that defies the norm
that there is a gulf in viewership
between male and female
sports. In fact, only few sports,
such as tennis, experience
similar viewership in the men’s
and women’s game. In this
curious observation lies one
of the important ingredients
in raising the viewership of
women’s cricket. 
The sports that are watched
in seemingly equal proportions

www.womenscriczone.com 51
 BEYOND THE BOUNDARY
in men and women versions
all exhibit one common trait.
The gap in physicality is less
in the men’s and women’s
versions of these sports, and
there lies the key element
that is required for Indian
women’s cricket – a need to
improve fitness standards
and general athleticism.   Improvements in
Much work has been
done in this regard over the
last few years, and the Indian
women are now well aware
of the importance of fitness,
and about different standards
of fitness expected even in a
so-called ‘’skill-based’’ game of
cricket.  absolutely essential to foster
Traditionally, cricket
requires combination of
strength, explosive power,
acceleration-deceleration
abilities, agility and anaerobic
as well as aerobic endurance.
Women are anthropometrically
and physiologically different
than men in that they have
wider pelvis, and shorter limbs.
They also exhibit different
hormonal profiles and different
mineral uptakes, especially at
the later stages of life. Specific
“In Indian women’s
cricket, the training
age of players is
generally less before
they reach the
top level and gain
access to Strength &
Conditioning coaches
and physiotherapists.
Subsequently, their
exposure to higher
and more consistent
workloads is limited
before they hit the
international scene.”
52 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
to cricket, these differences
mean that women need
specific work in improving
their landing mechanics,
acceleration-deceleration
abilities and throwing power
as all these actions require high
degrees of strength, power and
movement control.
specific aspects such as
these require systematic and
consistent training from the
developmental age. This
means that specific to women
cricketers, improvements
in strength and endurance
from a young age is
future developments in all
other athletic elements.  season window as compared to
In a Strength &
Conditioning context, phase
of the season (off-season /
in-season), and training age
(number of years the player
has been training) are two
vital factors among others that
determine the type of training
the athlete will perform.
Off-season is typically a time
where improvement based
training takes place and greater
training age means athletes
can be exposed to higher, and
consistent workload both in
skills and training over-time in
order to improve their physical
capacity.  cricketers at the domestic and
In Indian women’s
cricket, the training age
of players is generally less
before they reach the top
level and gain access to S&C
coaches and physiotherapists.
Subsequently, their exposure
to higher and more consistent
workloads is limited before
they hit the international
scene. However, there also
lies a window of opportunity
for women cricketers as they
enjoy a slightly longer off-
Bottom:
As Harmanpreet Kaur
has often showcased,
athleticism is one of the
main reasons for the
popularity of T20 cricket.
(PC: ICC)
their male counterparts. With
a more organised ecosystem
(availability of S&C Coaches
and physiotherapists at the
local level), upcoming women
local levels can make use of
this longer off-season period
to work on their fitness.
Overall, it is evident that
young female cricketers in
India need systematic strength
& conditioning work and
exposure to progressively
increasing workloads from
their U14 days, in order to
build foundations that can help
them become stronger, faster,
and more agile athletes on a
cricket ground, something that
people would love to watch.
Anand Date is a Strength &
Conditioning Coach with the
National Cricket Academy of
BCCI for last 7 years and has
worked with numerous women
cricket players during camps as
well as during rehabilitation. He
has a graduate degree in Sports
Science and is accredited S&C
Coach through NSCA (USA) and
ASCA (Australia).
 IN THE FRAME

54 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
 Big: Austr
alia overcam
disappointm e the
ent of their
two World last
Cup campa
crushed thei igns and
r op
way to an un ponents on the
precedente
T20 World d fourth
Cup title. (P
C: ICC)
Small: Elly
se Perry fin
04 with an ished WBB
astonishing L
777 runs in tally of
cluding two
after which centuries,
she notche
maiden OD d up her
I century ag
Zealand in ainst New
Adelaide. (P
C: ICC)

www.womenscriczone.com 55
 IN THE FRAME

d to
travelle T20I
W es t Indies m a tch
Big: -
n fo r a three a nd Feb
3
Pakista ween Jan 31 5 years.
bet of 1
series r a gap
h is ye ar afte
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Joyce, announced
Isobel tc alfe tion al
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c r he es
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World national app )
t er C
461 in them. (PC: IC
en
betwe

56 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
www.womenscriczone.com 57
 IN THE FRAME

58 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
 Big:
2018
year w
on th as Bangla
they e inte desh’s
fir rna b
Cup st beat Ind tional circ est
fin ia uit
then al in Kuala in the As —
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fi d nd
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fiers
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therla ld Cu
Sma nds. p
ll: Am (PC: IC
Clark elia K C)
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(PC: C in. ealan
ricket da
Irelan
d)

www.womenscriczone.com 59
 IN THE FRAME
1
2

60 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
 4

1: Harmanpreet Kaur struck India’s

first ever T20I century in the opening
of the 2018 Women’s T20 World Cup match
against New Zealand in Guyana. The
captain hit seven fours and eight sixes Indian
in her 51-ball 103. (PC: ICC)
2: 2018 saw BCCI organise the first
ever Women’s T20 Challenge matc
that saw players from India line-up h; an event
alongside internationals from Aust
and New Zealand. Harmanpreet Kaur ralia, England
and Smriti Mandhana were at the
Supernovas and Trailblazers respective helm of
ly. (PC: BCCI)

5
3: Smriti Mandhana, who plundere
d 1,892 runs across formats since the
Women’s World Cup, won the Rach 2017
ael Heyhoe Flint medal for her dom
performances in 2018. (PC: ICC) inant

4 & 5: Mithali Raj and Jhulan Gosw

ami, the grand old women of India
ticked off a couple more milestone n cricket,
s in 2018-19. Raj became the first
200 ODIs when she took the field again woman to play
st New Zealand on 1 February 2019
Goswami became the first to take , while
300 international wickets when she
Nipuni Hansika of Sri Lanka on Sept dismissed
emeber 11, 2018. (Both PC: ICC)

www.womenscriczone.com 61
 O P I N I O N
INDIA IS
READY FOR
A WOMEN’S
IPL
Strengthening grassroots programs will take a
lot of time, but the WIPL could possibly work
as a quick fix to help bridge the gap between
domestic and international cricket.
• R E E M A M A L H OT R A
O
n 10 April 2005, the
Indian women’s
cricket team etched
their names in
history when they walked out
to face Australia at Centurion in
their first ever World Cup final.
It was the start of a new era.
On our journey home, I
remember how peaceful it
was— no thaam jhaam in italics,
nothing. We attended a small
felicitation function before
heading home, but it was
almost like we were returning
from South Africa after a
bilateral series; no one gave us a
second look.
After India’s loss to England
in the 2017 World Cup final at
Lord’s, however, things had
completely changed. When
Mithali Raj’s team touched
down in Mumbai in the early
hours of the morning, they were
greeted by a sea of well-wishers.
This was a turning point for
women’s cricket in India— for
62 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
P I C : J O H N L E AT H E R , L I S A S T H A L E K A R
the first time the country had
rallied around it’s women’s
team; Indian cricket had finally
found it’s female superstars.
Of course, the credit for
India’s rise does not rest solely
in the hands of that squad of
15. Every player who has ever
represented her country, and all
the administrators who played
a role in the growth of the game
are equally responsible.
However, the past is gone,
and now there is new ground
to break— more matches, more
lucrative contracts, a stronger
grassroots system, and possibly
a women’s IPL (WIPL).
BRIDGING THE GAP
In a career spanning over 15
years, I have seen a lot of players
who were extremely talented
fade away because they failed
to receive proper guidance.
Most of those were players who,
if groomed well, could have
potentially gone on to play for
“The domestic
circuit is
bursting with
a great deal of
talent, and all
the girls need is
proper guidance;
maybe then
India could
become a real
superpower in
the women’s
game as well.”

www.womenscriczone.com 63
 O P I N I O N
the country.
Finding, fine-tuning, and
keeping talent in the system—
that is something the WIPL
can help with. If young girls
are given the opportunity and
exposure to play alongside
international players and
coaches, imagine how much
they could learn!
The inception of domestic
T20 leagues like the Women’s
Big Bash League in Australia
and Women’s Cricket Super
League in England has seen
the game grow tremendously.
Apart from giving some
exceptional talents in world
cricket a chance to hone
their craft alongside top
international players, these
tournaments have, in many
ways, helped somewhat bridge
the gap between domestic and
international cricket.
Australia and England
have consistently reached
the knockout stages of major
ICC events due to a very solid
grassroots programs; the WCSL
and WBBL have only fast
forwarded their progress. This
64 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
is something that India also
needs to inculcate if they are to
consistently dominate on the
world stage.
On that note, I believe a
WIPL would be a stepping
stone to success for many
young Indian cricketers. It will
not only provide them with an
opportunity to rub shoulders
with the best players in the
world, but also prepare them
to handle pressure situations
at the international level.
“Once the young Imagine how much Jemimah
girls understand Rodrigues or Arundhati Reddy
will learn playing alongside
what is required Meg Lanning and Katherine
to compete at Brunt. Untapped local talent
the top level, it will also get a chance to
showcase their ability at the top
will level, thereby strengthening
automatically the domestic system.
If you look at the standard
lead to a change at domestic cricket in India, the
in approach, and par score is somewhere around
105 to 120 in a T20 game— that
right now, that is is nowhere near sufficient at the
what is international level. The batters
required.” in domestic cricket face very
different bowling attacks and
much weaker fielding sides as
compared to the highest level.
They need to try and play a
more aggressive/ dominant
brand of cricket at the domestic
level if they want to prepare
well for the big stage.
It is clear that the quality
of domestic cricket needs
to improve if India want to
produce players who can
transition relatively easily to
the international stage, but
that will not happen overnight.
Strengthening grassroots
programs will take a lot of
time, but the WIPL could
possibly work as a quick fix to
help bridge the gap between
domestic and international
cricket. Once the young girls
understand what is required
to compete at the top level, it
will automatically lead to a
change in approach, and right
now, that is what is required.
Also, interacting with quality
international coaches and
trainers will expose young
players to new techniques and
also give them an idea about
the fitness standards they need
to maintain. It is these small
Left: The first
contingent of
international stars
to participate in
the Women’s T20
Challenger exhibition
match consisted of
players from Australia,
England and New
Zealand. (PC: BCCI)
Opening Page:
A WIPL will give
young Indian players
a chance to rub
shoulders with top
international players
like Sophie Devine and
Alyssa Healy.
(PC: BCCI)

things which will help domestic
players take their game one
notch higher— it will serve as
the difference between a score of
120 and a score of 160.
FAST-PACED GAME
When I used to play for the
country, the par score in an
ODI would be around 180-
200, but now over the years
due to increased fitness levels,
better equipments, more match
practice and power hitting, the
pace of the game has drastically
increased. More teams are now
scoring a minimum of 250,
but even those totals are being
chased down.
West Indies and Australia
have shown that power hitting
can take the game to a whole
new level and this is what
is currently lacking in the
Indian batters. It is something
that will certainly make their
T20I team more competitive.
There are a handful of players
who can do this consistently,
but we need to increase the
number in order to attract
bigger crowds as well as
compete with the best teams
in the world. There is much
to work with in India, but we
need to provide the players
with a proper pathway.
“ Among There is clear evidence
the Indians, in the positive impact such
Harmanpreet, T20 leagues have on players.
Hayley Matthews has come
and Smriti leaps and bounds since her first
have grown in stint in the WBBL; Ashleigh
Gardner, Sophie Molineux
confidence and and Georgia Wareham
become more of Australia and Kirstie
Gordon and Linsey Smith of
consistent after England, have made seamless
their experiences transitions to international
in Australia and cricket as well. Among the
Indians, Harmanpreet Kaur,
England, while and Smriti Mandhana have
Veda has spoken grown in confidence and
become more consistent after
extensively their experiences in Australia
about how the and England, while Veda
Krishnamurthy has spoken
WBBL helped extensively about how the
her mature as a WBBL helped her mature as a
player. Their experiences and
player.” exposure to such tournaments
has seen their game improve
drastically and enabled them to
play a fearless brand of cricket.
Interacting with new players,
learning different cultures
Right: Harmanpreet
Kaur and Smriti
Mandhana, who
captained Supernovas
and Trailblazers in
2018, have spoken
extensively about the
positive impact of
foreign T20 leagues on
their games.
(PC: BCCI)
and exchanging ideas about
the game has helped raise the
standard of women’s cricket
across the board, and that is
why I think the WIPL can help
India catch up with the rest.
As a broadcaster, a lot of
people have asked me when
the WIPL is likely to begin.
That is an answer only the
BCCI can give. For now, they
have been making efforts to get
things into motion. The 2019
WIPL exhibition matches are a
glimpse into the possible future;
how far away, we will have to
wait and see.
I, for one, believe the
country is ready for such a
tournament. The domestic
circuit is bursting with a great
deal of talent, and all the girls
need is proper guidance to
fine-tune their ability; maybe
then India could become a real
superpower in the women’s
game as well.
Reema Malhotra is a former
India allrounder, now turned
broadcaster. She has played three
ODI and T20I World Cups each.
She tweets @ReemaMalhotra8.
www.womenscriczone.com 65
 P E R S P E C T I V E

NOTHING BEATS
LIVE TV COVERAGE
With so much going for women’s sport, and with the fans’ appetites whet, there
is much pressure on the ICC’s member nations around the world to satisfy the
growing requirements for the broadcast of women’s cricket at all levels. • K ASS NAIDOO

T
he South African
women’s cricket team
played their maiden
televised game against
England in the semi-finals of
the Women’s T20 World Cup
in Bangladesh in April 2014.
Despite the nine-wicket loss that
saw them exit the tournament,
it sparked a new era for South
Africa’s first-ever contracted
professional women’s outfit.
They had finally tasted what it
felt like to play on the big stage,
and they liked it.
Even though some admitted
to being overwhelmed by the
constant camera attention, the
players enjoyed their newfound
global stardom. Speaking to the
media after the match, Mignon
du Preez, then captain of the
team said, “Playing in front of
a live TV audience was special
Above: Live TV coverage
for us... This is a huge step in has played a key role in
the right direction for women’s getting strong global
cricket in South Africa.” support for the women’s
A few months later, Cricket game. (PC: ICC)
South Africa (CSA) announced
a historic first for women’s
cricket in the country, with the
broadcast of the three-match
T20I series in England on

66 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
SuperSport. At the time, CSA
said in a statement: “We had
experienced the benefits of
live coverage during the (2014)
World T20, when our women
cricketers were seen live in
action for the first time and
the decision by SuperSport to
continue this trend will certainly
benefit the sport.”
GROWTH OF THE
WOMEN’S GAME
Fast forward to the 2017
Women’s Cricket World Cup
in England— which saw the
International Cricket Council
(ICC) announce an eight-fold
increase in viewing hours in
South Africa—where Dane van
Niekerk’s team reached the
semi-finals of the showpiece
event. This sparked a huge
surge in support of women’s
cricket in the country. The
media couldn’t get enough
of the team and covered
their every move for a few
weeks after their return from
England. There were television
adverts produced and flighted.
Sponsors were beaming.
Now, imagine the scenes
back in England for the World
Cup winners and their fans.
Bryan Henderson, Head of
Sky Sport, said he felt like
2017 was a watershed moment
for women’s sport, with his
highlight being the moment
England’s women clinched the
World Cup at Lord’s.
Henderson had every reason
to feel proud as the Women’s
Cricket World Cup final turned
out to be Sky Sport’s most
watched women’s sporting
event in 2017, with more than
1.1 millions viewers at its peak.
Overall, more than 180
million people around the
world are estimated to have
watched the ICC Women’s
Cricket World Cup in 2017,
which constituted an “almost
300% increase in viewing
hours in comparison to the last
edition in 2013.”
It’s true, nothing beats live
TV coverage. We have seen
how it has powered men’s
sport for years.
BROADCAST AND NEW
AUDIENCES KEY IN
GROWTH
Aarti Dabas, the ICC Head
of Media Rights, Broadcast
and Digital at the time, said,
“The broadcast and digital
numbers have far exceeded
our expectations and have
justified our decision to back
the women’s game. It all goes to
show that there are millions out
there who are willing to follow
and watch an event like the ICC
Women’s World Cup and the
details of these numbers are a
reflection of that.”
Dabas is passionate about
women empowerment and
is leading a strong charge
at cricket’s international
headquarters to prioritise the
broadcast of women’s cricket.
So far, she has done a great
job with her team to ensure
continued increased coverage
of the women’s game. It comes
as no surprise that another ICC
research project released in
June 2018 that was undertaken
to inform its global growth
strategy for cricket, found
One will argue that “70% of fans want to see
that England, more live coverage of women’s
cricket.”
Australia and “There are opportunities
New Zealand are to grow in both our traditional
markets, where the focus will
more than holding be on attracting more women
their own in this and girls, children and families
to the game, as well as non-
growing broadcast traditional cricket playing
space, but the nations, where there is clearly
reality is that both interest and opportunity,”
Dabas stated.
many countries
are lagging THE CLEAN IMAGE OF
WOMEN’S SPORT
behind in terms A recent report published in
of infrastructure November 2018 by Nielsen
Sports indicates that “84% of
to support general sports fans— more than
the growth of half of whom are men— are
women’s cricket. interested in women’s sport.”
In research conducted across
the UK, USA, France, Germany,
Italy, Spain, Australia and New
Zealand, the study notes that
“Of the general population—
both male and female— of the
eight countries, 64% have an
Below: The impact of female
interest in at least one women’s
sporting icons and the deep
connect that women’s teams sport,” and significantly that
seem to share with their fans “women’s sport is seen as
has led to a rise in popularity of more ‘inspiring’, ‘progressive’,
women’s cricket. (PC: ICC) ‘family-oriented’ and ‘clean’.”
 P E R S P E C T I V E
In April 2018, Cricket
Above: After South
Australia announced a
Africa reached the landmark partnership with
semi-final of the 2017 FOX Sports and Seven West
Women’s World Cup, Media where women’s cricket
the media couldn’t was placed at the forefront of
get enough of them, the partnership with every
covering their every international match and over
move for a few weeks
20 Women’s Big Bash League
after the team’s return
(WBBL) matches each season
from England. (PC:
ICC) to be broadcast on Seven and
FOX Sports. CA also announced
that it would live-stream the
remaining WBBL matches on its
website and its Live App.
Later that year, true to its
commitment to accelerating the
growth of the women’s game,
the ICC responded by taking
broadcast coverage to a new
level at the first ever stand-alone
Women’s T20 World Cup in
November 2018. All matches
were broadcast live for the first
time, reaching out to both new
and old audiences in more than
200 countries around the world.
68 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
FANS OF WOMEN’S SPORT
MORE COMMITTED
The Guardian newspaper
reported on a study by True
North Research, focusing on
trends in Australia, which
revealed that women’s
sporting teams create stronger
connections with their fans.
The study found that fans
of the nation’s women’s rugby
sevens team, and the Matildas—
their football team— “rank
highest with the public for
emotional connection and trust,”
and “… while high-profile
men’s sports teams may have
more fans overall, women’s
teams actually rate much better
in terms of respect, enjoyment,
trust, pride and bond among
those familiar with them.”
While the fans may have
begun warming up to women’s
sport and following it as keenly
as they do the men, the biggest
issue exacerbating the historical
divide between men’s and
women’s participation is that
of compensation. This issue
was recently highlighted in the
launch issue of The Telegraph’s
Women’s Sport publication,
which unsurprisingly found
that “more than half of elite
sportswomen thought that
sponsorship was poor”.
Launched “… with an
unprecedented publishing
commitment to transform
the profile and visibility
of women’s sport through
enhanced coverage across print
and digital platforms,” the
Telegraph’s new publication
found that one in seven of the 20
athletes who responded to their
survey confirmed that they had
“considered ending their career
due to financial worries,” and
further that 40 per cent often
worried about money.
That this is the fate of elite
athletes will come as no surprise

The reality
is that social
media has
put immense
pressure
on sports
organisations
to take
charge of
messaging
in ways that
are more
appealing,
entertaining
and
innovative.
to the ranks of women athletes
around the world who hold zero
hope of securing independent
third party funding to facilitate
their participation, and who
must take leave from jobs and
pay their own way in hopes of
reaching their athletic goals.
In 2017, Forbes listed
American tennis icon Serena
Williams as the sole woman in
the world’s 100 highest-paid
athletes, equal with baseball’s
Ryan Howard tied at number
51, with 27million USD in
income. In 2018, Forbes reports
no woman in the top 100.
Is this the end game? If
so many studies accurately
forecast the imminent explosion
of women’s sport, how will it all
be paid for?
Well, the traditional answer
to that question in the men’s
game is through sponsorship
and broadcast rights, and
sponsorship requires wide
coverage. Fortunately, as
Australia’s ‘the women’s game’
would have it, there is good
news on the horizon, with an
impressive rise in popularity of
women’s cricket being driven
by three key factors - television
broadcasting, positive media
coverage and the rising impact of
women’s sports icons. Another
encouraging piece at sports.
legal comes to the conclusion—
with reference to a wide range
of modern evidence— that the
time is now for sponsorship of
women’s sport.
HOPE ON THE HORIZON
With so much going for
women’s sport, and with the
appetite whet, is it any surprise
that now, in 2019, the hunger
for women’s cricket broadcasts
is greater than it’s ever been?
While it is expected that the
ICC will keep delivering at its
usual high standard, its member
nations around the world are
under pressure to satisfy the
growing requirements for the
broadcast of women’s cricket at
all levels.
Yes, one will argue that
England, Australia and New
Zealand are more than holding
their own in this growing
broadcast space, but the reality
is that many countries are
lagging behind in terms of
infrastructure to support the
growth of women’s cricket.
Five years after the
Proteas women’s first ever
live cricket game, Cricket
South Africa Head of
Communications, Koketso
Gaofetoge, says the growth
of women’s cricket continues
to remain a big priority for
his Federation.“This is a huge
priority for us as Cricket
South Africa and something
we continue to endeavour
to provide for our female
cricketers. Their recently
concluded Sri Lanka series
wins was a great example
of that and we will continue
bringing the women’s game to
many South Africans.”
LIVE STREAMING POWERS
WOMEN’S CRICKET
Live streaming is becoming a
popular option, and Gaofetoge
says it could be the way
forward. “Definitely. This is a
perfect way for us to showcase
the talent that is out there and
also keep track of the Proteas
players that have represented at
the highest level.”
Has this opened up the
opportunity for new players to
come into the market?
“Very much so,” he says. “We
at CSA have taken the initiative
to partner with the likes of Pitch
Vision, who have contributed
positively in assisting us with
the broadcasting of live cricket
matches, for both men and
women.”
Cricket technology
company, PitchVision, broke
into the broadcasting arena
when big institutions like CSA
started using their system to
live stream provincial matches.
The system is designed for
live streaming and ball by ball
capturing of cricket matches,
allowing viewers to join the
action. After impressive work in
men’s cricket, PitchVision were
invited to cover the National
Women’s Cricket Week in April
2018, and the feedback was
positive as the company plans
to grow its coverage.
Over in India, Star India’s
record deal of Rs 6,138 crore
with BCCI for five years, while
primarily focusing on the men’s
game, has made room to telecast
the women’s matches as well.
Most recently, they covered
the series between India and
England which included three
ODIs in Mumbai and three
T20Is in Guwahati.
In fact, Star’s deal extends to
the coverage of domestic cricket.
The Women’s Senior One-Day
Challenger Trophy in 2018 and
2019 were broadcast, providing
much needed visibility to a
wider range of players.
Even earlier, in 2014, Star
India and Star Middle East
struck an eight-year deal with
the ICC for the period between
2015 and 2023 which covered
five women’s tournaments.
The success of both the 2017
Women’s World Cup and 2018
T20 World Cup are evidence
enough of the fine work
broadcasters are doing.
THERE’S NO GOING
BACK NOW
The reality is that social media
has put immense pressure
on sports organisations to
take charge of messaging in
ways that are more appealing,
entertaining and innovative.
There are many entertainment
options for fans so more
needs to be done to keep their
attention for longer.There
was a stage when live scoring
of a women’s game was the
accepted way of informing fans
of the progress of matches, but
with the advance of technology
which has made “going live”
easier, fans want more. They
want to see it live as it happens.
Social media is a powerful
tool to broadcast the women’s
game. From live on Twitter,
to live on Facebook, to live
on Instagram—the cricket
broadcasting industry is
certainly in a disruptive space
and those who are smart
enough are jumping on and
making the most of these
opportunities to broadcast
women’s cricket.
There is no turning back.
Women’s cricket is on the fast
track to the top, and broadcast
has played a key role in getting
strong global support for the
women’s game.
Kass Naidoo is South Africa’s first
female cricket commentator, and
founder of the gsport Trust.She
tweets @KassNaidoo.
www.womenscriczone.com 69
 R O U N D - U P
From Jemimah Rodrigues to Sophie Ecclestone: a look at the five most exciting and
successful young players over the last year.
T
he success of the ICC
Women’s World Cup
in 2017 saw women’s
cricket gain a great
following. Fans around the
world were glued to the game,
keenly following their favourite
player’s every move.
The following year, 2018,
touted to be a breakthrough
season, was nothing short of
a revelation as young talents
across the globe burst on to the
arena and created a space for
themselves on the international
circuit.
70 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo ne.co m
THE WOMEN TO
WATCH
• S H W E TA H A R A N H A L L I
Women’s CricZone looks
back at the the best young
talent of 2018 who took
the cricket world by storm
with their scintillating
performances.
Note: The stats below are
combined ODI and T20I records
between the period of 1 Jan 2018 to
31 March 2019.
JEMIMAH RODRIGUES
(INDIA)
M: 35, I: 31, NO: 2, R: 794, HS: 81*,
Avg: 25.61, SR: 107.59, 50s: 6
The story of Jemimah
Rodrigues, the 18-year-old
batter from India, has been told
and retold several times over the
last 15 months. Her tremendous
run in Under-19 cricket during
the 2017-18 domestic season that
saw her break into the national
team last January, has been
often discussed.
Rodrigues made her first
international appearance
against South Africa in a T20I
last February, where she scored
a quick-fire 37 that helped
guide India to a seven wicket
PC: ICC
win. Since then, the teenager
hasn’t looked back— making
an impact almost every time
she has taken the field.
A little over a year since
her debut, Rodrigues has
become an integral part of
the Indian line-up. She even
played a pivotal role in their
run to the semi-finals of the
2018 Women’s T20 World
Cup in the Caribbean. In
ODIs, she has formed a solid
partnership at the top of the
order with Smriti Mandhana.
The youngster grabbed the
headlines in January 2019 with
her unbeaten half-century
against New Zealand, and a
record 190-run opening stand
that steered India to a famous
win in Napier.
Since her debut, the 18-year-
old has scored 186 runs in 10
ODIs, including a highest of 81
not out against New Zealand.
T20Is have been her stronger
suit— she has accumulated
608 runs in 25 innings at an
average of 30.40 and impressive
strike rate of 123.57. Her 72
against New Zealand in the
second T20I at Hamilton was
particularly impressive for
the way she held the innings
together and accelerated at the
back end. Rodrigues has shown
maturity beyond her years—
her game awareness, technical
efficiency and tactical nous
means she stands out from the
rest of the group and is well on
her way to becoming a definite
world beater.
 PC: ICC

AMELIA KERR (NEW ZEALAND) Harmanpreet Kaur, arguably the

M: 32, R: 445, HS: 232*, Bat Avg: 22.25, Bat SR: 110.97; biggest hitter on the women’s
W: 37, Best: 5-17, Bowl Avg: 25.11, Bowl SR: 28.2 circuit. She dismissed her twice
in three games, refusing to give
Just days after her 16th an unbeaten 232— the highest the Indian T20I captain anything
birthday, Amelia Kerr was individual score in women’s in her arc to swing at. It was a
named in the New Zealand ODIs—and backed it up with series in which Kerr showed
squad for the home series figures of 5 for 17 to give New immense skill after poor outings
against Pakistan in 2016. Zealand a 305-run win. She thus in the T20 World Cup.
Almost right away, the leg became the youngest double Her stand out performances
spinner displayed her ability to centurion in any format, male resulted in Kerr being awarded
be a genuine wicket taker— she or female. the ANZ International Women’s
gave the ball a real rip and had While Kerr admittedly ODI Player of the Year at the
a deadly googly. Initially, it was failed to back up those annual New Zealand Cricket
her bowling that won much tremendous performances in awards. In 13 ODIs she scored
praise, but in 2018, all that the tournaments that followed, 422 runs at an average of 52.75,
changed when Kerr showcased she did show great character also taking 21 wickets. Her
her might with the bat during when New Zealand took on cricketing feats have won her a
an ODI series against Ireland. India at home. In the T20I lot of praise, and she is certainly
Still only 18, Kerr smashed series, she managed to tie down one to watch for the future.

www.womenscriczone.com 71
 R O U N D - U P
ASHLEIGH GARDNER (AUSTRALIA)
M: 26, R: 426, HS: 63*, Bat Avg.: 19.36, Bat SR: 133.96; W: 34,
Best: 3-22, Bowl Avg: 17.41, Bowl SR: 20.68
Ashleigh Gardner is well known
on the international circuit for her
ability to hit the ball a long way.
Well before the world
witnessed her skills, I had the
chance to watch Gardner first hand
when she toured India as part
of a Australia’s first indigenous
women’s team in 2016.
As a member of the Mumbai
team that faced off against them,
I watched as she smashed the ball
all around the park en route to a
72 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo ne.co m
half-century in one of the games.
It was one of the most brutal
displays of power I had seen and
and made everyone sit up and take
notice.
A few months later, Gardner
made her international debut early
in 2017 and has since become an
integral part of the Australian
team. She is a genuine allrounder
who bowls handy off-spin and can
give the ball a real whack. In ODIs,
she plays the role of a finisher,
PC: ICC
while in T20Is, Australia use her
as a top order basher. In 2018, she
scored her maiden half-centuries
in both formats— asserting her
position as one of the fiercest
strikers of the cricket ball.
To cap off a wonderful year,
Gardner was adjudged as the
player of the match in the finals
of the 2018 ICC Women’s World
Twenty20 against arch rivals,
England, after she wrecked the
opposition with three wickets
and returned with the bat to
score an unbeaten 33 to give
Australia their fourth world
title in the shortest format.
 PC: ICC

SOPHIE ECCLESTONE (ENGLAND)

M: 25, Overs: 117.1, W: 37, Best: 4-14, Avg: 18.62, SR: 25.1, Eco.R: 4.46

In recent times, Sophie turn and extra bounce in

Ecclestone has become one
of the most feared bowlers
on the circuit. Despite only
being 20-years-old, Ecclestone
is already the leader of
England’s spin bowling attack
and played a pivotal role
in their road to the finals of
the 2018 T20 World Cup.
Renowned for her accuracy,
Ecclestone is a potent weapon
with the new ball. With a
smooth action, high arm
release and a deadly arm ball
she is a handful to face for
any batter. She was one of the
premier spin bowling options
for England when they toured
India in April 2018. Combining
with Danielle Hazell, the duo
made batting very difficult for
the home team, generating
spin-friendly conditions.
2018 was Ecclestone’s
breakthrough year, as the
left-armer was named the ICC
Emerging Player of the year. She
picked up 18 wickets in nine
ODIs and 17 wickets in 14 T20Is.
After bowling splendidly
in the series against India in
2019, the left-arm spinner
suffered a freak shoulder
injury that meant she missed
England’s subsequent tour to
Sri Lanka.
Shweta Haranhalli is a cricket
enthusiast who both plays and
writes about the sport. She is a
former Mumbai Under-19 national
championship winning captain
and is currently at the helm of the
Mumbai senior women’s team.

PC: ICC

SOPHIE MOLINEUX (AUSTRALIA)

M: 18, O: 77.3, W: 21, Best: 4-14, Avg: 16.19, SR: 22.1, Eco.R: 4.40

That Sophie Molineux kept batters any width to work with

Jess Jonassen, one of Australia’s
premier spinners, out of the
line-up during the 2018 T20
World Cup is testament to the
21-year-old’s allround ability.
A left-arm spinner and left-
handed batter, Molineux made
her T20I debut against India in
May last year.
With Jonassen missing
much of the season due to
injury, Molineux took the
opportunity to cement her
place in the side with both
hands. She took the new ball
in both the ODI and T20I series
against Pakistan in Malaysia
and delivered excellent
performances. She was deadly
accurate, constantly attacked
the stumps, refused to give the
and picked up regular wickets.
In 15 T20Is so far, the
21-year-old has taken 15
wickets, including a best of
4-16. While she may not have
ripped through batting line-ups
during this period, what stands
out is her ability to keep the
scoring rate in check despite
mostly bowling in the Power
Play— her economy rate of 5.84
tells a story of its own.
Later in the year, she
played a crucial role in helping
Australia claim their fourth
T20 World Cup title in the
Caribbean in November
and then went on to help
Melbourne Renegades reach
the WBBL semi-finals.

www.womenscriczone.com 73
 ROUND-UP

THE YEAR AT A GLANCE

SERIES SUMMARIES
(Records between the dates of 1 Jan 2018 to 31 Mar 2019

AUSTRALIA INDIA
• Beat India 3-0 in the ODI series in India. • Beat South Africa 2-1 in the ODI series and 3-1 in the T20I series in South Africa.
• Beat England in the final of the T20I tri-series also involving India in India. • Lost to Australia 3-0 in the ODI series at home.
• Beat New Zealand 3-0 in the T20I series at home. • Lost in the league stage of the T20 tri-series involving AUS & ENG at home.
• Beat Pakistan 3-0 in the ODI and 3-0 in the T20I series in Malaysia. • Beat England 2-1 in the ODI series at home.
• Won the 2018 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean. • Lost to Bangladesh in the final of the Asia Cup in Malaysia.
• Beat England in the final. • Beat Sri Lanka 2-1 in the ODI series and 4-0 in the T20I series in Sri Lanka.
• Beat New Zealand 3-0 in the ODI series at home. • Lost to England in the semi-finals of the ICC Women’s
OVER ALL RECORD T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.
• Beat New Zealand 2-1 in the ODI series and lost 3-0 in the T20I series in NZ
FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %
• Beat England 2-1 in the ODI series and lost 3-0 in the T20I series at home.
ODI 9 9 0 0 0 100
OVER ALL RECORD
T20I 17 15 2 0 0 88.24
FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %

ODI 18 10 8 0 0 55.55
BANGLADESH T20I 31 16 13 0 2 51.61
• Lost to South Africa by 5-0 in the ODI and 3-0 in T20I series in South Africa.
• Beat India in the final of the Asia Cup in Malaysia.
• Beat Ireland 2-1 in the T20I series in Ireland. IRELAND
• Beat Ireland in the final of the 2018 ICC Women’s T20 • Lost to New Zealand 3-0 in the ODI series and also
World Cup Qualifier in Netherlands. in the one-off T20I match at home.
• Lost to Pakistan 3-0 in the T20I series and won • Lost to Bangladesh 2-1 in the T20I series at home.
the one-off ODI in Bangladesh. • Lost to Bangladesh in the final of the 2018 ICC
• Knocked out in the league stage of the ICC World Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier in Netherlands.
T20 World Cup in the Caribbean. • Knocked out in the league stage of the 2018 ICC Women’s
OVER ALL RECORD T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.

FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN % OVER ALL RECORD

ODI 6 1 5 0 0 20 FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %

T20I 24 12 12 0 0 50 ODI 3 0 3 0 0 0

T20I 13 5 8 0 0 38.56

ENGLAND
• Lost to Australia in the final of the T20I tri-series also
involving India in India.
• Lost to India 2-1 in the ODI series in India.
• Beat South Africa 2-1 in the ODI series at home.
• Beat New Zealand in the final of the T20I
tri-series also involving South Africa at home.
• Beat New Zealand 2-1 in the ODI series at home.
• Lost to Australia in the final of the
2018 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.
• Lost to India 2-1 in the ODI series and won 3-0 in the T20I series in India.
• Beat Sri Lanka 3-0 in the ODI series and 3-0 in the T20I series in Sri Lanka.
OVER ALL RECORD
NEW ZEALAND
• Beat West Indies 3-0 in the ODI series and 4-0 in the T20I series at home.
• Beat Ireland 3-0 in the ODI series and also in the one-off T20I in Ireland.
• Lost to England in the final of the T20I tri-series,
also involving South Africa, in England.
• Lost to England 2-1 in the ODI series in England.
• Lost to Australia 3-0 in the T20I series in Australia.
• Knocked out in the group stage of the 2018 ICC Women’s
T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.
• Lost to India 2-1 in the ODI and beat them 3-0 in the T20I series at home.
• Lost to Australia 3-0 in the ODI series in Australia.
OVER ALL RECORD

FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN % FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %

ODI 15 9 6 0 0 60 ODI 15 8 7 0 0 53.33

T20I 21 15 6 0 0 71.43 T20I 20 12 8 0 0 60

74 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
PA K I S TA N WEST INDIES
• Beat Sri Lanka 3-0 in the ODI series and 2-1 in the T20I series in Sri Lanka. • Lost to New Zealand 3-0 in the ODI series and 4-0 in
• Knocked out in the league stage of the Asia Cup in Malaysia. the T20I series in New Zealand.
• Beat Bangladesh 3-0 in the T20I series and • Drew with South Africa 1-1 in the ODI series and 2-2 in the T20I series at home.
lost the one-off ODI in Bangladesh. • Lost to Australia in the semi-final of the 2018 ICC
• Lost to Australia 3-0 in the ODI series and Women’s T20 World Cup at home.
3-0 in the T20I series in Malaysia. • Beat Pakistan 2-1 in the T20I series in Pakistan and
• Knocked out in the group stage of the 2018 ICC lost 2-1 in the ODI series in the UAE.
Women’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean. OVER ALL RECORD
• Lost to West Indies 2-1 in the T20I series in Pakistan and
FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %
won the ODI series 2-1 in UAE.
ODI 9 2 6 0 1 22.22
OVER ALL RECORD
T20I 16 8 8 0 0 50
FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %

ODI 10 5 5 0 0 50

T20I 21 10 11 0 0 47.62 OTHER T20I SERIES:

SOUTH AFRICA
• Lost to India 2-1 in the ODI series and 3-1 in the T20I series at home.
• Beat Bangladesh 5-0 in the ODI series and 3-0 in the T20I series at home.
• Lost to England 2-1 in the ODI series in England.
• Knocked out in the league stage of the T20I tri-series involving
England and New Zealand in England.
• Drew with West Indies 1-1 in the ODI series and 2-2 in the
T20I series in the Caribbean.
• Knocked out in the league stage of the 2018 ICC Women’s
T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.
• Beat Sri Lanka 3-0 in the ODI series and 3-0 in the T20I series at home.
OVER ALL RECORD
• Malaysia beat Singapore 4-2 in the Saudari Cup in Malaysia.
• Namibia beat Sierra Leone in the final of the Botswana
Cricket Association Women’s Championship in Botswana.
• Brazil beat Chile in the final of the 2018
South American Women’s Championship in Colombia.
• China beat South Korea 2-1 in South Korea.
• Zimbabwe beat Namibia 5-0 in Namibia.
• Thailand beat Nepal in the final of the Thailand Women’s T20 smash at home.
• Nigeria beat Rwanda 3-2 at home.
• Thailand topped the table in the 2018
ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Asia Region Qualifier at home.

FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %

ODI 17 11 5 0 1 64.7

T20I 23 12 10 0 1 52.17

SRI LANKA
• Lost to Pakistan 3-0 in the ODI series and 2-1 in the T20I series at home.
• Knocked out in the league stage of the Asia Cup in Malaysia.
• Lost to India 2-1 in the ODI series and 4-0 in the T20I series at home.
• Knocked out in group stage of the
2018 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean.
• Lost to South Africa 3-0 in the ODI series and
3-0 in the T20I series in South Africa.
• Lost to England 3-0 in the ODI series ad 3-0 in the T20I series at home.
OVER ALL RECORD

FORMAT M W L T N/R WIN %

ODI 12 1 11 0 0 8.33

T20I 22 4 17 0 1 18.18

www.womenscriczone.com 75
 LOOKING AHEAD
2020 T20 WORLD CUP:
AUSTRALIA READIES ITSELF
The event in the West Indies may have been a huge success, but with a rapidly
growing fan base for women’s sport in Australia, the 2020 T20 World Cup looks
set to be bigger and better— probably the most open competition yet.
W
• LISA STHALEK AR orld Cups are
the pinnacle in
the landscape of
cricket. All your
hard work and preparation is
measured against the best in the
world in the same conditions.
No excuses can be thrown
around; there is nowhere to
hide. This is where the talented
and gutsy players stand up to be
counted— searching for glory,
searching for the moment to
prove they are the best.
The great thing about the
International Cricket Council
76 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
(ICC) Women’s Twenty20
World Cups, is that you never
have to wait too long for one to
come around as they are played
every two years.
During the previous
edition, which took place
in the Caribbean in 2018,
Australia were victors for an
unprecedented fourth time. It
was a significant tournament
in many ways, a standalone
Women’s T20 World Cup, the
first of its kind. Not sharing
the limelight, or the nets, the
hotel or the pool for recovery,
and certainly not sharing the
pitch by playing before the
men’s matches, it was the
women’s chance to shine on
the world stage, to play at
prime-time slots and see if fans
wanted to watch them— not
the men after, but them.
The tournament was a
huge success, the atmosphere
in the West Indies was electric.
With the final being played in
Antigua, 10% of the island’s
population, which equated to
9000 people, packed into the
Sir Vivian Richards stadium to
 see the old foes, England and
Australia, face off.
After the success of that
event and the 2017 Women’s
World Cup before it, what can
we expect in 2020 in Australia?
For starters, it will certainly be
a bigger tournament on a much
grander scale.
The 2020 T20 World Cup
was supposed to see the men
and women play alongside each
other once again. However,
Cricket Australia (CA) along
with the Local Organising
Committee requested the ICC
to split the events— enabling
Left: Defending the women to have their own
champions Australia will
be aiming for their fifth
spotlight and build on the
success of 2018.
WT20 title. (PC: ICC)
Given the growth of the
game since the 2017 World Cup
Bottom: The success and the fact that in Australia
of players like Georgia the Women’s Big Bash League
Wareham and Sophie (WBBL) is gaining popularity,
Molineux (not in a separate event makes perfect
picture) show the sense. After all the increased
depth in Australian broadcast coverage, media
cricket — coming into
attention and involvement
a big tournament with
minimal experience and of fans, in addition to the
making an immediate explosion of all women’s sport
impact. (PC: ICC) in Australia, means the country
is ready to embrace such an
event. CA and the ICC have
even gone as far as to state that
they would like to break the
world record for the biggest
attendance of a women’s
sporting event, with grand
plans for 90,000 spectators
to flock in for the final at the
Melbourne Cricket Ground on
International Women’s Day,
March 8.
In Australia, there is a
renaissance in regards to
women’s sport. With the
majority of the domestic sporting
competitions being broadcast,
the increase of professionalism
(meaning, the athletes are finally
getting paid for their work),
athleticism and level of skills
the women are displaying,
one would be mad to not be
supporting or attending women’s
sporting events.
Recently the Australian
Football League (AFL) launched
their own women’s league
and in the third edition of the
tournament, where the final was
played at the Adelaide Oval,
over 53,000 spectators came in
to see the Adelaide Crows win
their second title.
With the majority
of the domestic
sporting
competitions
being broadcast,
the increase of
professionalism,
athleticism, and
level of skills
the women are
displaying, one
would be mad to
not be supporting
or attending
women’s sporting
events.
A FIRST FOR AUSTRALIA
Australia will host the T20
World Cup for the first time.
The women’s matches are set to
take place in New South Wales
(Spotless Stadium and Sydney
Cricket Ground), Western
Australia (WACA), Australian
Capital Territory (Manuka Oval)
and Victoria (Junction Oval and
MCG).
Australian cricket pitches
generally provide a lot more
pace and bounce for bowlers,
which allows free flowing
cricket, with batters being able
to easily hit through the line
of the ball— this should mean
some entertaining cricket for
the fans and frustration for the
bowlers. The batters though,
will most likely heave a huge
sigh of relief since, apart from
the inaugural event in England,
the rest of the T20 World Cups
have been played on slow, low
pitches.
The 2020 T20 World Cup
www.womenscriczone.com 77
 LOOKING AHEAD
will be the seventh edition of
Above: The crowds
the tournament, with a number
for the 2018 Women’s of players set to appear in their
T20 World Cup in fifth or sixth tournament.
the West Indies were With the advent of the
loud and enthusiastic, WBBL, Women’s Cricket Super
creating an electric League (England domestic
atmosphere at every T20 competition) and the IPL
game. (PC: ICC)
Women’s exhibition matches,
all the top players now have the
Right: Although
they have some of opportunity to play more and
the best players in the more T20 cricket. Add to this
world, New Zealand the fact that a majority of the
have often struggled main cricketing bodies are now
to pull out their best contracting their top players
performances in ICC yearly, allows for a full calendar
tournaments. (PC: ICC) of matches, camps and tours.
All this equates to better, more
confident cricketers who know
how to play an attractive brand
of cricket.
THE CONTENDERS
Eight countries have already
qualified for the tournament
based on rankings from the
last event. Australia, England,
78 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
India, West Indies, South Africa,
New Zealand, Pakistan, and
Sri Lanka with two qualifiers to
make their way through to the
competition.
You can’t look too far past
the Australian team, who
have lifted the trophy on
four occasions. Out of all the
participating countries, they
obviously know the conditions
best and will have roughly the
same squad that played in the
West Indies last time.
There will be a lot of focus
on their captain Meg Lanning,
who still hasn’t quite dominated
an ICC event, but you get a
sense that in front of her family
and friends she might put
up her best performance yet.
Alyssa Healy, the Player of the
Tournament in 2018, will be
expected to shine again both at
the top of the order and behind
the stumps. Unstoppable at the
moment, fans will hope that she
will be able to replicate her form
over the will be able to replicate
her form over the last 18 months
in another major tournament.
Ashleigh Gardner, the
Player of the Final, who bowls
handy off-spin and is one of the
cleanest strikers of the ball will
enjoy the pacy conditions in
Australia. Still relatively young
at only 22 years of age, another
12 months at the international
level will see a more mature
cricketer front up in 2020.
The great thing about this
Australian side and their set
up is that there may be a few
players that we haven’t seen
before who pop up and make a
huge impact in this tournament.
Take for instance Georgia
Wareham, the leg-spinner, who
travelled to the West Indies with
only a handful of games under
her belt. In her very first ICC
event, the 19-year-old turned
the final Australia’s way when
she was able to affect a run out
and then pick up two wickets in
one over.
As for England, they have
stars in the game who have
travelled around the world to
ply their trade. The big question
everyone will be asking is
whether Katherine Brunt and
Sarah Taylor be available for
the tournament. Brunt has been
struck down again with back
issues, whilst Taylor manages
her anxiety. If both are available
and in form, England will be
the most feared side in the
competition.
Add to the mix the likes
of Nat Sciver, England’s
allrounder who has been
flourishing over the last 12
months, Tammy Beaumont and
Danielle Wyatt, their dynamic
openers who have played in the
WBBL, and Sophie Ecclestone,
the left-arm spin sensation, they
are certainly a dangerous side.
Heather Knight, their
captain, is also extremely handy
with both bat and ball, though
her real asset is the ability
to stay calm under pressure
and bring out the best in her
teammates— exactly what you
want in a leader.
India has been a side that
threatened in the last edition
by beating Australia in the
league stage. However, they
weren’t able to muster the
same performance against
England in the semi final. Their
strength revolves around their
batting— Harmanpreet Kaur,
Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah
Rodrigues, will all need to take
calculated risks for their team’s
benefit and allow the rest to bat
around them.
When India last toured
Australia in early 2016 they were
able to win their first T20 series
against Lanning’s side. This
bit of history should give them
plenty of confidence— after all,
they have tasted success against
one of the strongest teams in
their own conditions.
You can expect India’s
spinners, Poonam Yadav, Anuja
Patil and the others to play a
role on Australian surfaces even
The 2020 T20 though they may not find as
World Cup much turn as they are used to.
I expect that some young gun
will likely be is waiting in the wings to burst
the most open onto the scene and steal the
show on the world stage— such
competition is the talent that sits in India.
that has ever However all eyes will be
glued to the squad when it
taken place. is announced to see if Indian
No longer is it stalwart, Mithali Raj is within
about three top the ranks, given the issues that
faced team management when
teams fighting she wasn’t selected in the semi
to make the final.
T20 cricket is a format that
final. Now, up to is best suited to the West Indies
six teams have side, and that is why they are
the only nation apart from
a great chance England and Australia to have
to make it to won the trophy in 2016. Their
that special day extra power in terms of batting
and their pace bowlers, at times,
still surprises the opposition.
Although their three stars,
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 LOOKING AHEAD
Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin
and Hayley Matthews have all
played in the WBBL and will
be comfortable in Australian
conditions, their success will be
measured on how quickly the
rest of the squad can adapt and
make an impact.
The experienced pacer
Shakera Selman, and the guile
of Anisa Mohammad will add
to their star power, but it is
consistency that has troubled
this exciting team. Can they turn
it around in a short amount of
time? Regardless of form going
into the tournament, all teams
will be very wary of the West
Indies when they come against
them.
The team with the biggest
improvement over the last few
80 w w w.wo m e ns c r ic zo n e.co m
ICC events has been South
Africa. With the emergence
of quality players who have
had the chance to play around
the world in the T20 domestic
leagues they have grown
tremendously as a team. The
experienced heads have passed
on their knowledge to the rest of
the squad, and they are slowly
beginning to show their true
potential with more consistent
results of late.
Dane van Niekerk, the
leg spinning all rounder, has
proved to be a wonderful leader
for South Africa. She is a fiery
character who plays with her
heart on her sleeve and has
the ability to get the best out
of her teammates. Her job,
however, is made easier thanks
to two of the most skilled fast
bowlers on the women’s circuit.
Above: West Indies
Marizanne Kapp, one of the are most suited to the
most economical bowlers in the shortest format, and
world, and Shabnim Ismail, the that’s why they are
quickest bowler clocked on the the only team other
world stage, form a threatening than England and
new ball pair. If that weren’t Australia to have won
enough, opposition also have to a T20 World Cup.
(PC: ICC)
deal with the power of Lizelle
Lee at the top of South Africa’s
batting order.
The final heavyweight of the
women’s game, New Zealand,
is a side that has been unable
to convert their performances
in bilateral series into an ICC
event. There have been times in
both the T20 and 50-over World
Cups that New Zealand were
genuine contenders, however
when they were close to that

winning moment in finals or
semi-finals they faltered at the
last hurdle.
You sense that this may
be the last T20 World Cup
for players such as Suzie
Bates, Sophie Devine, Amy
Satterthwaite and Lea Tahuhu,
who have played in all editions
of the WBBL in Australia. Apart
from the psychological block
when it comes to ICC events,
there are concerns that the
talent isn’t bursting through
the pathway system in New
Zealand to challenge the current
members. Complacency might
be a real issue for this group—
they are doing enough to make
the side but not enough to push
each other to be good enough to
win those key moments at the
international level.
Hopefully I am wrong in my
assessment, for they do posses
one of the most dynamic all-
rounders in Devine, one of the
fastest bowlers in Tahuhu and
one of the all time greats Bates in
their ranks.
The final two sides, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka are teams that
continue to improve and are
producing more and more
cricketers who are competing
and showing real skill on
the biggest stage. My only
concern with both these
sides is the fact that they are
extremely competitive when
the conditions suit them— low,
slow tuners as their bowlers
and batters are accustomed
to that. However in Australia
they are going to be faced
with the complete opposite.
For Pakistan their coaching
staff includes Mark Coles from
New Zealand, but the question
remains as to whether he has
enough time to get the players
used to Australian conditions?
Pakistan will heavily rely on
Javeria Khan who was named
in the Team of the Tournament
in 2018, Bismah Maroof, their
highest run-getter in T20Is
and Sana Mir, who is the first
Pakistan cricketer to be ranked
number one bowler in ODIs.
Sri Lanka will have similar
concerns, even though a
number of their players have
been traveling out to Sydney to
play in the grade competition—
something very similar to
English players back in 2007/08
prior to the World Cup in 2009
in Australia where England
won. Sripali Weerakkody
and Nipuni Hansika are two
cricketers that have played for
the Sydney Cricket Club, while
Chamari Athapaththu has
played in both the WBBL and
KSL. She will be under a lot of
pressure— both from herself
and others— to put in special
performances. So hopefully her
experience in Australia will help
Sri Lanka cause a few upsets
along the way.
Whilst a lot of attention
and focus will be on the batters
within each side, as they say
“batters will get you a sponsor,
but the bowlers will win you
tournaments.” I believe, the
bowlers who are smart enough
to use subtle changes of pace,
and those who can nail their
yorkers at the death are likely to
have the most success.
Also, in my mind, the
best fielding always has a big
advantage. Skill in the field
means teams convert any half-
chances that come their way,
and are also able to stem the
flow of runs by diving around
and covering ground quickly.
Whilst a lot of
attention and
focus will be
on the batters
within each
side, as they say
“batters will get
you a sponsor,
but the bowlers
will win you
tournaments.”
I believe, the
bowlers who are
smart enough
to use subtle
changes of pace.
The 2020 T20 World Cup
will likely be the most open
competition that has ever taken
place. No longer is it about the
top three teams fighting to make
the final. Now, up to six teams
have a great chance to make it to
that special day.
As these teams fight it out
at the top level, we, as fans,
have the best seats in the house
to watch things unfold. One
senses that March 8, 2020, is
going to be a special day in the
history of women’s cricket—
a type of moment where, in
decades to come people ask,
“Where were you?”
You don’t want to miss out!
Lisa Sthalekar is a former
Australian allrounder now turned
cricket commentator. She tweets
@sthalekar93.
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