By the time you are 6 years old, every Indian kid no matter the gender, has held a cricket bat more times than in any other country. So why is it that by the time the same kids become adults, the men are treated like demigods and the women have to do something extraordinary to come even close to being in the spotlight?
Smriti Mandhana recently scored back-to-back centuries against SA in the ongoing bilateral series. Yet there is more talk about Virat Kohli’s ongoing slump in T20is than about the one-of-a-kind achievement of his woman counterpart. Many wouldn’t even know about the Bilateral series taking place in India. Women’s sports all around the world have always walked in the shadow of Men’s sports. And this disparity is starkly visible even in a cricket-crazy country like India.
The problems are deep-rooted. Gender bias, prejudiced gender roles, less coverage, even lesser funding, fewer role models, even fewer opportunities, and a huge disparity in pay. The list goes on and on. Many will be surprised by the fact that the first recorded women’s cricket match dates way back to 1745! So it’s not as if the Men’s and Women’s had a long gap between their inceptions.
But the fact is that they cannot be considered to be on an equal footing as of now. And bridging the gap between the two will be a long journey.
Bridging the gap in cricket
Believe it or not, that journey has already started! The inception of the widely successful WPL was one major step towards bringing the game to new viewers and increasing engagement within the country. With 2 seasons done and dusted, the franchise league will only continue to grow and reach new heights.
The diminishing of prejudiced gender roles all around the world, especially in a cricket-crazy country like India, is a sign. That women can also be as successful as men. Media plays a huge part in this, and films like “Shabaash Mithu” which portrays the life of Mithali Raj inspire thousands of girls to pick up their bats. Anushka Sharma starring, “Chakda Xpress”, revolving around the life of Jhulan Goswami, will soon be released as well.
Moreover, players like Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Harmanpreet Kaur, continue to impress the Indian youth; proving to be role models for girls who take up the sport.
But we as fans have an important role to play as well. To increase viewership which in turn increases funding and then decreases the pay gap. For the sport to evolve, fans should support the women who represent India as much as they support the Men. Because, what matters is the jersey, not the one wears it.
Smriti Mandhana keeps impressing as she clinches yet another record
It’s something about that number ’18’ and the knack for breaking records. Smriti Mandhana notched up a magnificent century. After starting her innings steadily at first she made 19 runs in the first 40 balls of her innings. She then started freeing her arms in the 18th over after smashing Nonkululeko Mlaba for consecutive boundaries. After that, it was a whirlwind as by the end of the innings her scorecard read, 136 off 120 balls, an innings which included 18 fours and 2 maximums.
This was her second century in the series after she made a match-winning 117 off 127 deliveries in the first match of the bilateral series. Her 136-run-innings made her the first Indian woman to score back-to-back centuries for India. The 27-year-old is also tied at 7 with Mithali Raj for the most centuries scored by a women cricketer for India.
The Indian skipper, Harmanpreet Kaur was Smriti’s partner in crime as she managed to get her century just in time. With Kaur stranded on 88, and 4 balls to go, she scored 4,6,4,1 to get to 103 in 87 deliveries. The huge total of 325/3 proved to be enough to get India the win.
India-W managed to win the bilateral series 2-0 with one game still to go. All eyes will now be on Smriti Mandhana in the third ODI, to see if she can go 3/3, a feat never done before.
