The spread of women’s cricket has become a symbol of gender equality. Its success proves that sporting excellence is defined by spirit and dedication, not by gender.
Women ICC tournaments like the 50-over format and T20 World Cups are breaking TV viewing records. Young girls are now seeing the sport as a good career choice.
The game had percolated down to the grassroots level. In Punjab, girls are taking up the game in a big way and are inspiring others to follow in their footsteps.
This week, Gurdaspur is playing host to the Punjab Senior Inter-District Women’s Tournament. It is being played on the government college grounds under the supervision of coach Rakesh Marshal. His wife, Priya Marshal, is the coach of the Gurdaspur team.
The tournament, which attracted 18 teams, is so popular that youngsters, both boys and girls, are coming from far-flung areas to witness the cricketers in action.
Priya Marshal said, “Women’s cricket has grown from a little-known hobby into a professional sport. The shift proves that it is no longer a side event but is a big-time sport with massive popularity. The introduction of the fast-paced T20 format has changed everything. Parents travel from faraway places to watch their girls compete. The enthusiasm with which players hailing from districts like Patiala, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Mohali and Bathinda are playing cricket amazes me.”
With the moolah flowing freely, the players are lodged in decent hotels and will get good pay cheques.
The tournament, which commenced on June 7 and will go on till June 21, is being played in a league format. The teams have been divided into four groups.
For decades, women’s cricket struggled with inadequate infrastructure, low media coverage and societal bias that viewed cricket as an exclusively “male” sport. Today, these boundaries have been shattered.
These women are now empowering girls across India to dream big and break the cycle of traditional gender expectation. Coaches opine that Punjab is a fertile ground for producing top-notch women cricketers.
Canada cricket captain Dilpreet Singh Ponty Bajwa, who was born and brought up in Gurdaspur, makes it a point to coach these women cricketers whenever he visits the city of his birth. These women highly value his tips and lessons on tactics and techniques.
Indian cricket captain Harpreet Kaur, a player making it big despite coming from a small town, Taniya Bhatia, Amanjot Kaur, Mannat Kashyap and Kanika Ahuja have become big names in the world of Indian cricket.
Priya Marshal said that TV telecasts have transformed women’s cricket by making the sport more and more visible and subsequently turning young women into global celebrities.
