The lack of empathy shown by the BCCI in not giving out a condolence message in addition to lack of matches for one year shows the flaw in the system.
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The India women’s cricket team has made some gigantic strides in the last couple of years. The side made it to the final of the 2017 ICC World Cup in England as well as in the ICC World T20 in 2020. Having done well in England and Australia, it would have been safe to assume that the team would be under the spotlight and get constant attention. But, alas, in the last couple of days, the disparity in coverage when it comes to women’s cricket and their issues have proven that they are a long way behind men’s cricket.
For the men’s cricket team, there is constant monitoring and debate about their every move. When it comes to women’s cricket, there seems to be no interest whatsoever. The lack of interest is befuddling. When India reached the final in Melbourne against Australia in 2020, 86,000 people saw it on the ground. The viewership was high. But, alas, the coronavirus pandemic and the lack of interest shown by the BCCI in following up that success hit them hard.
For close to a year, India did not play a single match. Their tour to England was cancelled. When teams like Australia, New Zealand, West Indies and England played in bio-bubbles, the Indian women’s cricket team stayed at home and did nothing. When the time came to play, the women’s cricket team played a solitary four matches. In that too, the lack of interest was masked as a giant step.
Consider the backdrop. Four matches were played in the interim when the men’s IPL had a break. The men’s IPL had 60 matches. The women’s challenge had just four. After finally one year, South Africa came to tour India for an ODI and T20I series. But, South Africa had some practice at home when Pakistan visited them. India just came for the match without practice. The result was evident. India lost the ODIs and Twenty20 Internationals 1-4 and 1-2 respectively.
Recently, Veda Krishnamurthy penned an emotional statement on the deaths of her mother and elder sister due to the coronavirus pandemic. The most disappointing thing in the whole situation is that there was not even a word of concern expressed publicly by the BCCI. But, to compound her matters further, Veda was not even picked for the England tour.
Perhaps, there might have been a way to handle the situation better amidst the pandemic. Lisa Sthalekar, the former Australia women’s cricket team member, was angered by the fact that since there is no player association in India, the effort by the BCCI was truly disappointing. The lack of reaching out and offering support at a tough time like this does not put the BCCI in a good light.
Plus, the musical chairs on the coaches are truly perplexing. Ramesh Powar did not get an extension in his tenure due to his fall-out with Mithali Raj after the end of the ICC Women’s World Cup in 2018. Now, he is back as coach. Mithali is the captain of the Test and ODI team. Many people are painting it in a way that these two are ‘professionals’ and will handle the job well. But, what harm did WV Raman do? India did very well in the two years that he was in charge. India won five consecutive ODI series which included big wins in New Zealand and also against England at home.
There was good T20I success as well. So, what did Raman do wrong? The latest letter by Raman talks about a ‘smear campaign’ and ‘Prima Dona culture’, highlighting that the team atmosphere is on dodgy ground. But, where is the outrage? There is only silence. The India women’s cricket team has suffered in silence for the past one year. Coronavirus and lack of understanding have only made their plight worse. How long will the damage last?
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