Women’s Cricket on the cusp of a historic moment in India

It has been a long and arduous journey for women’s cricket in India. Around 25 years ago, when the women’s cricket team was still in its infancy and players were put up in cheap hotels even during a World Cup, the levels of attention it draws these days would have been unthinkable.

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When India defeated Australia in the 2nd T20I of their 5-match series earlier this month, treating the crowd of 45000 people at the DY Patil Stadium to a thrilling Super Over win, the match broke the record for the highest viewership for a women’s game this year, peaking at 1.1M concurrent views on Hotstar.

It was a significant moment as it was a 16 match T20I winning-streak by world champions Australia that India broke. It was also a significant moment because it offered a peek into the future - where the women’s game will have an exponential level of attention.

Veteran Indian batter Smriti Mandhana was quick to acknowledge the bigger picture when she said after that match, “When people see these kinds of matches with that sort of crowd, it is definitely going to be amazing for women’s cricket.”

The first home series for India in 21 months, the anticipation surrounding the matches were unprecedented for women’s cricket. BCCI also tested the waters before the Women’s IPL by arranging good publicity around the series, offering free tickets. Hoardings of the series were put up at most major intersections across Mumbai, another detail that did not escape the players themselves.

(Smriti Mandhana or somebody had posted an IG story of these posters, if can find, embed here.)

Not surprisingly, crowds turned up in huge numbers even as India failed to follow up on the heroics of that match, eventually losing the series 1-4.

Unprecedented attention, new possibilities

Following years of demands for a women’s cricket equivalent of the IPL, the year 2023 is set to see this dream being realised. The inaugural season of the Women’s IPL will start in the first week of March, soon after the 2023 Women’s T20 WC.

The media rights tender for the first five seasons of the WIPL - television and digital - is expected to attract bids worth Rs 220-250 crore per year. Women’s cricket has never been as marketed in India.

The beginning of the IPL in 2008 was a seminal moment in the history of men’s cricket, such that India became the centre of the cricketing world over the next few years. Can the women’s IPL begin such a process?

Even though the teams and the calendar are yet to be finalised, the current proposal states that the league would be contested by five franchise teams playing a total of 22 matches. A squad could have a maximum of 18 players, with a maximum of five overseas players in their starting eleven. Assembling of squads would be done via an auction or a player draft.  

In another significant step in India’s attempt to increase its profile in women’s cricket, Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh were picked in India’s Under-19 T20 World Cup 2023 squad. Contrasting in its stand with the perspective instilled in men’s cricket with regards to the U19 T20 WC where the campaign is seen to be more for the holistic development of the youth system instead of picking established cricketers who can help win the trophy, this could help the Indian women’s cricket team cross an important hurdle.

In recent years, the women’s team have managed to come close to some famous wins but have for inexplicable reasons, lack the confidence to win the big matches. The likes of Shafali and Richa have helped the team break out of their defensive mould, but their biggest achievement yet could be to help India finally win a world trophy. If Shafali’s team do manage the win the U19 World Cup, two young players might indeed miss out on the chance to play for their country but a short-term result like this would have a big bearing on the long-term picture.

The coming year looks packed with possibilities for Indian women’s cricket. The beginning of the women’s IPL, a crop of aggressive young players leading India to a new era - with the possibility of an U19 World Cup - the moment is right for the women’s version of India’s favourite sport to rise.

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