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What ails women's cricket
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Why are there few takers for women's cricket in the State? Lack of sponsorship, parents' unwillingness...
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IT IS not about how well they play or how much they have achieved, but how they have managed to keep the enthusiasm and interest going. Three international players in 30 years don't paint a rosy picture. Nevertheless, the Tamil Nadu Women's Cricket Association can pride itself on its resilience in overcoming stiff challenges, mainly lack of sponsorship.
Looking back, Shilu Ranganathan, a Charter Member, said, "When we started it, we thought the game would become a way of life for girls. Sadly, it hasn't caught on. We haven't really been able to convince schools that they should allow girls to play cricket." Several girls' colleges in the city have cricket teams, the top sides being Ethiraj, Stella and Lady Vaishnav, while a few of the coaching academies like Dharma's, CCF, Prahlad and Kedar's, to name a few, are open to girl students too. The lone exclusive cricket coaching for girls takes place at the Karnataka Sanga facility.
Aarti Sankaran, who led the State team to the South Zone inter-State title this year, said the game hasn't caught on with girls because they don't realise the benefits the sport offers. "Comparisons are inevitable with the men's game. I agree there is not much to look forward to for girls in terms of job (at present, the Railways is the only recruiting body in the State), career or money. This is probably why most parents don't voluntarily send their daughters. Moreover, playing in the sun leaves you dark and weary, which is the last thing parents would want their daughters to be. But then, do these only matter in life? I mean, the game is so much fun and there is so much that one learns," said Aarti, 23, who is doing her post graduation at Ethiraj.
The city — five districts play the game too — has a pool of about 70 cricketers, though only about 15 or 20 of them practise everyday. The reason could be as there is no competitive cricket at the school level, the TNWCA finds it very difficult to spot sub-junior (under-16) cricketers.
University cricket is the saviour, so to say. The college cricketers get to participate in the inter-collegiate and inter-divisional tournaments apart from the Bhatt Memorial and the Buck Memorial events.
But then, what after college? Therein lies the problem. "We don't have club cricket. In those days, there were Sky Larks and Gandhinagar clubs and the competition between the two was keen," said Shilu, former TNWCA president and at present vice-president of the Women's Cricket Association of India. The TNWCA introduced an open tournament for colleges, academies and, of course, Southern Railway Sports Association, which is gaining popularity. "This provides the base to choose the city team," said Meena Dalal, president, TNWCA. Shilu felt that it would be a great help if the State Government assisted in the promotion of the game. "The Governments of Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal lend a helping hand to their State associations," the veteran administrator said.
On the global front, the men's and women's Boards are talking of merging by 2005. This has actually occurred in some countries. "It would open up innumerable avenues for the women's game in the country. I see it as a big step forward," concluded Shilu.
SANJAY RAJAN
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
Visakhapatnam
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