How women's cricket has developed in India

BBC News

3 days ago

India's women have just won a T20 series on English soil for the first time. A 50-over World Cup on their home turf is imminent, which could take the sport to fever pitch in a country that already boasts the lucrative Women's Premier League, the second most valuable women's sports league in the world.For former captain Mithali Raj, the opportunities and financial rewards available to the country's top female cricketers in 2025 are a world away from when she broke into the India team in 1999, aged 16."I was pretty much emptying my dad's pocket to play for India," she explains during a trip to England that saw her honoured by ringing the five-minute bell at Lord's during the third men's Test."There was absolutely no payment. We had to buy our own equipment and try to organise our own training sessions. There were times when we'd train on matting wickets, and then we'd get a week to practice on the turf [before a match]."Cultural and socio-economic challenges were also prevalent among many families, who did not want their daughters playing cricket, either because it was deemed a men's game or they needed their daughter to be working and earning money.Raj debuted for India seven years before the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) took over the administration, following a merger with the Women's Cricket Association of India.She witnessed the start of a slow transformation, as the women's game began to be better resourced with match fees introduced and access to top facilities."I got injured in 2005 just before the World Cup," she says. "It took me years to get through it. When we came under the BCCI, we had access to the National Cricket Academy, which had the best physios and trainers. You stayed there, it was residential and you got through your rehab. We were educated in what to do pre-season, how to do rehab, how to do strength work. So we got better."In order to earn a living, India's national players had to have jobs, most with Indian Railways, as they were "the only institution that gave jobs to women cricketers in India". The next game-changing moment for Raj and her compatriots was the announcement of BCCI retainer contracts for the top 11 players in 2015. Raj was nearly 33."If you are from an affluent family, you can manage to play for however long, because you do not really have to think about how you are going to run your house," she says. "But if you are not, you would think, what next? Where am I going to earn money?"Contracts gave that safety for the national players. They know, 'OK, I can play and I can earn'. That was huge for us."
The impact of the 2017 World Cup final
Raj identifies India's participation in the 2017 World Cup final against England at Lord's as a seminal moment.It was only the third World Cup staged under the auspices of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and the first time every match of a Women's World Cup was visible either via live streaming or on TV.The ICC's digital and social media channels received a record 100 million video views."Until then, we really did not have that sort of coverage," says Raj. "Digital media was relatively new in 2017. It really doubled up the sort of coverage that women's cricket needed."India lost to the hosts but it was a ground-breaking match. It was sold out, and according to India's Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) the final generated 19.53 million impressions in India, making it the most watched female sports event in the country, beating the badminton final at the Rio Olympics between PV Sindhu and Carolina Marin.After that final, the pay for contracted top-tier international players rose from a reported 15 lakh to 50 lakh.By 2020, Star Sports were broadcasting India's matches at the Women's T20 World Cup in five different languages. India's defeat by Australia in the final was watched in India by a record live average audience of 9.02 million according to the ICC.After reaching, and losing, another final, this time in front of a record crowd of 86,174 at the MCG, the BCCI raised women's international match fees to be equal with men's in 2022.
Advent of the Women's Premier League
The women's cricket world had long been waiting for the women's version of the Indian Premier League (IPL). When it finally arrived in 2023 it exploded onto the scene with five teams bought for £465m and Viacom buying the media rights for £96m over five years.Smriti Mandhana was the most expensive player, bought for a jaw-dropping £340,000 by Royal Challengers Bengaluru.The competition turned a profit and contributed around 3.9%, external of the BCCI's revenue in the 2023-24 financial year. That is over-shadowed by the IPL's contribution of 59.10%, but it is vindication of the BCCI waiting until the market was right.The WPL offers potentially life-changing sums for up to 90 players (up to 30 of which could be overseas). Outside of the WPL however, there are no contracts for domestic cricketers in India, only match fees.One BCCI official has said players who don't have a WPL deal "fend for themselves". If they are lucky, they may have a personal sponsor, mentor or advocate who supports them financially. Some players may have jobs in the same way that Raj was employed by Railways.This is the same structure that exists in the men's domestic game across India, with no contracts at state level.The number of women's retainers has increased marginally, with 16 women awarded in 2024-25. These contracts require annual renewal, and don't offer maternity clauses. There are 34 BCCI retainers available to men.In a country of 1.4 billion, where the BCCI's Under-15s girls' competition alone sees 36 teams and potentially 540 players competing (numbers replicated at U19 and U23 level), WPL pay packets reach the few rather than the many. But the money to be chased has changed attitudes around girls' cricket."Now it is not looked down upon," says a smiling Raj. "Cricket is a profession, it's a sport, and everybody is keen to get their girls to play cricket. That's a huge, huge shift."The crowds and media attention on the WPL has helped to accustom domestic players to big-stage cricket before they play for the national side.The tournament also helps enormously with talent scouting."India is a very big country, so the selectors cannot go to every state and identify players," says Raj. "The franchises have scouts they send to every part of the country. They pick players who are raw, who have been not seen before, and they get an opportunity."
What of the future?
A clear pathway exists to the women's national team, through club, district, state, zone, India A then India. However, barriers still remain."There is a lot of raw talent in the districts and in the villages," says Raj. "It's just that they don't have the facilities if a young girl in the interiors wants to start playing cricket."The society in the villages - it still needs to progress. And the financial barrier is huge. I'm associated with Andhra Cricket Association and I went into these districts and there were a few girls who did not have money for three meals in a day. The associations have to make an effort to get into these places and give them basic facilities."But otherwise, to play cricket in India now, it's far more open and easier than before.She concludes: "The next step is to add a couple more teams to WPL, because there are many good players who get left out with just five teams."And of course winning the World Cup."However, as Raj sees it, the prize that would propel the Indian game forward exponentially would be Olympic gold, with cricket in LA 2028."It's a chance to get a medal for the country. I know we have the World Cups, but the medal in the Olympics is a huge thing back at home."The Olympics is the ultimate."