Published: Dec 29, 2016, 03:47 PM (IST)
Edited: Dec 29, 2016, 07:12 PM (IST)
There was no way Pakistan Women were going to chase down 25 from the last over, certainly not after scoring 20 from the previous 5 overs. Harmanpreet Kaur took the ball herself. There was no miracle: Sana Mir and Nida Dar, outstanding cricketers with wonderfully short names, managed a mere seven from the over in ones and twos. And the Asia Cup was won in front of about a hundred fans in Bangkok and about a few thousands back home. The victory sparked temporary excitement amidst Indian Twitterati, but the frenzy was less about the achievement and more about a victory over Pakistan in an era laden with patriotism.
It was also the last time India Women played an international match in 2016. Both Harmanpreet and Smriti Mandhana had grabbed WBBL contracts by then. Smriti would later become the only Indian to be named in ICC Women’s Team of the Year. In her second match in WBBL, Harmanpreet defeated Melbourne Stars almost single-handedly with 4 for 27 and an unbeaten 21-ball 30. Unfortunately, the performances of both were followed more in Australia than back home.
Earlier this year, Mithali Raj had told me in an interview: “Women’s international matches are typically played at smaller venues. They can always promote these matches in these cities beforehand… If bilateral series are promoted, women’s cricket is bound to get attention. It is also important that all international matches are telecast live.”
[read-also]461590,553613[/read-also]
Mithali had not asked for a lot, given the number of sports channels that run in India. Unfortunately, when World T20 champions West Indies toured India for 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is in November, all at Vijayawada, there was no live telecast. It need not have been a channel, either. YouTube or Facebook Live could have served the purpose.
Of course, BCCI has done its bit. BCCI’s contracts last year included, for the first time, four women: Mithali, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet, and Thirushkamini Shankar, along with seven others in Grade B. That was back in November 2015, which should ideally have made it beyond the scope of this piece, but it was a move so significant that it deserves a mention.
As a result, cricketers do not have to depend on their day jobs and dedicate themselves fully to cricket. As VR Vanitha mentioned, she can now pursue her education without stress; and she has not been the only one. While that is true, women’s cricket can certainly do with more coverage in India.
Women’s World T20, hosted earlier this year in India, was a perfect example. Men and women’s matches were generally telecast without discrimination, which had helped build awareness in the public in India. Unfortunately, that turned out to be the last live telecast of women’s cricket in India, barring the Asia Cup final.
India Women played 17 T20Is and 9 ODIs in 2016. None of the ODIs were telecast live. The T20Is had better coverage, other than the 4 World T20 matches (in addition to several contests not involving India) and the Asia Cup final, the 3 T20Is in Australia received live telecast — though it had more to do with the fact that their male counterparts played after them on the same grounds against the same opposition. It could not have been a coincidence, for the Women’s ODIs on the same tour did not get live coverage.
That makes it 8 matches out of 17 (19, if one includes the Asia Cup matches against Nepal Women and Thailand Women that did not get T20I status). If one includes ODIs, the count becomes 8 in 26, or less than a third. This meant that fans had to wait for the cricketers themselves to share their own videos.
Boom #asiacup2016#bleedblue#teamindia pic.twitter.com/B14pzjRsLm
— Veda Krishnamurthy (@vedakmurthy08) November 28, 2016
Had it not been for Australian cricket, fans back home would have missed the once-in-a-lifetime laughter of a shell-shocked Gemma Triscari (have you seen anything like this?) after that Harmanpreet six, too.
But we are digressing. Let us move on to performances.
India Women had an excellent start to their year, triumphing in the bilateral T20I series in Australia. There were some stellar performances, perhaps none better than Harmanpreet’s 31-ball 46 in the first match, but India’s outstanding cricketer of the series was Jhulan — still as fast and accurate as she has ever been, finishing with 12-1-58-4. More importantly, she struck with the third, third, and first balls in the three Australian innings, providing India with the initial breakthrough every time.
The ODIs were lost 1-2 (the win was a dead-rubber match, just like Australia’s in the T20I series), mostly due to Ellyse Perry’s all-round brilliance. India did well in bits: after being outplayed in the first match, Smriti (102 and 55), and Mithali (58 and 89) had excellent outings.
The series also witnessed the revival of Shikha Pandey, whose 8 wickets at 16.50 went hand-in-hand with three crucial cameos. Shikha had played a crucial role in India Women’s historic Test win at Wormsley in 2014; she conquered the ‘other’ frontier as well.
The first 2 ODIs in Australia were the only 2 ODIs India Women lost in 2016. Sri Lanka was brushed aside with ease. While there was nothing new about Mithali, Harmanpreet, and Smriti getting runs, India found a new star during the Sri Lanka series. Deepti Sharma, on the fringes for some time, had astonishing returns of 2 for 20, 4 for 23, and 6 for 20 in the series.
India won the T20Is 3-0 as well, thus making it 6 defeats in 6 for Sri Lanka Women on the tour. The Sri Lankans were strangulated by a trio that offered variety and excellence at the same time: the off-spin of Anuja Patil, leg-breaks of Poonam Yadav, and left-arm spin of Ekta Bisht seemed to be the perfect combination for India to go with Jhulan’s pace. Of course, there was that triumvirate that seldom fails with bat…
India’s World T20 campaign had seemed to be on track. They had a potent bowling attack for home conditions. Their batting relied heavily on three women, but the others could play cameos. It was 20-overs cricket anyway.
The build-up was substantial, with the women featuring alongside MS Dhoni’s brigade for the pre-tournament promos. India even had an impressive start, completely dishing out a 72-run thrashing to Bangladesh.
Then came a hat-trick of heartbreaks. Chasing 107, Pakistan Women were 74 for 4 after 15 overs before Sushma Verma pulled off two run outs in two balls. The score read 77 for 6 after 16 when the drizzle began; it never stopped. Pakistan’s par score was 76.
Chasing 91, England were reduced to 79 for 7; they even lost a wicket on 87; and on 88, Harmanpreet dropped Anya Shrubsole. It took England another ball.
And in their last match of the group, India needed 5 off the last 3 balls. Then Shikha and Sushma perished off consecutive balls, and that was that. India lost their last three matches by 2 runs, 2 wickets, and 3 runs. It was not a saga of being outclassed. The Eves were out-nerved, if that is a term.
Almost two decades back, a younger, dreamy-eyed Jhulan had volunteered to become a ball-girl in a World Cup final — one where India Women did not feature despite hosting them. Perhaps there was another Jhulan lurking somewhere in the grounds during the tournament. Perhaps that little girl will take new ball for India some day.
Let us return to the present for now. There was no international cricket for India Women between March and November. When West Indies came over, the teams played out a curious duel: India whitewashed the tourists 3-0 in the ODIs before they were themselves vanquished 0-3 in the T20Is. The honours were shared, albeit not in the conventional way.
Veda Krishnamurthy had scored an unbeaten 61 in the third ODI against Sri Lanka. With India’s top three already in place, it was time she stepped up. That she did in the first ODI against West Indies: India were reeling at 36 for 4 in pursuit of 132 when Veda walked out, outscored Mithali, got an unbeaten 52, and calmly guided India to a win. Veda was not needed before the finishing stages in the second match, but a dazzling 79-ball 71 helped India set up a winning target in the third. Veda’s year amounted to 226 runs at 45.20, but her last 4 innings fetched 192 runs with one dismissal.
The West Indies ODI series also saw the re-emergence of Rajeshwari Gayakwad. While her 4 for 21 helped restrict the tourists to 131 in the first match, the second was perhaps more spectacular. Strolling to 166 for 4 in pursuit of 200, West Indies collapsed to Rajeshwari (4 for 34); so accurate was she that there were two run outs. They lost by 15 runs.
The matches against Pakistan were cancelled for political reasons, but India Women did play Pakistan in the Asia Cup. There was barely any resistance (which was nothing new, given that the Indians have won all five editions of the Asia Cup) from any side barring Pakistan: Bangladesh scored 54; Thailand, 69 for 5; Sri Lanka 69 for 9; and Nepal a dismal 21 with Sarita Magar getting 6 and no one else reaching even 3.
Even Pakistan managed a mere 97 for 7, but for once India Women were stretched for a win. They managed to reach there only in the last over. In the final, Pakistan became the first team to reach the three-figure mark against India in the tournament, but their 104 for 6 in the final fell considerably short of India’s 121 for 5.
Mithali was rested for the Nepal and Thailand matches. In the other four, she got 49*, 36, 62, and 73*, ruling out any doubt whatsoever regarding the Player of the Series. She batted through 20 overs twice, fell one ball before the 20-over mark in a third, and in the 17th over in the other.
The usual suspects, Jhulan, Ekta, Anuja, and Poonam all did well. Smriti chipped in, helping Mithali add 70, 27, 46, and 24 in their four stands. While Harmanpreet, deprived of batting opportunities thanks to the openers, played several neat cameos and bowled economically.
All in all, it was a tournament well won. It was a decent year for The Eves, with a 7-2 result in ODIs and 10-7 in T20Is (12-7 if the Nepal and Thailand matches are included).
Most importantly, The Eves have risen beyond the shadows of Mithali-di and Jhulan-di. Harmanpreet, the new pin-up girl of Indian cricket, has taken over from Mithali in the shortest format. If she has already not been there, she will almost certainly emerge as the face of Indian women’s cricket when the big two bid farewell.
[read-also]560402[/read-also]
Smriti, a bare 20, has emerged as a potential champion. Veda is on the way of establishing herself at the top. And then, there is the clean-hitting Vanitha, though her astonishing strokeplay needs to be backed up by intent to play longer innings.
Thirushkamini, probably suited more to the longest format (remember that epic 192 against South Africa?), will certainly earn a recall — for The Eves will need a successor to Mithali, someone who can bat through the overs.
The spin brigade has come up, though they have to prove themselves outside Asia. Jhulan, still fast and accurate, can provide those breakthroughs or choke line-ups. And Sushma continues to impress with those big gloves.
The contracts of Harmanpreet and Smriti might have opened unprecedented doors in Indian cricket. One can hope for a WIPL in the lines of WBBL. Perhaps the tournaments can be organised to ensure men and women’s matches are played at the same grounds on the same days; that will make it easier for the channels.
But there remains a problem.
Live telecast is something I have kept referring to, for its importance is more than what it meets the eye. Ask the 1980s generation across the world who took to football because of Diego Maradona. Ask their 1990s counterparts who picked up a bat to emulate Sachin Tendulkar. Or even VVS Laxman, who told us how his sons have taken to kabaddi instead of cricket.
Or better, ask Veda; ask Veda about how she had decided to take up cricket when she, at 12, saw Mithali in action in World Cup 2005, the only time India Women had made it to the final; ask her about how she had fought with her classmates backstage over the bouquet that was supposed to be given to her idol during a felicitation.
Ask Smriti as well. Ask her how she took to cricket at nine, in other words, in 2005. By 11 she was playing for the state Under-19s. Like Veda, she rubs shoulders with her idol as well.
None of that would have been possible without live telecast. How would you imitate Jonty Rhodes if you have not seen him in action? Would Manchester United or Michael Schumacher have gained popularity in India in the early 2000s without telecast? Will mere match reports convince the next generation of Indian girls to take up cricket?
Veda and Smriti both had a Mithali to look up to for the simple reason that she had seen Mithali in action. There may be another 9- or 12-year-old lurking somewhere, someone who would have idolised Smriti or Veda had she got to see her in action on a regular basis.
Unless that happens, despite the contracts (which, I repeat, has been an outstanding initiative), despite the success stories, the next generation is unlikely to take up cricket as a sport, let alone a profession.
And in the era of high-speed internet, all it needs is basic live streaming.
