The IPL's next big idea should be to have women cricketers like Jhulan Goswami

In a couple of days, the eighth IPL Champion will be declared. The purists and cynics can say whatever they want but the reality is the IPL has made cricket a viable profession for a much larger number of players since its inception in 2008. However, there is one set of cricketers the IPL continues to ignore - women cricketers. In a country where fans can barely name five women cricketers, it would not make commercial sense for the BCCI to float a full fledged women’s T20 league. But there is still room for the BCCI to be a torchbearer by including women players in IPL teams. [caption id=“attachment_2257850” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational Image. AFP[/caption] For example, the BCCI could pass a rule mandating that each franchise have three women in the squad and one in the playing XI. This one move could have multiple benefits, from making cricket a viable career option for girls to creating women superstars. It would also make the league a shining example of sporting inclusion around the world while upholding its reputation for constantly innovating. The idea isn’t as crazy it sounds. Women play with men in other sports already - think of mixed doubles in tennis. So why not have India’s Jhulan Goswami bowling to Virat Kohli, or Australia’s Ellyse Perry trying to knock off the winning runs at the death? Besides, women have already started playing cricket with the man. Last month England’s 23–year-old-seamer, Kate Cross became the first woman to play in the Central Lancashire League in its 123-year-history. Her debut figures of 3 for 19 were impressive. A few days later, she bowled brilliantly to take 8 for 47. In their book, Playing with the Boys: Why Separate Is Not Equal in Sports, authors Eileen McDonagh and Laura Pappano argue that “We should not sort athletes by what sex they are, but rather by their skill. The present sexual segregation in sport is based not on physical reality but on anachronistic notions of women as “the weaker sex.” I agree with the authors because when I watch sports, I want to watch the best athletes play, not just the best male athletes. The argument here is not to abolish separate men’s and women’s teams. It makes sense to have separate men’s and women’s team competing at the international level, but it also makes sense to allow women to enter men’s competitions if they are capable. And that is where the IPL can help. One of the biggest benefits of such a move would be to shatter the negative stereotypes about women and their abilities. The fastest man in the world will be quicker than the fastest woman but she will still be quicker than a lot of other men. And when it comes to skills, women can match the best in business. Sports that are dependent on skill can consider mixed sex teams. Tennis successfully does that with mixed doubles. In golf, we have had Michelle Wie and Annika Sorenstam play with the boys. So what stops cricket, a game requiring skill and finesse to open up to the idea that men and women can play together? There have been plenty of great cricketers who have not been physically imposing but have been exceptionally skilful - case in point being Cricket’s God Sachin Tendulkar. Women cricketers in India barely get enough tournaments to hone their skills. This lack of visibility results in a lack of sponsors that further causes most girls to drop out as cricket does not offer them financial stability. A mixed IPL will bring about a massive cultural change. Cricket will no longer be considered a sport only for boys. “In England and Australia most of the age group teams are mixed and personally I think that is one big reason why their girls are so much better than ours,” Anupriya Singh, an ex-Delhi cricketer told Firstpost. Meanwhile Vinayshree Khurana, who played cricket for Punjab University, was very excited at the thought of a mixed IPL. “We need a situation where the Indian fan knows the women cricketers as well as their male counterparts. Cricket and its fans in India have not given its female cricketers their due. Infact even our male cricketers don’t care about the women unlike some other countries. I have seen tweets by South African captain and players, Australian captain and players wishing and congratulating their women’s cricket team and players. They take interest in cricket- women or men, gender neutral. This is how it has to be. Haven’t seen this in our case but we all hope one day that could happen.” The words engraved on the IPL trophy state “Where talent meets opportunity.” It would be a good idea to consider making the IPL a good opportunity for female talent too.