It is more than just cricket for them

These women have made the gentleman’s game their own

July 28, 2014 10:34 am | Updated 10:34 am IST - NEW DELHI:

Women cricketers hard at work at the Talkatora Stadium cricket field in New Delhi. Photo: S. Subramanium

Women cricketers hard at work at the Talkatora Stadium cricket field in New Delhi. Photo: S. Subramanium

Cricket may be the gentleman’s game, but a number of women have made it their own. And one of the most reassuring sights of Indian women coming into their own is seeing them padded up and facing the red cherry hurled by tall lanky men at a fair pace at the Talkatora Stadium cricket field.

Five women cricketers in New Delhi practice regularly at the academy, run by former Delhi opener Bantoo Singh, and take pride in the fact that they are no less than their male counterparts.

“The men are very supportive, but often taunt us in jest. However, when it comes to bowling fast, they give us no leeway. For us it means good practice,” said one of the women cricketers, adding that they practice for about three hours thrice a week.

Most of these women are at the academy for varying reasons.

Prachi Rajjan, a student of Spring Meadows School, is a bowler who works hard on her rhythm, line and length.

“My mother encouraged me to play cricket since she herself wanted to play the game. However, she could not because she got married early.” So this is Prachi’s way of trying to live her mother’s dream.

A student of St.Thomas’ School, Riya Sapra is as keen about donning the keeper’s gloves as she is about her batting practice.

“My elder brother Rahul Sapra had been playing cricket for the past seven years. I use to make him knock. That is how I developed interest and decided to learn it professionally.”

Although the women aspire to be the future Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli, they know they have numerous hurdles to overcome before they can make a mark for themselves.

Some of them travel long distances to come to the academy — from as far off as Faridabad in Haryana and Meerut in Uttar Pradesh. The daily commute takes a toll on their health and finances.

The physical exertion and tiredness pose a lot of difficulty and problems for them.

One of them is Vaishali Tyagi, a post-graduate from Amity University.

“Coming from Meerut everyday is not an easy task, but I have no other option because practising in Delhi academies is much better than practising in Meerut. Earlier, I used to play from Uttar Pradesh. However for the past two years, I have been playing from Delhi.”

She is now also working with the Sehwag International School in Jhajjar as coach.

One of her friends quipped that Vaishali’s build and looks often leave people confused.

“Once someone mistook her for a boy in the bus and asked: ‘Under-14 khelta hai kya ? [Do you play under-14?]’. We all burst out laughing because she is 23! When she joined the academy, the men initially mistook her for a boy. They would give her high catches and talk to her in their own lingo. But that changed somewhat when they realised she was a woman.”

Left-hand batsman and medium pacer Neha Nayar, an under-graduate from Jesus and Mary College, also travels to Delhi from Faridabad daily. Though she does not feel safe in the local trains, the love for cricket keeps her going.

While these women have been working hard, Delhi senior national vice-captain Babita Negi lamented that they “are not given proper exposure and not made to play enough tournaments.”

The money and remuneration given to the women as compared to men at the State and Ranji level is also lower. Many of them believe that they should be given an equal opportunity in all respects, so that more of them make their own name like Diana Eduljee or Anjum Chopra.

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