No more tokenism - Will the women's side of cricket ever be on a level playing field?
It was the first ball of the 49th over of the 2nd ODI between India and Australia, and the visitors should have had the wicket they were after. Rajeshwari Gayakwad bowled one that hit the batter plumb in front. For some reason, the umpire did not give it out, and Australia sneaked a single.
Watching it on television, my first reaction was - go for the DRS and you have your wicket, perhaps even the game. That’s when it dawned on me that there is no DRS. Yes you heard it right! There is no DRS in this very high profile series between two of the richest cricket boards, and as a result India may well have been deprived of a famous victory.
Unlike in the men’s game where DRS is a normal feature these days, women’s games are still deprived of it because of the broadcast costs associated with it. To save costs, technology isn’t used in most women’s contests across the world.
ICC needs to act, and act fast
On the one hand, the MCC is making the word "batter" universal by trying to include women within the fold of the language used to describe cricket. It is no longer a batsman or a fieldsman. It is batter or fielder. While I absolutely welcome this change, for it is an attempt to include within the game half the world, in the absence of measures like the non inclusion of the DRS, such attempts are a mere tokenism and nothing else.
If we want equality and inclusivity, we need to do so at every level and not simply in the language of describing the game. The ICC must, and this is a non-negotiable step, address these issues at the earliest.
Cost cutting cannot impact the game's outcome in crucial matches, for then the very purpose of play is defeated. Broadcast costs of adding the DRS can either be borne by the ICC or the respective boards but more so by the ICC. This is because relatively poorer boards won’t be able to afford it and it will mean some have it while some don’t. To make the women’s game a level playing field for all countries, it is essential the ICC steps in at the earliest.