There has never been a greater buzz for a Women’s World T20 than there’s for this year’s edition, beginning in the West Indies on Friday. This, perhaps because the women’s edition had hitherto coincided with the men’s. For the first time, the International Cricket Council has decided to decided to make it a standalone event.
The ICC is also beefing up the coverage of the women’s game due to a growing demand for it. All the matches of this year’s World T20 will be broadcast live in more than 200 countries around the world. This is unprecedented in women’s cricket.
In the last edition, West Indies beat favourites Australia by 8 wickets in a last-over thriller. They get a chance to defend the title on home soil. But players across nations, this time around, have sandpapered their T20 games by playing more international and league matches.
The riveting ICC Women’s World Cup, wherein hosts England edged India in a thriller in 2017, gathered a lot of fans across the world for women’s cricket, especially in India. Ever since, women’s cricket witnessed substantial increase in coverage and appreciation.
Historically, the women’s game was did not receive attention in India even when the men’s game underwent a boom.
“There’s been such a massive change to women’s cricket since I started playing,” Jhulan Goswami wrote recently. “I remember staying in an accommodation with bunk beds for my first World Cup, in 2005. For domestic matches, we often travelled unreserved in trains, and played on grounds where getting injured would have been very easy. There were countless junior tournaments where we stayed in dormitories and slept on mattresses on the floor.”
And from there, the game is now vying for the spotlight, hoping to build on a positive momentum. A women’s IPL, by all means, is not far away either.
So how well do you know India’s history in the women’s game? Here’s a quiz to test your knowledge.
As always no peeking, no googling.
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