India Women’s cricket team play host England in the final of ICC Women’s World Cup today. The names of great former and present Indian cricket players like Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, etc. are probably at the tip of our tongue and many are even probably in the know of the records they have set. Of course these cricket players deserve all the adulations and attention they get from the cricket-crazy Indian fans. However how many have heard names like Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur and for that matter even the name of Indian captain Mithali Raj?
These are Indian women cricket players who hold world records in bowling and batting respectively. Goswami is the leading wicket-taker in the world in 50-over cricket. Indian captain Mithali Raj becomes the first player to cross the 6,000 runs mark in the history of women’s ODI surpassing England captain Charlotte Edwards.
It must be said that the women cricket players get a raw deal when compared to their male counterparts. This has even forced the England captain to remark that she thinks that Mithali Raj does not get the credit she deserves at times. If the men’s cricket team had reached the ICC World Cup final there would have been a lot of buzz among the cricket crazy fans in the country. But then how many would even watch the India-England summit clash today is anybody’s guess. Harmanpreet Kaur became the toast of the nation after her 171-run knock against Australia which is being regarded by cricket pundits as one of the greatest ODI knocks in Women’s cricket.
It may be recalled that India defeated England in their opening match. Indian women’s cricket team needs all the encouragement and fan following that the men’s cricket team gets. This will indeed boost the morale of the women cricketers in the country. Indeed women’s cricket in India has a bright future ahead with the present team of talented players led by the gritty Mithali Raj.
