Ever wondered as to why the media or all the cricket enthusiasts focuses only on the men’s cricket while the women struggle and play equally well, just like the men? Even the treatment both the team receives while on the field is also completely different! Be it technology being used uniformly or scrutinizing the quality of the pitch- everything is over-looked when it comes to the women cricket team.
While we enter 2020, it is high time that society breaks the shackles of patriarchy and start appreciating and celebrating the victory of the women cricket team with equal pride.
Here are nine times when the talented women of the team overpowered the records of the men: Some food for your thought, maybe?
1) Are you aware that the women’s world cup was held before the men’s world cup?
Most people will be shouting ‘1975’ as the answer if asked when the first world cup was held. But, the first official world cup dates back to 1973, and England hosted it. Seven teams of women across the globe participated in the league- Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, England, Trinidad, and Tobago, International XI, and Young England to name them all!
2) The touch-down was 400+ runs in one inning.
More than a decade back, the Australia women cricket team was the first one, both amongst men and women, to make 400+ runs in one match at Denmark in 1997. 412/3 was the final score, and the game ended with the victory of Australian players against Denmark. Much later, in 2006, Australia’s men’s team made 434/4, which was later chased down by South Africa in the ODI match. Which team are you proud of now?
3) Double century in ODI cricket!
While the world celebrated Sachin Tendulkar for scoring 200 runs in one match on 2010, Belinda Clark achieved this milestone much before in 1997 and scored 229 runs and created a record which stayed almost for 17 years after which Rohit Sharma broke it with his famous 264 runs against Sri Lanka in 2014.
4) There are the youngest players who scored a century and a double century from the women’s team.
Shahid Afridi scored a century (102 runs) when he was just sixteen years and 127 days. This record was tracked down and broken by Mithali Raj in 1999, and she scored an excellent 114 runs. Surprisingly, she was just 16 years and 205 days old, thus creating another history. Later, Amelia Kerr successfully made a double century when she was just 17 years and 243 days old and created a record of the youngest player making double century- male or female.
5) The women’s team beat the highest record of T20-
2016 was the year when England’s men cricket team made a record by scoring 230 runs and won over South Africa in a T20 game. It did not stay a ‘record’ though because soon after in 2018, the women team took it over, and coincidentally, the opponent was South Africa! With Tammy Beaumont’s daring, 116 runs out of just 52 balls made the total score the highest record for England, irrespective of teams.
6) Opening partnership in ODI –
This phenomenal record was created by two Indian Women players- Deepti Sharma and Punam Raut when in 2017, they scored 320 runs and broke down the Ireland team.
7) ODI centuries consecutively hit by Women’s cricket team-
Amy Satterthwaite from New Zealand made four centuries in consecutive matches in 2016-17, thus breaking 2015’s record of Kumar Sangakkara.
8) Winners in T20 international matches consecutively-
The unbreakable record is made by England’s women team, where they won 14 consecutive international matches dated from 30th October 2011 to 15th September 2012. The men’s team holds the record of winning eight consecutive matches in 2010-11.
9) Major WorldCup tournaments won by the Women’s cricket team-
Australian team earned the crown of champions of the World Cup for the sixth time in 2007 and no team- be it men or women has earned the title so many times as they did.
Let’s all come together, encourage, applaud and cheer our hearts out for the Women’s cricket team who deserves every bit of it!
