Flashback: India’s Test history in Women’s cricket
Cricket in India came with the Britishers in the 17th century, but this game was adopted by Indians in the 19th century. Although women’s association with this sport was seen in India two decades after independence, it was not as systematic as that of men. In the 70s, women were playing cricket in many areas of India, which was recognized by Mahendra Kumar Sharma.
International status
Mahendra Kumar was a cricket lover, who wanted that women’s cricket in India should also get the same recognition as men’s. Taking the first big step in 1973, he got the Indian Women’s Cricket Association registered under the Societies Act in Lucknow.
In 1973 the Indian Women’s Cricket Association got the membership of the International Women’s Cricket Council and in 1978 the government recognized the association. In 2006, like other cricket playing countries, the Indian Women’s Cricket Association merged with the BCCI.
First series
In 1975, Indian women got a chance to play at the international level for the first time, as Australia’s Under 25 team toured India. A three-Test series was held between the two countries on this tour. The Indian team management tried three captains Ujwala Nikam, Sudha Shah and Srirupa in these three Test matches. After that, the Indian team hosted and toured countries like New Zealand, England, Australia and West Indies.
First Test win
In 1976, the Indian team won the first Test match against West Indies in Patna in front of 25,000 spectators. However, in the last Test match of the same series held in Jammu, the Indian team also had to face defeat. There used to be a lot of matches in women’s cricket from 1975 to 1986, but after that, there was no consistency. The year 1995 is considered very memorable for Indian women’s cricket, as the team created history for the first time by defeating New Zealand in an ODI series. In 1999, the Indian team toured England and achieved success in winning the ODI series and drawing the Test series.
Stalwarts of Indian cricket
Shantha Rangaswamy, Diana Edulji, Sudha Shah and Sandhya Agarwal were instrumental in taking Indian women’s cricket to new heights. Shantha became the first woman cricketer from India to score a century at the international level. On the other hand, Sandhya Agarwal set a world record in 1986 by scoring 190 runs in an innings of a Test match against England. Apart from this, Neetu David took 8 wickets for 53 runs in an innings of a Test match in 1995-96, which was a record. The Government of India honoured women cricketers Shantha Rangaswamy, Diana Edulji, Shubhangi Kulkarni and Sandhya Agarwal with the Arjuna Award.
