Need to have red-ball cricket in domestic set-up too: Mithali Raj

India women’s team is in Australia for their jumbo tour wherein the ODI series has already taken place and are playing the historical one-off Test against the host nation. This is the first time when the Indian women’s team is playing the pink-ball Test and therefore, Indian skipper Mithali Raj opened up on certain aspects of Test cricket in the women’s game’s context.

Raj believes that if a Test has to be made a regular feature in women’s cricket, girls do need to get some practice in the domestic arena too which is not the case as of now. Mithali Raj and her squad got only two practice sessions before the pink ball Test whereas they wanted more but that couldn’t be materialized due to COVID-19 issues.

“Clearly, if the girls need to do well in this format, they have to have some sort of match experience in the domestic circuit. So, if this (Test) is going to be a regular (feature) then probably we will have another addition to our domestic calendar of playing days format,” said Mithali Raj as quoted by The Times of India.

Playing three formats will definitely help all the players: Mithali Raj

This will be women’s first Test in seven long years and of course the first with the pink ball. The two-day red ball fixtures didn’t continue in the domestic circuit after the 2018-19 season. Raj stated that girls want to play more red-ball cricket and this is a healthy sign for women’s cricket in times to come. She added that she gets the same feedback from many players around the world who play in leagues.

“If this becomes a regular feature in a bilateral series, playing three formats will definitely help all the players because that’s the feedback I get most of the time that every player, even today’s players who are part of various leagues. They also love to play the longer format,” she added.

After playing the pink-ball Test, Mithali Raj and her women would be up for a three-match T20I series against the host nation.