Shafali Verma and two other Indian cricketers to be a part of WBBL 2021-22
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has brought a change in their policy for women cricketers as the board has now started allowing women players to participate in other franchise leagues across the globe. A few days ago, it was learned that the Indian board has provided a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to four Indian women cricketers including the likes of Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Smriti Mandhana, and Harmanpreet Kaur for participating in the inaugural edition of The Hundred.
In the latest development, BCCI has allowed three women players to feature in the 2021 edition of the Women’s Big Bash League (BBL) scheduled later in the year. The batter Shafali Verma and left-arm spinner Radha Yadav will be making their debut in the Australian league this year as they have been provided with Noc.
The 17-year-old Verma will be playing for the two-time champion Sydney Sixers while Radha Yadav is also in talks with one of the two Sydney-based clubs. Apart from the two aforementioned players, one more Indian cricketer will be plying her trade in the tournament.
All players will be given all necessary permissions to participate in the WBBL: BCCI Official
Verma’s father Sanjeev confirmed the news of the batter participating in WBBL as he told ESPNcricinro, “Yes, Shafali has signed the contract with Sydney Sixers, and given she is a minor, I have had to give my consent, too. I would like to thank the BCCI and Haryana Cricket Association [HCA] for giving my daughter the permission and support to play in the WBBL. Without the guidance of the HCA, whatever Shafali is doing in her career wouldn’t have been possible.”
Further, a BCCI official also detailed his opinion on the issue stating that the Indian board has decided to give a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to all the women players who will be approached by the WWBL franchises.
A senior BCCI official said, “All players who have been or will be approached by Big Bash teams will be given all necessary permissions to participate in the WBBL this season,” he said on the condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, this won’t be the first time that any Indian women’s cricketer will be participating in WBBL as previously India’s T20 captain Kaur and vice-captain Mandhana debuted in the 2016-17 edition for the Sydney Thunder and the Brisbane Heat respectively. Veda Krishnamurthy has also featured in WBBL during the 2017-18 edition for the Hurricanes.
