In a country where gender discrimination is highly prevalent in every sphere of life, BCCI’s decision to bring pay parity amongst men and women cricketers for representing the country should be welcomed. It is definitely the first concrete step towards ending gender discrimination in Indian sports. It is hoped that other sporting bodies too will follow the BCCI and take steps to remove the pay disparity without further delay. Such a decision will definitely attract many young female athletes to the sporting arena as lack of adequate financial pay and other related facilities have kept many weary of the field of sports. Due to the discrimination, the country has lost many budding sporting talents as our society has always shown more generosity to male athletes than female ones. The situation may change drastically if both men and women sportspersons begin receiving the same amount as interest in a career in sports will be much more viable than before.
The demand for pay parity in sports is not a new one. The age-old demand was first met by the US Open organising committee when it decided to pay equal prize money to both men and women in 1973. In cricket, so far only New Zealand pays equal amounts to both men and women cricketers. India is the second country in the cricketing fraternity to emulate the Kiwis, though Indian women begun playing cricket way back in the early seventies. The women in blue played the first test match against West Indies in 1976 and participated in the 1978 World Cup. Since then, it has been a rough ride for women in cricket in India despite achieving tremendous success at the international level. India has reached World Cup finals twice and semi-finals on three occasions. The Indian women's cricket team also has an equally impressive record in T20 cricket. It reached the final of T20 cricket once and semi-final thrice. Players like Mithali Raj, the highest run getter and Jhulan Goswami, the highest wicket taker in women cricket have made the country proud. It’s a pity that despite all the success such players are yet to become household names like some male cricketers.
A fact to note is that there was a separate body for women's cricket in the country till 2006. However, the BCCI didn’t help the women cricket association in organising international matches nor in spreading the game towards women across the country. In the face of such bias treatment, it is no mean achievement to be considered among the best in the world. It is expected that the standout decision of the BCCI will take women cricket in India one step forward in the battle to become the best in the world. To make the dream a reality, the BCCI should also announce equal remuneration for domestic competitions too and introduce a central contact system like that for men. The decision may be contentious for those who have always opposed equal pay for women in sports, but surely it is a positive step towards ending the gender discrimination prevailing in the nation’s sporting industry.