Women's cricket to make its debut at the Commonwealth Games
Women's cricket is all set to be a part of the Commonwealth Games for the first time ever. Notably, this will be just the second time that cricket will feature in the event after a men's competition was part of the Games in Kuala Lumpur in 1998. One sees this as an opportunity of growth for women's cricket. Here's more.
The qualification process grants hosts England one spot while six other highest ranked ICC Members in the T20I Rankings for Women will qualify directly for the eight-team tournament. The rankings will be as of April 1, 2021. The remaining place will be allocated to the winner of a Commonwealth Games Qualifier. The deadline for the Qualifier is January 31, 2022.
ICC Chief Executive Manu Sawhney said that cricket at CWG is a fantastic opportunity to help in growth of women's game. "Cricket at the Commonwealth Games is a fantastic opportunity for us to continue to grow the women's game globally. We are committed to accelerating this growth and maintaining the momentum we have created over the past few years," he said.
According to the ICC, since athletes from the Caribbean will be representing their countries and not the West Indies (as they are affiliated with the ICC), the winner of a designated qualifying tournament will decide which country gets to compete if WI get a slot.
Commonwealth Games Federation President Dame Louise Martin said, "We are absolutely delighted to have women's T20 cricket debut at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games." She said that she can't wait to see the next generation of stars like Heather Knight, Harmanpreet Kaur and Meg Lanning take centre stage. "Birmingham 2022 will be a fantastic showcase for the women's game," she added.
Indian women's cricket team skipper Harmanpreet Kaur said that the inclusion of cricket at the CWG is huge for all the players. "Representing your country in a multi-discipline event is a different challenge and with it comes the responsibility of being emissaries of the game since it can get us new followers and fans," she added.
