The Story
Diana Edulji, the former women’s cricket and a member of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA), has revealed that some of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officials are short sighted and ignorant towards Women’s cricket, calling it a “male chauvinist organisation”.
This revelation comes as a shocking news at a time when the women’s section of cricket is gaining widespread attention and recognition especially after Mithali Raj-led side reached the finals of the 2017 ICC Women’s World Cup final at Lord’s a month ago.
Women’s Cricket still not accepted
Edulji, who once refused to enter the Lord’s Pavilion while captaining India on their tour of England in 1986, has alleged that despite the recent success of the Indian Women’s team, some of the board members have not “accepted it well.”
“I’ve always been a BCCI basher, right from the day women’s cricket came into the BCCI fold in 2006,” Edulji said speaking along with India’s World Cup stars Harmanpreet Kaur and Punam Raut at the Express Adda event in Mumbai on Tuesday (August 22).
“BCCI is a very male chauvinist organisation. They never wanted women to dictate terms or get into this thing. I was very vocal right from my playing days, from when I started,” she added.
“Even now, I would still say that it is not yet well accepted within BCCI that women’s cricket is doing well. It is very difficult for them (some BCCI members) to accept the fact that this team has done very well,” Edulji elaborated.
Edulji also recalled the uninspiring details of her first meeting with then BCCI president N. Srinivasan. She said that Srinivasan shockingly admitted he would want women’s cricket to be abolished if possible.
Recalling her first meeting with the ousted BCCI president, Edulji said,
“When I went to congratulate him at the Wankhede Stadium, he said, ‘if I had my way, I wouldn’t let women’s cricket happen’. He hates women’s cricket.”
She also feels that a Women’s IPL would be the best step forward to leverage upon the increased awareness about women’s cricket which has been on rising in recent times.