An under-16 tournament
Just tell me, who doesn’t want to see a teenage wonder-kid? But since BCCI took over, women’s cricket has been played just in the Under-19 and open-age groups, with an Under-23 competition added this year.
The U-16 tournament, which was regularly conducted by the previous setup, was stopped at once. Despite the lack of a feeder line that nurtures teenage talent, India has produced some precociously talented players like Smriti Mandhana and Deepti Sharma, mostly thanks to the School Games Federation, which organises women’s cricket matches as well these days. But to make sure that such players continue to emerge, and that they are exposed to match situations from a tender age, a U-16 tournament is mandatory. The current administration has assured over starting one, and it is imperative that they set it up in the next domestic season.