India’s women cricketers will now be paid the same as the men – and they say it’s about time
- ‘It’s a very important step forward for women’s cricket in our country,’ says India all-rounder Sneh Rana
- Increase starts next month, and might help ‘more young girls see financial viability in becoming professional cricketers’
Sport, as in life, is all about timing. The perfect tackle, the jump that precedes the immaculate dunk, or the bat meeting the ball at the right moment to send it flying for a six … that one variable often makes all else look inconsequential.
Much of the decision of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the sport’s governing body in the Asian nation, to implement an equal match-fee policy for the international appearances of its centrally contracted female and male players can be viewed though a similar lens.
For starters, it’s 2022. So, for India’s women cricketers to now be awarded – like their male counterparts – US$18,600 for a Test, US$7,400 for an ODI and US$3,700 for a T20 under the new match-fee structure, seems like a normal thing you’d expect of any egalitarian employer in today’s day and age.
Not least from one that happens to be the richest cricket board in the world.
The upgrade in the match fee of India’s women cricketers followed the 15th BCCI Apex Council’s meeting last month where the resolution to implement the proposal was passed unanimously.
The increase in the amount, which starts with the home series against Australia next month, marks a significant revision from the US$1,200 that India women players previously earned for an ODI or T20 appearance and US$3,000 for a Test match.
