Regarding the future of women’s cricket, Jhulan Goswami, a former fast bowler for India, has made a daring statement. Goswami, who has vast experience both as a player and as a coach, thinks franchise leagues are the future for the advancement of the sport.
With numerous T20 competitions springing up all over the world, women’s cricket has been developing quickly. Among these are the Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL), The Hundred, Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), and Women’s Premier League (WPL).
Prioritisation is a topic of discussion as these leagues become more significant and start to conflict with overseas commitments. Goswami, who will soon join the Trinbago Knight Riders in the WCPL and is presently playing for the Mumbai Indians in the WPL, underlined the significance of franchise cricket.
“Women’s cricket faces a significant obstacle. Although we never anticipated it, similar things have happened in the past for men’s cricket; however, it is happening for women’s cricket as well. And it pleases me to see that. Franchise cricket is the way of the future for women’s cricket, thus the ICC must exercise caution. And that is the expansion of women’s cricket worldwide. Goswami stated on Powerplay podcast that “you have to give priority to every franchise league otherwise cricket will not grow.”
Give them certain windows, and the bilateral series follows: Jhulan Goswami
The former fast bowler talked candidly about how franchise leagues develop young players. But scheduling difficulties with bilateral series have resulted from the growth of franchise cricket. Several players, including Heather Knight, Smriti Mandhana, and Meg Lanning, have had to weigh their league obligations against their national team responsibilities.
“Look at how many excellent cricket players the WBBL, the Hundred, the WCPL, and the WPL have created in the last several years. We should make sure that they have specific slots during the Premier League (franchise) events, and then there will be a bilateral series. It will also contribute to the expansion of women’s cricket. That’s my personal opinion,” she said.
The 2024 cricket calendar is jam-packed with events like the Hundred, WCPL, T20 World Cup, and WBBL scheduled back-to-back, highlighting the importance of prioritisation and smart scheduling.
“Quality cricket players would be lost if your bilateral series and franchise leagues overlap. Furthermore, your tournament will not be successful if you do not have any elite cricket players,” she said.
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