Lord’s Win Proves It’s Time To Expand Women’s Test Schedule: Niranjana Nagarajan

Lord’s win proves it’s time to expand women’s Test schedule: Niranjana Nagarajan (Image Source: IANS)

Niranjana Nagarajan: India's historic 270-run victory over England in the first-ever women’s Test match played at Lord’s will go down as a watershed moment that will permanently shift how women's red-ball cricket is perceived globally, said former India pace-bowling all-rounder Niranjana Nagarajan.

On July 13, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side scripted a landmark Test triumph at Lord’s by bundling out England for 186. Wicketkeeper-batter Yastika Bhatia carved 113 – the first-ever century hit in a women’s Test match at Lord’s, while Kranti Gaud’s five‑wicket haul secured her a place on the iconic honours board.

Off‑spin bowling all-rounder Sneh Rana wrapped up the contest with a four-wicket haul in the second innings, as India sealed their second-highest win by margin of runs in Women’s Tests and overall, the fourth biggest victory.

“It will go down as one of the best moments Indian women's cricket has witnessed. Yes, we won the World Cup, and that will top the charts, but Test cricket is the ultimate form of cricket. For me, I had always wanted to represent India in Test cricket and this win at Lord’s coming for the Indian team and Harmanpreet Kaur and others doing all the hard work and executing plans so well on the field - I think nobody expected India to play this well.

“We knew that they always had the potential, but they kind of out-beat England. We dominated in both innings and Kranti Gaud getting five wickets and the kind of trust Harman has shown on her - right from the time she made her debut and Yastika Bhatia coming out of an injury and not having a great World Cup. But she was backed and trusted by the team management - I think the girls have really delivered.

“Then, classy innings by Harman and Smriti in the first innings and it was a collective team effort. We are improving day by day as a team and when you see this Indian cricket team, there is always betterment. We are seeing everybody do well and the players are feeling happy for each other's performances," Niranjana told IANS in an exclusive conversation.

She also believes the impact of the triumph at the "Home of Cricket" will instantly reverberate through the women’s domestic circuit in India. “They now know that if they do well, the domestic cricket level is going to improve. Those girls are looking up to the Indian team for inspiration. So, definitely, this Test win is going to make a huge impact on the way the domestic cricket back home and how the longer-format inter-zonals is played.

“Definitely, the girls will want to come back and play domestic cricket and the quality and performance in domestic cricket will improve because India has won a Test game and more Test games will come for them after this and the selection criteria will be competitive. So, this win is going to do a world of good when you look at Indian women's cricket, and domestic cricket on the whole, actually,” she added.

Reflecting on the sheer aura of Lord's, Niranjana, who played two Tests, 22 ODIs and 14 T20Is for India, pointed out how the team rose above the occasion and refused to let the historic setting distract them from the job at hand. “Playing at the Lord's is always going to be special. Everything about the ground is history. It's poetic and got its own significance. As a cricketer, anybody would dream to play at Lord's. I think the girls have had the opportunity. Sometimes, there are chances that you get carried away by the look of it - that ‘Yes, I am getting to play at Lord's and that itself is enough for me.’

"That kind of attitude is not there. You get to play at Lord's, it's fine. But the performance is more important and getting your name on the Honours Board, it's one of the greatest achievements anybody can have. Being a former Indian cricketer, it is so good to see the girls do well and I am so happy and proud for them.

“They deserve the recognition that they are getting now. Earlier, there used to be a common phrase saying that women cricketers are not getting enough attention. But the girls have earned it now. If they are getting the attention, it's because of their performance. Not because they are women or anything like that. They have proved themselves and that they belong to the world stage and we can be world leaders and they are proving it in every format.

“Yes, we can be slightly better at T20. But Test cricket and ODIs, I think we are the team to beat now and we enter anywhere in the world to be competitive and we will be the favourites now. It's that kind of benchmark the girls have set in terms of fitness, skill levels and mentality that they are showing on the field - it's exceptional.”

With red-ball women’s cricket still operating as one-off games, Niranjana firmly believes the sheer quality of the Lord’s Test demonstrates that the international schedule must now change to accommodate longer, multi-match series.

“When you watch men's cricket, people always come there. I mean, as a spectator, you would want to see them score runs and you would not want to have a game where the team is getting 100 all out or something like that. So, that is the reason why probably when women's cricket was at the global level, and not established, there were more one-day or T20 games because there is more excitement in those games.

"But the real test and real skills are only tested in a red-ball format. So, now is the right time for women's cricket at the global level to increase the number of Tests. Say, keep a three-match or five-match Test series because we can sustain four days now. It is not that we are getting all out in a day and then again the match gets over in 2-3 sessions or something like that. The girls are batting for three-four sessions and then coming back and bowling the next day.

“It is going for two innings and overall, if you see for Indian domestic cricket, this win is going to do a lot of good. Also at the global level, when India is actually touring SENA countries or wherever, I think Test matches should be a part of their schedule because they have proven their skills that they can be good Test cricketers. They have shown resilience and mindset when it comes to playing Test cricket. It is very good that we have specialist players for Tests and there are few players who are a part of the team for all the three formats.

"But the real test and real skills are only tested in a red-ball format. So, now is the right time for women's cricket at the global level to increase the number of Tests. Say, keep a three-match or five-match Test series because we can sustain four days now. It is not that we are getting all out in a day and then again the match gets over in 2-3 sessions or something like that. The girls are batting for three-four sessions and then coming back and bowling the next day.

"We had the great master blaster coming and seeing the women cricketers and they said, the following teams can do this but you will always remain the first team to have done this here. So, that kind of words from such a legendary person is going to motivate the girls a lot to do even better in the coming Test games. I wish India plays more Tests in future,” she concluded.

Article Source: IANS