Former India captain Diana Edulji has slammed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), saying the cricket governing body in the country is a "male chauvinist organization".
Edulji, who had represented India during her 17-year-long international career between 1976 to 1993, is also part of the Committee of Administrators (CoA), which was formed by the Supreme Court to oversee the operations of the BCCI.
The 61-year-old went on to say that former BCCI president N Srinivasan had told her during one of their meetings that he did not want women's cricket to happen. Notably, the BCCI took women's cricket under its wings in 2006 and has controlled all the aspects of the game ever since.
Edulji, while speaking at an event organised by The Indian Express, has even made a scathing allegation that some of the members of the BCCI are not able to celebrate the good performance of Mithali Raj and Co. at the recently-concluded ICC Women's World Cup in England.
Notably, India finished second best in the final against England, but the highpoint of the tournament came when Harmanpreet Kaur smashed an unbeaten 171 in the semi-final to knock the then defending champions Australia out of the quadrennial tournament.
"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. 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 said.
She added: "[In 2011], When Mr [N] Srinivasan became president, I would like to say that I went to congratulate him at the Wankhede Stadium. He said, 'If I had my way, I wouldn't let women's cricket happen'."
Edulji's comments comes at a time when the women's cricket across the globe is flourishing. The Women's World Cup final between India and England became the most-watched women's sporting event in India, reportedly clocking 19.53m impressions on television.
No initiative from BCCI for women's IPL
While England Cricket Board and Cricket Australia have already come up with Twenty20 leagues for women, the BCCI is still not sure about having a women's version of the cash-rich Indian Premier League.
The BCCI had reportedly maintained that it was willing to work for the betterment of women's cricket in India, but that a women's IPL is not financially feasible. The richest cricket body in the world also used its ongoing tussle with the CoA as an excuse for pushing the plans for women's T20 league.
"There is no denying the fact that the women cricketers have made us proud. They deserve all the accolades and definitely this is the time to promote the game in the country and help create a solid foundation for the women's game to go from strength to strength," an unnamed BCCI official said, as quoted by the News 18.
It added: "But to think of a women's IPL would be a little far-fetched as it is not financially feasible at present. Also, the current unrest within the BCCI as the board is trying its best to implement the proposals of the Lodha panel at the earliest means that the women's IPL needs to wait at present."
Meanwhile, there is this ever-present debate over the disparity in pay between the men's and the women's cricket team in the country. Also, the women's cricket team is taking a hit due of lack of long domestic season and regular international fixtures.
