Watch the lasses padding up
View(s):Hell broke loose in Sri Lanka’s women’s cricket, when the Australian Ladies drubbed them five-nil in their series played here. There were accusations that the game had faced a steady decline especially during the last year, and even in general the women’s cricket achievements have not been encouraging at all. However let us go to the people that matter and see how this cross section ascertains the situation.
Vinothan John
(Former Sri Lanka Cricketer and Chairman Selection Committee Women’s Cricket)
There are no issues concerning Women’s Cricket in Sri Lanka. All matters have been solved. I have been appointed as Chairman Selection Committee because all controversial issues have been solved. We are now moving forward with a fresh campaign to promote Women’s Cricket in Sri Lanka. We see a lot of new players coming up from the clubs and schools. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has already started their campaign to develop the game in the clubs as well in the schools. Apsara Tillakaratne, wife of former Sri Lanka Captain Hashan Tillakaratne is in charge of this new programme. A lot of talented players have come forward because of this new programme initiated by the SLC. The England team will be arriving in Sri Lanka next month. We are also scheduled to compete in a T20 Tournament. We are currently in search of talented players and are closely following the ongoing Division Two Tournament. We have already identified several talented players. We hope to popularise the sport among the schools by introducing Big Matches.
There is a shortage of players currently at National level. We see the same players coming back into the National Team after they were left out from selection. There is no improvement among these players. We have to change this situation. I think there is a bad impression on women’s cricket in Sri Lanka among the general public these days. And due to this fact the parents are reluctant to encourage their children in taking up women’s cricket. I can say with a responsibility that there are no such bad issues concerning women’s cricket and I urge all parents to encourage their children to play the game. We have cleared all controversies concerning women’s cricket in Sri Lanka.
Vanessa de Silva (Sri Lanka’s first Captain in Women’s World Cup – 1997)
Women’s Cricket has been played in Sri Lanka for a long period. In the early days Women’s Cricket was controlled by Gwen Herath. She was the President of the Women’s Cricket National Body which was recognised by the ICC. I captained the team that played in the first World Cup in 1997 in India. There was a huge following for the Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Team at that time. The international recognition increased after the Women’s Body amalgamated with the SLC. The players received all what they needed to continue with the sport. The National level players also found excellent employment opportunities. The level in schools has reached a high standard. There are a number of age group tournaments conducted by the SLC. The game has developed in the outstation and now we have 34 teams competing in leather ball and 110 teams competing in softball cricket. Women’s cricket is played in some of the rural areas as well. SLC has also commenced an Under-13 development programme. We have appointed the wife a former Sri Lanka Captain in charge of this programme. Unlike in the past we cannot find any shortcomings in Women’s Cricket today. We have appointed coaches at District and Provincial level.
We also maintain a National Squad comprising of 20 players and a Development Squad comprising of 20 players. We have eight ‘Division One’ teams. There are 12 teams in the Division Two. Most of the National players are employed with Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air Force. They all receive the same facilities like the Men’s Cricket Team. We agree that there is a shortcoming in the number of games played in the domestic scene. This is because we are yet to win a major title at international level. This was the same situation with the Men’s team at the beginning. But it changed after the 1996 World Cup victory. This will no doubt change if the Women’s Cricket Team could win a major title in the future. We have enough talented players to achieve this goal. We played the first Test against Pakistan in 1998.We played our first one day against Netherlands in 1997. We played our first T20 in the 2009 World Cup. We won the Bronze Medal at the 2014 Asian Games. This is our biggest achievement in Women’s Cricket.
Dileema Pieterson (Sports PTI Devi Balika MV, Colombo)
I think there was a huge damage to the reputation of women’s cricket in Sri Lanka following the recent incidents which took place in the country whether it may be false or true. There is a bad impression among the general public from the moment one speak about women’s cricket. This situation has severely affected the schools. We do not find a good response from the parents. The general idea about women’s cricket among the schools is that it is a sport that consumes a lot of time unlike some of the other sports. The higher authorities of some of the leading schools in the country including the Principal, teachers and even the parents do not like their children consuming so much time on this sport. The main focus in these schools is their education. Their target is to produce top class students who would end up as doctors, engineers and accountants. They do not want their education disrupted by taking up a sport like women’s cricket. They prefer their students being at the highest level in education rather than obtaining popularity in women’s cricket.
The students at Devi Balika MV are also not keen in taking up the sport seriously. We have a good reputation of having produced top students at the Grade 5 Scholarship and at the GCE O/L Examinations. In addition we have a number of top students who have joined the school from the outstation. Their priority is always education and the sports events come second. The students prefer to indulge in a sport which does not consume so much of time which they cannot afford to do. We find a lot of men are involved in women’s cricket coaching and selection. This is also a major drawback for the game to be popularised. I think it would be better if the female involvement in women’s cricket is more and that could bring some inspiration to the students and parents. Our women cricketers are provided with all the facilities which the players of the other countries enjoy. Women’s cricket has been identified as a money spinning sport in Sri Lanka as well as in other countries. I think this sport is ideal for those students who do not wish to endeavour in a long academic career. These students are assured of a good employment and financial benefits as well.
Rohini Fernando
(Former Sri Lanka player and former Secretary Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Association)
I am proud to say that for many years I took the responsibility and kept the game alive in the country. I also established a national body for Women’s Cricket in 1999. That was named as the Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Association (SLWCA). The late Minister C. V. Goonaratne’s wife was elected as the first President and I was the Secretary. The Sports Ministry also recognised this association in 1999. In the meantime, Gwen Herath set up another organisation as the Women’s Cricket Association of Sri Lanka (WCASL). This organisation was not recommended by the Sports Ministry but the International Women’s Cricket Council (IWCC) accepted it. Few years later the IWCC was taken over by the ICC and as a result the SLC also took over the Women’s Cricket.
Actually, the standard of Women’s cricket in Sri Lanka has dropped to a very low level. But overall today the techniques used by the players have improved unlike it was few years ago. The playing style is excellent. There are a lot of talented players. Our players have a good future if they are guided in the correct path. Our Women’s Cricket Team could reach high standards like the Men’s Cricket Team. But because of the internal problems associated with the game, parents and players are hesitant to get involved. There is no transparency in Women’s Cricket. I think the biggest mistake is the appointment of men into the National Selection Committee. The authorities should look into appointing veteran women’s players into the National Selection Committee. We should also recruit more umpires and women’s coaches to the game. Unfortunately the Women’s Coaches and Umpires are not recognised in Sri Lanka unlike in some of the other countries.
The veteran women’s cricketers have no future in Sri Lanka. If we produce good coaches and umpires at club and school level then we could look forward to see top national players coming out. Then the parents will also be happy to encourage their children to play cricket. Most of the coaching and umpiring in other countries are done by the women. I think Women’s Cricket should be handled by the women. Women’s Cricket has been played in Sri Lanka since 1970. Although there is a long history for the game in Sri Lanka the former players have no say and have been completely ignored by the authorities. The SLC have closed the doors on those who are willing to help to promote the game. The Sports Ministry and the SLC should realize the importance of women’s cricket and should work together to take the game to a new level.
