BCCI Pay-Parity: Historic Moment in Indian Women’s Cricket

By Indraneel Chakrabarty: The BCCI on Thursday announced the implementation of a pay equity policy for its contracted Women cricketers. Members unanimously passed the resolution during the Board’s 15thApex Council meeting, held via video conference.

Newly appointed BCCI President (former India player and ‘83 WC winner) Mr Roger Binny said: “In our Apex Council meeting today, we have made a marquee decision on pay equity for our women cricketers. Our women players will be paid the same match fees as men in international cricket. This decision sets the platform to grow and develop cricket. I believe this is a significant step forward for women’s cricket and the game overall.”

Contracted women players are now set to earn

• Test Matches – Rs. 15 lacs/match
• One-Day Internationals: Rs. 6 lacs/match
• T20 International: Rs 3 lakh/match

Till recently, women cricketers received Rs. 1 lakh per match for white-ball games and Rs. 4 lakhs per match for Test matches.

BCCI’s Annual Retainership for women cricketers remains unchanged:

• Grade A: Rs. 50 lacs
• Grade B: Rs. 30 lacs
• Grade C: Rs. 10 lacs

Reactions poured in from many former and current women cricketers:

This is a historic decision for women’s cricket in India! With the pay equity policy and the WIPL next year, we are areushering into a new era for women’s cricket in India. Thank you, @JayShah Sir & the @BCCI, for making this happen. Really happy today. – tweeted former Indian skipper Mithali Raj.

Truly a red-letter day for Women’s Cricket in India, with pay parity announced for women and men. Thank you @BCCI and @JayShah – Harmanpreet Kaur wrote on Twitter.

Diana Edulji, now 66, who played – between 1976-93 – during the WCAI (Women’s Cricket Association of India) era, recollected how women players paid from their own pockets to play for India, including at World Cups. While speaking to Indian Express, she said, “Match fees were unheard of, she said. Describing BCCI’s pay parity announcement as a ‘Deepavali’ gift for women cricketers, she said it was a reward for them for their on-field progress.”

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Effecting this change, India becomes only the 2nd country among international cricket-playing nations to implement equal pay. New Zealand Cricket, earlier this year, announced its decision to equal match fees for its women players.

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2017’s World Cup final at Lord’s proved to be the watershed moment for Indian women cricketers, the former India skipper for women, Edulji, said in a quote attributed to the Indian Express.

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