Photo: RevSportz Diana Edulji, the former India women’s team captain who was also in the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA), narrated the story. The Northern Railway didn’t have the provision to give Harmanpreet Kaur a job. It was the formative years for the current India women’s team skipper.

Edjulji asked Harmanpreet to apply for a job in the Western Railway and requested Sachin Tendulkar to give her a letter, recommending Harmanpreet. The great man readily agreed. “To my surprise, Harmanpreet’s application, accompanying Tendulkar’s letter, was rejected by the Railway Board,” said Edjulji at a book launch event at the CCI here on Thursday.

The book, Her Story, Glory, is written by Aditya Bhushan, with Jhulan Goswami doing the foreword. The presenter’s note is from Shyam Bhatia. Coming back to Harmanpreet’s story, Edluji said she took the matter to the Railway Board chair and eventually got it done.

Rewind to 1976, and the Indian women’s team were playing their first official series, against the West Indies. The Women’s Cricket Association of India was an independent body back then, not part of the BCCI. It was a Test in Patna, and the players were told they would receive the money (match fees) only after the game.

The cricketers put their foot down and the administrators had to budge. In October 2022, with Jay Shah as then BCCI secretary, the cricket board announced that the country’s centrally-contracted women cricketers would earn the same match fees as their male counterparts for playing international matches. Women’s cricket in India now boasts superstars and attracts sizable audiences.

It has come a long way. The book brings to life the struggles and triumphs of the pioneers. The post appeared first on .