Indian blind women cricket gets a boost

It is a commendable achievement by all sporting standards, but even more so for Varsha, who is visually impaired. In the blind cricket lingo, she is a category B1 player, totally blind (B2 players are partially blind, with visibility up to 3m, while B3 players are partially sighted and can see up to at 6m).

Varsha is the star of our team, "said Shika Shetty, sports coordinator for the Karnataka cricket team for blind women, which is run under the aegis of the Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled, headquartered in Bangalore. She learns very quickly, given her relative lack of experience in the sport. "

Like many of her teammates, Varsha comes from an agrarian family. His father is a farmer and his mother a housewife in the Chitradurga district of Karnataka. In December, with 10 other girls aged 16 to 25, she flew for the first time in their lives to Delhi to play at the national level. It was a steep learning curve for the team, set up in less than a month by Shetty, who sought out potential members of Karnataka schools and colleges.

The exams were in progress at the time and it was difficult for many girls, most of whom came from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, to get to Bengaluru for camp, "said Shetty. Schools were also hesitant about safety, which made families more worried about sending their daughters hard enough to be a young athlete in rural India, being blind makes matters worse. Some of the girls who asked to join the The team didn't know any of the rules of the game, they had never even had a bat before, "adds Shetty.

The girls, however, were quick to take back, fueled by big dreams and without being intimidated by their disability. I was inspired by normal people's cricket, "says Kavya NR of Tumkur, Karnataka. A B3 player who is good with the ball, she is also a marathon runner and has experience in wall climbing in Kashmir My favorite player is Ajay Reddy (the captain of the national team for the blind), "she said. We too want to play internationally, like boys. "

The Indian National Team for Blind Men was formed in 2011 by the Cricket Association for the Blind in India (Cabi), affiliated with the World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC). Cabi is a subsidiary of Samarthanam, which was co-founded in 1997 by Mahantesh G.K., who lost his sight due to typhoid at the age of six months. Currently president of the WBCC, he is closely involved in the implementation of the rules and regulations governing the game for the blind. It was her proactive interest, as well as the support of donors and stakeholders, who ultimately made the blind women team a reality.

We have been talking about blind women's cricket since our first annual general meeting to discuss blind men's cricket in 2011-12, "said Mahantesh when we met at the Samarthanam office in Bangalore. In 2012, the Indian team blind men defeated Pakistan in T20 The World Cup caused a sudden spike in interest in blind cricket. Shortly after, when I met girls during visits to ; school and college, they complained of doing nothing to allow them to practice this sport, "he adds. Logistical and financial support was lacking until the Australian Consulate General in Chennai intervened with a grant of 8 lakh last year.

It's hard to get people to appreciate the importance of any sport in Indiamore, so for blind female cricket, especially when conversations about traditional female cricket are just starting to gain field in recent years, "said Kumaraswamy, who deals with business at Samarthanam. The Australians were not selfless donors, thinking they were also concerned about the well- be general of the team. Australian cricket icon and former player Steve Waugh went down to hang out with the girls, for example (former West Indies player Brian Lara and Smriti Mandhana, part of the Indian national women's cricket team, was also present at the first national blind women tournament in Delhi in December).

While some states (like Odisha, who won the tournament) have had a cricket team for blind women for a few years, for Karnataka, this is the start of a rocky road. The team does not have a dedicated stadium or field where they can meet for regular practice of the net. Limited funds make it difficult to transport players from different parts of the state or welcome them to Bengaluru for weeks at a time. Yet the newly formed team, some of whose members were sports enthusiasts, demonstrated remarkable strength against an aggressive team from Delhi in the first rounds of December. And despite unfavorable weather conditions in the finals, they placed second.

A series of warm-up matches against Kerala had cheered the girls from Karnataka, but they weren't prepared for temperatures dropping to 7-8 degrees Celsius. They had trouble releasing the ball correctly. We have ended up playing bowling far too many times, although the girls have shown excellent team coordination, "said Shetty. Like most of them come from a background racing, they also have excellent physical endurance. "

Skipper Sunita Dhondappanavar, a B2 player from Belgavi, led the team with talent, strategizing with Shetty on the eve of each game and making quick decisions on the field. Renuka Rajput, a B2 player from Vijayapura who skipped her college exams on her way to Delhi, has proven to be an agile, fast-paced goalkeeper, though at times a little forgetful of the elaborate rules of blind cricket.

Impressed by their first performance, the Karnataka team is aware of the work that awaits them. I urge them not to be quiet, but to fight for their rights on and off the field, "said Shetty. Hopefully, many other stakeholders will step in to encourage these lively girls on my way.