The women of Washington State with a passion for cricket

By Remitha Mathew | First Published Jun 17, 2023, 9:18 PM IST

Their passion for the game keeps them going, and along the way, they shatter stereotypes at the forefront of change for women's cricket. Remitha Mathew reports.

It was a beautiful Saturday morning in Seattle. The T20 match between the Seattle Amazonians and SoCal (Southern California Stars) was about to begin. Team SoCal won the toss and elected to bat. In the 11th over, Nupur Agarwal took the first wicket for the team and two more wickets in the first game to get their team the win. Meanwhile, in the second game, Swati Singh, an off-spinner, picked up on her opponent team’s batting strategy. She realized the batter was playing on the front foot leg, and the usual overarm bowling wouldn’t do the trick. So, she delivered a loop drift, wherein the ball goes above eye level, leading the batter to swing her bat and chuck the ball into the air. The ball soared into the fielder’s hands, driving her team to play with determination for a victory.

The intra-regional West Region league saw women cricketers from Washington State and the Bay Area in North America in varying age groups come together with one common interest: playing cricket. For cricket enthusiasts, their love for the game comes from their childhood.

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Photograph: By Special Arrangement

Before learning the techniques of batting and different bowling styles, predominantly in India, cricket is played in the neighbourhood and streets purely because of the passion for the game. Irrespective of gender, kids play cricket from a very young age and have an unwavering athleticism to dive, catch, swing, and bat.

However, as grown-ups, perhaps this passion runs dry when they faithfully prove a penchant for their personal and professional lives. But this was why a few ardent cricket lovers came together to start the American Recreational Cricket League (ARCL) in Washington state in 2002-2003, thus blowing on the embers of the spirit of playing cricket among enthusiasts.

ARCL started predominantly with men, but soon young girls and women came forward to play cricket. Although there aren’t many cricket grounds in the area, the soccer and baseball grounds held a unique charm during their practices. The women’s team started small, and their commitment to the game did not go unseen. Soon their fervour inspired more women to come forward to play cricket.

Anupama Menon, a software professional, has been playing cricket for 20 years now. First, she joined the women’s team with six to eight players playing 12-over matches. But soon, this number grew to over 60 women players in no time. Now, the ARCL has about 6 to 8 women's teams playing more than twice every week.

Photograph: By Special Arrangement

“Although we initially started playing for the excitement and love for the sport, it became more than a recreation. Now we play with a score sheet and an actual hard cricket ball. While the team has players with varying levels of training and experience, we switch between tape ball and tennis ball to be more inclusive of the diverse talents. It was more important for me to connect to my roots, and playing cricket has made that more feasible," said Anupama Menon, an ardent cricket enthusiast.

Yogita Manghnani, ARCL board member, women’s cricket league coordinator, and project manager, has been playing cricket for more than 20 years. Although the odds are almost always stacked against women cricket players, Yogita asserts how ARCL provides more possibilities for women of all ages to engage and outshine in the sport.

“We reach out to friends and colleagues on social media platforms and use word of mouth about the cricket teams we formed with ARCL. That has brought in many interested players with indomitable spirits and unwavering resilience. We, thus, start with chucking the ball, rather than overarm balling just so we ease everyone into the sport,” adds Yogita Manghnani.

Nupur Agarwal, a senior paralegal at an immigration law firm, and Swati Singh, a software engineer, have played cricket since childhood. Both are ARCL members with more than 30 years of experience playing cricket. Today they are part of the cricket league playing against other women’s teams across North America.

Photograph: By Special Arrangement

"The challenges we face in Seattle are mostly from weather-related issues. With frequent overcast and rainy weather, the grass remains moist and soggy, making it difficult to practice more often. Moreover, there are only a handful of indoor cricket academies in Seattle. More indoor practice nets and cricket grounds would make a tremendous difference in our performances while playing the big leagues," adds Nupur Agarwal.

While training on improvised cricket grounds, these women cricket players have focused on every aspect of the game. Their diligence only shows how these women cricket players boost and pit their skills against established other women’s teams across North America.

Swati Singh trained under cricket coaches throughout her school and college days. As someone who plays at cricket leagues in North America, she asserts that women can be an indomitable force when the quality of matches improves.

"The ball spins faster and better when played with the white hard cricket ball. Also, overarm balling makes a massive difference while playing. However, we need to push and improve the technical aspects of playing the game to upgrade our skills. While fielding and playing on soccer fields that are bigger and wider than actual cricket fields, women at ARCL have already proved their mettle. The techniques are all that require more work to be league ready,” adds Swati Singh.

The platform has already been set to bring more women from non-Indian communities. With Microsoft planning to build a new cricket ground in the middle of its Redmond campus in Seattle, the journey of the women’s cricket team will continue, marked by strength, purpose, and an undaunting love for the sport.

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