Women in cricket: Breaking barriers and fostering inclusivity

Inclusivity is becoming a greater focus in Australia's sporting world, as seen in the recent years of success for women's competitions.

Especially in the case of women in cricket, which has taken great strides in breaking down gender barriers and creating initiatives that foster inclusivity.

These changes encompass grassroots cricket to national institutions, as seen by the programs outlined by Cricket Australia to improve female participation.

Cricket Australia has taken steps to initiate its breakdown of gender barriers through its partnership with NRMA Insurance.

The two organisations have collaborated to create a program called Cricket Grants to promote the incorporation of diverse cricketing programs, including those for women in sports.

Click here to learn more about how NRMA Insurance promotes inclusivity in cricket.

Women in cricket nearly have a history as long as the men, with the first local women's competition arising in Tasmania by 1894.

Since its inception, the trend of female cricket competitions has spread nationwide, with the Australian Women's Cricket Association beginning its operations in 1931.

Just three years later, the first national team took on England for the start of the women's test matches. This international tour of 14 three-day matches saw the foundation of women's cricket as we know it today.

The 1900s saw women's cricket break into the mainstream Australian scene, with domestic teams forming their own competitions across the country.

This eventually resulted in the women's Twenty20 being organised in 2008/09, excluding Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania until the following summer.

Recently, the governing body of women's cricket merged with Cricket Australia, aiming to achieve overall inclusivity and gender equality at all levels of the sport.

This resulted in women joining men for the annual Big Bash League in 2015, which has continued today as a highly anticipated summer highlight in sport.

While these initiatives faced challenges in obtaining funding, public recognition, and overall acceptance, the future of women's cricket still looks brighter than ever.

Currently, women's cricket in Australia is thriving.

The sport has seen a steady increase in female participants within the past few years, with 2018 identifying that six out of ten new participants were female.

Such a rise in numbers can be attributed to public awareness of women's capabilities in sports, pushed by the broadcasting of various professional games on local, national, and international levels.

In 2020, the Australian women's cricket team generated national interest in women's sports by claiming the T20 World Cup.

Over 87,000 Australians watched live at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), with even more watching from home to see the team claim their victory.

This has set a trend of packed-out stadiums and public broadcasting of most women's competitions on a national and international level, with avid fans of all genders and ages watching women lead the way in a new era of cricket.

Cricket Australia has categorised over 5000 local all-girls teams across the nation and believes there's more to come.

They want to accelerate this growth by building on existing initiatives and developing new plans to represent and engage with more women.

Many of their initiatives focus on increasing participation and breaking down the barriers that prevent gender equality in sports.

Despite the increasing popularity of women's cricket, there are still plenty of challenges to overcome in the name of gender equality.

Most sports are still viewed as male-dominant, making it difficult for women competing on the same level to get the recognition they deserve.

This includes professional cricket in Australia, with aspects like limited media coverage or opportunities, fewer role models, and a lack of funding affecting the development of the sport.

The limited media coverage of professional women's games means that not only are women not given the same level of respect as men, but the players are not as well known.

This affects many of their chances to secure endorsements or sponsorship deals, which leads to the unequal pay offered to such athletes.

The gap between male and female cricketers' pay is still substantial, preventing or deterring many women from making a career out of the sport.

Thus, there are fewer role models within cricket for younger girls to look up to and aspire to be like.

The lack of funding for sports affects the game's development at nearly every level. Women's cricket is provided less funds than men's cricket, causing a decrease in quality and access to necessary resources.

This lack of resources often results in limited opportunities for women to play the game, with many local clubs not advocating for women's or girls' teams to interested parties.

The gender bias at the foundation of sports like cricket must be addressed at an institutional level for change to come.

Changing the public's opinion of cricket as a male-dominated sport will allow for greater media coverage and funding, resulting in a more inclusive culture.

Hope for such a change is already unfurling with the recent success of the Matilda's in soccer, and it is the hope that investors begin to take notice of more sports beyond them.

Fortunately, organisations within the cricketing world recognise this need to overturn gender bias.

Many burgeoning grassroots initiatives and grants around Australia direct their funding and attention towards women's cricket.

NRMA Insurance and its partnership with Cricket Australia are major players in this field, creating the Community Cricket Club Grants Program (Cricket Grants) to make local clubs more inclusive.

In the first year of its inception, Cricket Grants offered four local cricket clubs $15,000 each to fund their development.

For some, this included rolling out inclusive initiatives to draw a more diverse crowd of participants.

Specifically, creating programs for women to develop female teams and incorporate them into regional competitions.

These funds can also be used to develop the club's leadership structures, with women earning a position of authority to allow their voices to be heard.

This creates a more welcoming environment for girls and women alike, as they know their interests will be considered by a club with female leadership.

This kind of initiative is important on all levels of cricket, but especially in terms of grassroots, as this is where talent can be fostered.

Paving the path to greater opportunities in the professional cricketing world is the responsibility of local clubs, which can be achieved through more grants and initiatives targeting the lack of funding.

Cricket Australia aims to make cricket "a sport for all that makes Australians proud."

This includes making the sport more accessible to women and other communities that may not have had the chance to be recognised and celebrated.

Particular focus has been paid to multiculturalism, LGBTQ+ communities, and cricketers with a disability.

Cricket Australia is developing the Multicultural Action Plan to generate more cultural diversity in cricket.

This particular demographic has been steadily increasing in participation numbers due to the recent public interest in social cohesion.

The LGBTQ+ community has also been included in recent initiatives, with Cricket Australia partnering with the inclusion program, Pride in Sport.

Collectively, they aim to develop strategies and commit to actions that protect and promote the inclusion of LGBTQ+ individuals.

This includes the participation of gender-diverse and transgender cricketers, with strict guidelines rolled out in 2019 to ensure their inclusion.

There is hope for the future of women's cricket with such time and effort going into these nationwide initiatives.

Soon, the future of cricket itself will be one of diversity and inclusion.

The future of women's cricket is bright despite the continued challenges to inclusivity and diversity.

More girls and women are expected to join local clubs in the near future, creating a whole new generation of driven and skilled professional players.

Furthermore, these women are expected to come from more diverse backgrounds as grassroots programs are initiated to boost participation.

By creating more welcoming environments within local clubs, pushing back against gender bias, and altogether supporting women in sports, cricket can break down barriers and foster inclusivity.

We can all look forward to the continued growth of women's cricket so long as we put in the effort and raise our voices in the name of equality.