TOURNAMENT PREVIEW
Follow UsIt is human nature to find fresh reasons for optimism even when one is deep in the doldrums of darkness. Even if the light isn’t visible, imagining it gives one the warmth and power to keep walking in the dark.
That’s what hope is, right? A fight between the banality of logic and the sheer infinities of human possibilities!
That’s exactly the fight in my mind right now as I sit and platform my train of thoughts on the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, starting a day later (on October 3) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Because you see, so many people in the cricket world would be surprised to know that a World Cup is starting so soon. There has hardly been any buzz about the marquee tournament, either on social media or otherwise. The fact that even the warmup games haven’t been telecast hasn’t helped the case either.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) had earlier scheduled this World Cup in Bangladesh. However, the political instability and violence that followed PM Sheikh Hasina's exit rendered hosting the tournament unsafe. The ICC had to move quickly, with Jay Shah denying any possibility of India hosting the tournament. UAE was chosen as the venue, and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) held the hosting rights.
Alas, the tournament was hardly promoted in the UAE or the world, with the main broadcaster, Star Sports, running stale ads featuring just the Indian team. Add to this the fact that only 10 teams are participating in a cricket World Cup in 2024, the overall aura of the tournament just goes below the sea level.
The woebegone state of affairs would definitely be a huge deterrent to the overall success of the tournament. However, there’s one saving grace left, and that’s where all the hope from this tournament is homed — the cricket itself!
Because you see, Scotland won’t care that only 10 teams are allowed, and teams like Ireland, which have shown tremendous development, have to watch the tournament from Dublin and not Dubai. They would hope to make their first-ever Women’s T20 World Cup historic in every sense of the word.
The stories from that team, whether it is the tale of the Bryce sisters (Kathryn and Sarah) or the inspiring story of Abtaha Maqsood, will finally get the platform they deserve. And imagine, maybe just for a second, how tremendous it would be if they manage to win even a single game in this tournament, considering that every team is better ranked and pedigreed than them?
That’s hope, right? So what that the ICC didn’t do much to hype it up? Let the cricket talk, and the sound of the bat hitting the ball becomes the sound of hope.
After all, that’s what most other teams would also hope to hear this tournament as they embark on a mission that is currently tougher than smuggling drugs in Dubai airport —stopping Australia from winning another World Cup.
The close observer of the women’s game has inevitably noticed how Australia aren't invincible anymore. Without Meg Lanning at the helm, they seem more human, more capable of fallings, which was a rarity under her leadership. However, England won a T20I series against them, and West Indies even defeated them in a T20I in Australia, chasing 200+. India have continued to challenge them, and yet again, both England and India would be desperate to defeat the most successful team in cricket’s modern history.
In the case of India, the moment feels really prescient because the first two seasons of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) have already started to transform how the most populous country in the living world consumes women’s cricket. A World Cup win would break the banks of fandom. If Harmanpreet Kaur’s ladies win the World Cup, just imagine how significant it would be for women’s sports in the country, not just cricket.
Meanwhile, if you look at the overall state of women’s cricket, mid-table teams like Sri Lanka have consistently risen after playing the most number of games (31) since the last T20 World Cup for any full member nation. With them being placed in a group of death along with India (who they defeated in the Asia Cup final), Australia, New Zealand and Pakistan totally expect Chamari Athapaththu’s women to challenge the domination of Indians and the Aussies in challenging conditions.
All these subplots and stories will now come together in a day’s time and will be seriously tested under the desert sun in Dubai and Sharjah. The heat will test the power of hope in all these stories. The dew factor will make converting hope into reality even tougher, and the turn at Sharjah might divert many teams from their destiny.
However, these teams would still hope to perform their best and punch above their weight, and some might even dream of usurping Australia’s throne. The administration's lackadaisical attitude will become background noise when these stories unfold in a day.
Until then, maybe we should wonder why hope always has to fight such battles. Why does every single ICC Women’s tournament continue to begin with almost no buzz and then rely on the cricket to do all the heavy lifting?
Until you get the answers, just wish that hope springs eternal. If that happens, it might be a tournament to remember after all.
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