NEW DELHI, (Reuters) – Women’s cricket needs better marketing and investment to grow, and not “dubious” innovations like a shorter pitch or smaller boundaries, said India pace bowler Shikha Pandey on Twitter.
Her comments were a response to New Zealand captain Sophie Devine recommending a smaller ball and Pandey’s India team mate Jemimah Rodrigues suggesting a shorter pitch to pack more action into women’s cricket.
Devine and Rodrigues spoke in an innovation webinar organised by the governing International Cricket Council earlier this month, but Pandey found most of their suggestions “superfluous”.
Pandey saw some merit in using a smaller ball but said it must weigh the same because a lighter ball would be tougher to grip and travel more slowly.
A record crowd attended the March 8 final of the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup when Australia beat India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
