As Curaçao, the smallest nation to qualify for the Fifa World Cup, had their moment of jubilation on Sunday after scoring a goal against Germany, halfway across the world India women were celebrating too. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side had just beaten Pakistan in their opening game of the T20 World Cup being played in England and Wales. And it happened in front of a record 18,814 fans.
The International Cricket Council counted it as the best-attended Women’s T20 World Cup group match. The other matches of the tournament have also seen fans turning up in good numbers. This World Cup may even surpass the 2020 edition, when the tournament total added up to 1,36,549, with 86,174 fans filling up the Melbourne Cricket Ground for the India-Australia final. The ODI World Cup last year also posted record turnouts as India women went on to win their first global title.
Yet, the biggest women’s T20 World Cup—featuring 12 teams—is being played in the shadow of the biggest men’s sporting event. The tournament began a day after the Fifa event got under way and will end two weeks before the final in New Jersey. For the sake of ensuring greater attention, the ICC could have avoided the clash. Though the dates for the women’s event were announced before the football World Cup’s, the ICC could have discussed the scheduling once it came up. Back in 2010, men’s and women’s T20 World Cups were played in the Caribbean in May, followed by the Fifa event in South Africa in June. Barring the Qatar edition, Fifa World Cups have always taken place in June. This leads us to a pertinent question: would the ICC have scheduled the men’s event at the same time as the football World Cup? Perhaps not.
One thing is clear: this is an opportunity for India women to leave a lasting legacy by winning a second consecutive World Cup. They have started well, but the real test comes next week when they face South Africa and Australia; India will have to beat at least one of them. If they make it to the knockouts, it will be a matter of one good day at a time. If the first World Cup was historic, this win would immortalise their names in the annals of Indian cricket.