Beyond the Boundary: An 'action replay' you may love more than live action

At a time when not much sporting action is taking place, this refreshing documentary on ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020 is nothing short of six on a free hit

Exuberant fans erupting into uproarious cheers, Australia’s lush cricket grounds, the most popular commentators, and the world’s 10 best teams competing for a World T20 title — these might all be familiar images even if you are a casual watcher of the game. Now look more closely; there’s a twist — the players donning their team jerseys here are women.

Not every cricket fan would have watched this cricketing spectacle when it actually took place earlier this year, before the coronavirus pandemic swept across the world and brought all sports to a grinding halt. It sounds like years ago, doesn’t it? But you still have a chance. A retrospective documentary on ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020, held in Australia in February-March 2020, Beyond the Boundary brings to life some of the best cricket in recent times.

This documentary, currently streaming on Netflix, is a very clever compilation of match highlights, pre- and post-match interviews with players, officials, commentators, and also some fans. But it has been done very meticulously, and beautifully.

We won’t give out any spoilers here. Either you know and remember what happened in the tournament, or you don’t. Whichever be your case, you will find this 59-minute documentary refreshing. What makes watching this ‘real thing’ more exciting is the presence of fans. The only live cricket action taking place right now between England and Pakistan has that one key factor missing. The jubilation of fans and their raw, honest emotions that you see in this documentary will definitely make you nostalgic. It will help you recall and relive the pre-coronavirus days when sports used to be played as sports should be, with the noise of fans reverberating in the stadium.

Beyond the Boundary begins with the voice of Ian Bishop welcoming fans to the world cup. The small video bytes of players from various teams ease viewers into the show before the showdown. There are no stars in this documentary, except Katy Perry. It’s all about players and their performance in a highly competitive atmosphere. The most heart-warming is the team from Thailand, playing their first world cup and getting Australia as hosts in their debut. The women from the Land of Smiles, as Thailand is called, bring a smile to faces of viewers every time they appear on the screen. They had nothing to lose in this tournament but they brought a lot of energy and positivity.

Heather Knight, Danielle Wyatt, Alyssa Healy, Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning, Harmanpreet Kaur, Poonam Yadav, Shafali Verma all display pure class and talent in the tournament. The documentary progresses in a chronological order as the tournament moves along. The astounding footage from matches and a neat selection of clips is commendable. Credit must go to director-producer Anna Stone for inserting the bytes of players at the right places. Cinematography by Sean Mulcahy will earn applause from all cricket fans. Audio work by Greg Crittenden gives you goosebumps at every critical moment of the documentary.

Statements from commentators like Mel Jones, Isha Guha, Anjum Chopra, Adam Gilchrist, Nasser Hussain, Alan Wilkins, Harsha Bhogle and others are all naturally animated and critical.

Rippers are taken, dollies are dropped, hat-tricks are missed, quick wickets turn games around, direct hits shatter the stumps, matches go down to the wire, a century beyond comparison is made, a team chokes in a very familiar fashion (those who know, know), rain plays spoilsport, and a world champion is crowned on International Women's Day.

Commentators talk about women empowerment and how this tournament puts women's cricket on the sports map of the world. Katy Perry performs on the final day of the tournament and she talks about women players and their progress in the world of sports. Yet, what stands out and advocates for women empowerment is the jaw-dropping display of skills by 150 women from 10 teams in 14 days. Words cannot define empowerment as beautifully as a fielder in the deep flying in the air to take a catch, or a senior player maintaining her resolve and consoling a distraught youngster after losing the finals.

All this happened in two weeks, and this documentary got all of this action and much more in under an hour. At a time when not much sporting action is taking place, this is nothing short of six on a free hit. Trust me, even if you watched the whole tournament, you wouldn’t find anything stale here. And if you have not, well, brace for something that is sure to make you a fan of women’s cricket.

And yes, after watching this, it won't feel odd when the commentator says, "She's got her!"