On top of the world: Institutional support has empowered women's cricket

The euphoria over a famous victory should not detract from the fact that the women's cricket has a long distance to travel to catch up with the men's game

The nation may justly be proud of the historic victory of the Indian women’s cricket team at the ICC Women’s World Cup but note should also be taken of the institutional support that has made this hitherto male-dominated sport a viable profession for talented young sportswomen from all walks of life. Old timers recall the days when women’s cricket was considered an unprofessional side-show with scant access to equipment and even less money — with presenter Mandira Bedi famously donating her commercial earnings for the women’s team to buy air-tickets for a tour of England. In that sense,