For over seven years, Neha R. Shenoy, who will turn 15 soon, passionately pursued badminton.
She played at the national level and figured in the State ranking till recently before switching to cricket around three months ago. The decision to switch the sport was a difficult one, but the thrice-a-day shuttling between her home in Thripunithura and the camp in Kalamassery was even more so.
The silver lining, though, was that she has walked into a team which will probably become part of the cricket folklore of the region. For Neha, a tenth standard student, is part of the first woman’s cricket team to be formed by the prestigious Thripunithura Cricket Club (TCC) with a legacy close to a century.
The team made up of girls aged between 15 and 19 years boasts of a State player and four district players, all in the Under-19 category, while six are new to cricket. Apart from Neha, the others have switched from sprots like volleyball.
“I am now focussing on fast bowling. The adaptation to cricket was smooth, thanks to the support of my teammates,” says Neha, who engages in day-long practice having received exemption from attending classes.
Previously, TCC’s only tryst with the women’s game was when it hosted an exhibition match featuring the likes of the former Indian captain Shantha Rangaswamy in 1975, a year observed as International Women’s Year by the United Nations.
“For the last three or four years, a few girls have been practising at the TCC on and off but were not regular enough to form a team. The decision to form the team was taken after some 13 to 14 girls started turning up consistently over the last three months. We enlisted the team in a recent Under-14 boy’s tournament after being given an exemption though it was washed out after a match. Results are immaterial as our goal is to give the team maximum exposure as possible,” says Kunal Viswam, cricket in-charge, TCC.
Nominal fee
The team is being coached and allowed to use the TCC facilities for a nominal fee since the organisation has sustainable sources of revenue like a ground for rent. The TCC is also open to funding economically backward members, if any.
“Though having switched from other sports, the beginners are quickly learning the ropes. We put them through various sessions like conditioning and strengthening besides fielding, batting and bowling drills six days a week. For the beginners, the focus is more on improving their batting skills,” says Ramesh Chinnan, the team coach who is a former Kerala Ranji Trophy player.
Practice sessions are held on the ground and the indoor nets six days a week. The morning session starts at 7.45 a.m. and lasts till noon and the afternoon session between 2.30 p.m. and 6 p.m., interspersed with breaks.
“We practise as a team and the beginners are also playing well. The more experienced of us keep helping them out. It is indeed a matter of pride to be part of TCC’s first women’s team. Women are getting more opportunities now and the Kerala Cricket Association and Ernakulam District Cricket Association are also very supportive,” said Manasvi Potti, an all-rounder who represented the State in Under-19 and Under 23 categories.