India women's team has changed view of female sport, says Kohli

The achievements of India's women's cricket team in recent years have revolutionised perceptions towards women's sport, driving increased engagement, commercial success and financial stability, according to batsman Virat Kohli.

The India women's team, who won silver at the Commonwealth Games and gold at the Asian Games in 2022, are third in the International Cricket Council's Twenty20 and one-day rankings, trailing only Australia and England.

"I think what the India women's cricket team has done over the last few years, they are the ones who were the catalysts to put the attention onto them," Kohli said at the RCB Innovation Lab Indian Sports Summit on Saturday in Bengaluru.

"I literally saw it happening like in a time span of six, seven years. The way they started playing, you could see the belief that people started engaging in a lot more.

"Eventually, it got to a place where commercials became better. Money was being infused into the women's game and then you have the WPL (Women's Premier League)."

While the men's Indian Premier League started in 2008, it took 15 years for women to have their own T20 league in India.

Kohli, the T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy winner, said the league has taken the game "two to three levels higher than it used to be.

"You can't just look at the men for the improvement of sport in any country. It has to be a collective sports culture and it includes everyone. And women's sport is a massive part of it," Kohli said.

"We have so much talent in women's sport, not just cricket, but all the other sports. We have had great individual athletes over the years - tennis, badminton, wrestling and boxing.

"... It's definitely heading in the right direction and it keeps getting more backing and more infrastructure to be developed for them as well as for their sport to grow."

DRIVING FORCE

Cricket has been the driving force behind change in the sporting ecosystem in India but women's participation in other sports in the country still needs more support and platforms for exposure.

Former Australia soccer player and FIFA Council member Moya Dodd, echoed Kohli's sentiments, saying the success of women's cricket in India would pave the way for the development of other sports in the country.

"I think there's room for more than one sport and even though one sport may lead, I think it does create space for women to participate in other sports," she said at the Summit on Friday.

"I think seeing the success of the WPL... it's extraordinary and that does help shift mindset and cultural views towards women playing sport full stop and that will help other sports."

Dodd compared the potential impact of the India women's cricket team to that of the Matildas, Australia's national women's football team, which she said created a "social movement around gender equality, women's empowerment, and inclusion.

"The success of women's cricket in India will drive that movement, and other women's sports will gain the permission of society to also reflect that and build their growth from that."