Women's Cricket in Common Wealth Games - 2022

An official announcement has came that, women's cricket is officially be a part of Commonwealth Games in 2022. It is the only second time after 1998's Kuala Lumpur edition, that cricket has been included in Commonwealth Games and also the first time that women's cricket is a part of Commonwealth Games. This is a starting step for cricket to become a global sport. Also, this is seen as the main step for women's cricket to get much more recognition. 

The eagerness for 2022's Commonwealth Games has begun right here, as Cricket, getting a spot. England women cricket team has qualified automatically, as being the hosts. Also, other six top ranked national sides in T20Is will qualify ( ranking as of April, 2021 ) and the spot for last side, that is the eighth side, will have a qualification round. In England, Birmingham has been chosen as a city to host all events. So, Edgbaston will host all cricket games that takes place. Just imagine these women playing under the crowd of Edgbaston, for Commonwealth Games. Seriously, mind blowing one !

In the qualifiers, teams like Sri Lanka, Pakistan, West Indies and Bangladesh will fight. If West Indies, wins the qualifiers, then there will be a qualifying tournament between the 9 islands of West Indies, which are of different rules and regulations. In those nine islands, the team which wins the qualifying Caribbean Tournament, will be awarded a slot. This qualification will be announced before April 2022.

This tournament is scheduled to take place from July 28th to August 8th, at Birmingham. ICC's Chief Executive Manu Sawhney said that "Cricket at the Commonwealth Games is a fantastic opportunity for us to continue to grow the women’s game globally. We are committed to accelerating this growth and maintaining the momentum we have created over the past few years, which most recently saw 86,174 fans packed into the MCG for the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020". 

The ultimate winning of 2020 T20 World Cup, has been a driving force for not only Aussies women captain Meg Lanning, but also for each and every women cricketer present all over the world. This driving force, has now moved them to the next step, 2022 Commonwealth Games ! 

Heath Knight, English women captain, said in an interview that " It’s incredibly exciting that we’re going to be taking part in the Commonwealth Games on home soil. It’s an event I’ve often watched and I never really imagined I’d be taking part so it feels really special. It’s another fantastic opportunity for the game of cricket, with coverage live on the BBC, and the chance to reach the thousands of fans who like attending multi-discipline events. We can’t wait to be in Birmingham amongst all the other athletes, and we’re counting down towards 2022 – it’s going to be a huge year for us and for women’s cricket in general."

Also, India's women team Captain, Harmanpreet Kaur has recently said that " The inclusion of cricket at the Commonwealth Games is huge for all players and the game in general. Representing your country in a multi-discipline event is a different challenge and with it comes the responsibility of being emissaries of the game since it can get us new followers and fans.I hope to be there at the games and wish that it is a great success with some engrossing matches and high quality of cricket "

Along with them, Aussies Captain, Meg Lanning had said that "The women’s game has gone to another level over the past few years and its inclusion at the Commonwealth Games is a huge opportunity to take it further. The announcement of the schedule and qualifying process is an exciting milestone and one that will no doubt create plenty of excitement among players across the globe. Winning the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in front of a record crowd at the Melbourne Cricket Ground was absolutely incredible but we’re now looking to the future with some amazing events and challenges on the horizon including the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games."

So, in the list of 2021 and 2022 Men's T20 Cricket World Cup, 2023 Men's Cricket World Cup, 2022 ICC Women's T20 World Cup, 2022 ICC Women's Cricket World Cup, now let us add 2022 Commonwealth Games into it. After a 6 month of halt for cricket, now the game is getting even more larger and for cricket fans, it is purely a visual treat, viewing enormous cricket matches.