NEWS
Follow UsFormer Indian women’s team WV Raman felt that the players should be allowed to make mistakes and learn from them as they set out to play two Tests this year.
The women’s team will return to the longest format after a gap of seven years with the one-off Test against England in June and their maiden pink-ball Test against Australia in October.
“They will have the benefit of being allowed a little bit of follies to be committed because they are playing after a long time. They will have that cushion in a way because people will understand that it is not going to be easy for them to play Test cricket after seven years and that too, an away game, especially in England, where the ball can perhaps seam,” Raman told Sportstar on Thursday.
“I am not saying that they will not do well, but if in the event, they can’t do as well as expected, they will always have that leeway because they are playing after a long time. It will be a sort of great learning also,” he added.
When asked if it will be difficult for limited-overs specialists such as Jemimah Rodrigues and Shafali Verma, Raman said: “Even in men’s cricket, you get a lot more results as compared to what you would get four decades ago. The way the cricketers are brought up has changed. Today’s cricketers like to play their shots and they want to be busy at the crease. They don’t really like to just hang in there and scratch around for runs. That’s the way cricket is today. So, you have to sort of accept that this is how the pace of play will be.”
Raman also said that the predictions on India’s performance in the pink-ball Test must stop.
“Look, it’s like damned if you do, damned if you don't. Let them have some experience. Why are we even taking it for granted that the girls will also find it difficult or they will have a bad game? Let’s see how it pans out. Let them gain the experience, let them play and then only we can talk about it. Why are we even thinking of repairing something when it is not even needed. Let it all happen,” Raman said.