How many cricket fans in the country remember when India reached the finals of the cricket World Cup in South Africa, ending an otherwise prolific tournament with a disheartening defeat to Australia in the final?

No, this is not about the 2003 World Cup when Sourav Ganguly and Co finished runners-up.

Mithali Raj and Co reached the finals of the 2005 Women’s World Cup beating South Africa, England, West Indies and New Zealand en route, but had to be content with finishing second after Australia beat them by 98 runs in the final. But one could be forgiven for not remembering this as these matches weren’t telecast in India. No live coverage means no awareness and no welcome parties at airports and no effigies to be burned. India has not reached the final of another World Cup since, and in fact, finished second last in the last World Cup, played on home soil in 2013.

But heading into the 2017 Women’s World Cup which begins in England and Wales from 24 June, things couldn’t be more different. Like she was 12 years ago, Mithali Raj is still leading the Women in Blue. But unlike 2005, you will be able to watch her lead the team and follow the Indian cricket team’s journey; live on television or through online streaming or from instant score updates on social media.

The International Cricket Council has announced that for the first time, every match of the World Cup 2017 will be broadcast live around the world. Now, the BCCI has a dedicated Twitter handle to update scores (it’s a big deal because it only came into existence late last year).

Even Sachin Tendulkar has batted for the Women’s World Cup saying, “If you are a true cricket fan, you need to get there in the middle and watch that action.” In fact, the team also looks primed for a good run in the tournament this time, coming off a series win in South Africa and ranked fourth in ODIs.

Revolutionary

But how will this increased awareness and potential performance impact women’s cricket in India? Before the team’s departure for England, Raj said a win would be revolutionary. “We definitely want to win the World Cup, it will be a revolution for Indian women’s cricket here and it gives the impetus to young girls who want to take up the sport,” the captain said.

And rightly so, a win at the World level is massive for any sport. In India’s case and with the new format of playing every team in the league stage, even a semifinal run will be big.

“Considering how well this team is doing and if they continue and even get to the semi-finals, it will be a big achievement in itself and have a huge impact back home. I think if the team does well, they will be willing to put more into the grassroots,” Ananya Upendran, a 25-year-old domestic cricketer from Hyderabad who has played for India A, told The Field.

“The game is growing and the BCCI has been taking an interest in what the girls are doing and willing to support more over the last couple of years. Right now they have been focusing on the national team which is understandable. But I think that if we have to do well in the future consistently, they will have to put a lot more in the grassroot. If they do put on a good performance, it will really help the domestic cricketers too,” Upendran added.

Sulakshana Naik, an India international from Mumbai, is also of the same school of thought. “While there is money in the grass root level, I agree that first class women’s cricket needs more money. But it starts from the higher level – the girls have to do well for that,” she told The Field.

Live matters

The live telecast of all India games will also be a crucial shot in the arm for the game in India. All games will be live streamed on Hotstar and four of the league games will be shown on StarSports, including India vs Pakistan.

“I think it will gain more respect in the sense that more people will want more women’s cricket. In the televised matches if the girls play well, people will want to watch more women’ cricket and a lot of interest will be generated,” Naik said. The 38-year-old is a veteran of five World Cups, 46 One Day Internationals, 31 Twenty20 internationals and two Tests has observed the change in perception of women’s cricket from close quarters.

“From my experience, people want to watch but don’t know how or where and when if it’s in India, even in domestic cricket. But it depends on how you market a product – people will be interested if you market it well,” she added.

Raj and other international have often spoken about the huge difference telecast of women’s cricket would make to the profile of the game.

“It started from Australia in fact, when they telecast the T20 series and we happened to win that, that’s where the interest sort of grew. The T20 World Cup (also held in India in 2016 simultaneously with the men’s) was a big opportunity and the awareness today is building on that,” Upendran opined.

Domino effect

Live matches has meant increased awareness as we saw during the World T20 – on days when both the men and women played one after the other at the same stadium. Compare that with the 2010 World T20, where the women’s team made the semifinals while the men’s team didn’t. “That’s when the whole Indian media was running behind us, because they wanted something to write,” recalled Naik, elaborating on how women’s cricket rarely gets a mention in media other than at world events.

But a strong run in England has the potential to set up a domino effect that can really change women’s cricket in India, a consequence bigger and more far-reaching than a semi-final spot.

“Just keep playing and win, everything will start falling in place. When Saina Nehwal started winning consistently, Indian badminton got a boost right?” Naik asserted.

And that’s what is at stake for the 15 women in England – not only a chance to showcase the aggressive brand of cricket they have been playing lately and win – but the potential they represent back home, to the sport and the fellow women playing it at various levels.