At an age when most women in Pakistan are settling down to married life, Qanita Jalil is preparing for what could be her last shot at making her name as a cricketer in her conservative homeland.
“I am 27 and my mother is now pressurizing me to get married. It might be my last tournament,” said Jalil, as she looked forward to taking part in the women’s World Cup in Australia, which starts on Saturday.
Proudly sporting her green Pakistani track suit after a spell of fast bowling at the team’s training camp before setting off for Australia on Sunday, Jalil said her five brothers had encouraged her to play cricket.
PHOTO: AFP
“They all supported me. I started playing with my brothers and learned from them. Without their encouragement my parents would not have tolerated my playing cricket,” said Jalil, who has a masters degree in economics.
While their male counterparts are idolized and earn millions, women’s cricket in Pakistan is still an amateur sport. Playing opportunities and training facilities are scarce for girls.
Jalil belongs to a moderate Pashtun family from Abbotabad in North West Frontier Province, a region which, despite being rocked by violence and fighting between Islamic militants and security forces, has provided a steady flow of quality cricketers to the national men’s team.
In a country where people struggle to balance a lifestyle based on Islamic values and moderate liberalism, cricket remains a binding force for many, but religious parties and conservatives have frowned upon women competing with men in sports.
Girls and women have had to follow a strict code and play before female-only crowds.
“In Pakistan, it does not matter which background you come from, but it is a long struggle to gain recognition as an athlete. No one takes women’s sports seriously,” team captain Urooj Mumtaz said.
The Pakistan team, which qualified for the World Cup last year in South Africa, is an interesting blend of women from privileged backgrounds and big cities and those from smaller towns and conservative families.
They all faced the same problem of having to win the support of their parents and male relatives to allow them to play sport.
Mumtaz, a dentist, said her players saw cricket and the World Cup as a means of becoming more independent and being taken seriously as sportswomen.
There has been women’s cricket in Pakistan since the 1980s, but this will be the team’s first official World Cup appearance. A team not recognized by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) competed in 1997 and finished bottom of their group.
Pakistan defeated Ireland, the Netherlands, Zimbabwe and Scotland in last year’s qualifying tournament, before losing to South Africa in the final.
Their success generated a wave of media interest at home.
“Cricket is equally popular among girls and boys in Pakistan and the number of girls now playing cricket has increased by hundreds in the last two years,” said Shireen Javed, head of the PCB’s women’s wing.
Almas Akram, who is from a small hamlet in Punjab, got permission from her family to play for Pakistan only after the intervention of the board.
“For us, playing in the World Cup is a dream come true,” Akram said.
Akram, whose father is a retired teacher, got her love of cricket by watching it on television and tagging along with her male cousins to matches.
Naila Nazir, a leg-spin bowler who comes from the earthquake-ravaged town of Manshera in North West Frontier Province is excited about going to Australia, home of her cricket hero, former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne.
“I started bowling watching Warne bowl on TV. He is my idol, like our own Abdul Qadir,” Nazir said.
Pakistan coach Umar Rasheed admits his team are up against heavy odds as they face India, England and Sri Lanka in the first round.
“Women’s cricket is more organized in these countries, so they have strong sides,” Rasheed said. “But, I am optimistic. At times enthusiasm and team effort can overcome all odds.”
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS