Equal Pay, Now Equal Consideration: Women’s Cricket Commanding Its Space, On the Field and in Our Hearts

Something seismic happened in Indian sport recently. The women in blue didn’t just win—they claimed. On 2 November 2025, the India women’s cricket team defeated the South Africa women’s cricket team by 52 runs to lift their first-ever ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 title. That victory wasn’t simply about a trophy, it was about a movement.

Because this moment wasn’t only made on the field, it was built months, years, decades in the making. Back in October 2022, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) instituted equal match-fees for men’s and women’s internationals, ₹15 lakh for a Test, ₹6 lakh for an ODI, ₹3 lakh for a T20I.

That was a boundary crossed. But here’s the crux: equal pay was just the baseline.

We now need equal consideration, the spotlight, the investment, the platforms, the respect. Because payment parity is vital. But when women’s cricket is still treated as a “nice-to-have” rather than a full-blown front-row sport, the playing field remains tilted.

That gap matters, but what’s even more significant is what’s changed off the pitch. Because parity in fees triggered opportunity. Access. Time. The moment players no longer needed to juggle jobs or train half-heartedly, the sport itself shifted. One analysis says the 2022 decision “gave India’s women the security to train full-time.”

With equal pay came full-time focus. Female players stopped balancing cricket and part-time jobs. Investment in coaching, infrastructure and visibility followed fast. The launch and rise of the Women’s Premier League added the pressure-game mindset and global exposure they needed.

Then, at the final in Navi Mumbai under the floodlights, it all came together. India’s women lifted the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup trophy, victory more than a headline: one of the clearest signals that women’s cricket had claimed its place in hearts, screens & stadiums alike.

Yet let’s be bold: the story isn’t over. While match-fees are equal, differences remain. Sponsorship deals, annual retainers, media-rights still tilt heavily toward men’s cricket. The prize pool has grown—International Cricket Council’s Women’s World Cup prize money for 2025 is a staggering $13.88 million.

But recognition and revenue still lag behind the full story of parity.

The real-life payoff? When the team from India lifted the World Cup in 2025, in front of 40–45 k fans and viewers in the millions, it wasn’t just a win. It was validation. A full-on statement that the women in blue belong on the same pitch, in the same spotlight.