Step-by-step advice on pathways, clubs, competitions and coaching for getting into girls cricket and women’s cricket in Haryana.
By now, you must have heard the story of Shafali Verma. As a young girl in Rohtak, Haryana, her father encouraged her to get her hair cut short so she could pretend to be a boy and play cricket without any trouble. One tournament, when her brother fell ill, she played as him and came back with plenty of trophies.
Thanks to girls like Shafali, as well as Preeti Bose and Mansi Joshi, who were all born in Haryana and have all played for India, the ones who are following in their footsteps, don’t have to hide who they are to play cricket. Attitudes to women’s cricket are changing for the better, the game is developing and new opportunities are opening up for the girls.
Here’s how you can follow a passion for cricket and go on to represent the Haryana state women’s team.
Where to start
If you have loved playing gully cricket so far, and you want to go one step further, start by playing sports in school. Even if it isn’t cricket, it will still help you develop motor skills and fitness and team spirit, which will all be useful.
Once you’re sure you want to pursue cricket, join a private academy.
Haryana Cricket, which runs the sport in the state, does have districts, but the girls and women’s programme is not well established at that level.
Selection for the Haryana state women’s team
Haryana has teams for Under-19, Under-23 and senior women.
Trials → Probables → State team
Selection for all age groups is directly via trials. These trials take place at the state level, but some districts might also hold unofficial trials to send their best players to the state level.
How this works is as follows:
- The association invites girls to attend trials on a particular day(s) with their documents. Keep an eye out in newspapers for the dates and venue, or ask your coach/sports teacher about it.
Selectors watch the players perform on the day and ‘probables’ are shortlisted. - The probables have a camp, and from this group, the final state team is selected.
College cricket for women in Haryana
The Maharshi Dayanand University in Rohtak has a women’s team that features in inter-varsity tournaments. The university organises trials for selection, as well as inter-college tournaments.
Other avenues to develop your game
There are many one-off women’s cricket tournaments that keep happening in the region. These include the Sri Krishna Women’s Cricket Championship, the Kalpana Chawla Memorial tournament and tournaments organised by the local T20 Cricket Association.
However, please note, these aren’t official tournaments that come under BCCI or the state association. Once you start playing for the Haryana state team at any level, participation in such tournaments could get you into trouble.
But while starting out, if you simply want to play to have fun and improve your game, these are a good option to make a bit of pocket money and get some practice.
Notable academies for girls in Haryana
- Shri Ram Narain Cricket Club, Rohtak
- Gurgaon Cricket Academy, Sultanpur
If you have information on schools, colleges or academies that support girls cricket in Haryana, contact us and we’ll add it to this page!