The 2017 women's cricket World Cup final at Lord's between India and England has generated lots of interest in women's cricket. John Sibley / Reuters
The 2017 women's cricket World Cup final at Lord's between India and England has generated lots of interest in women's cricket. John Sibley / Reuters
The 2017 women's cricket World Cup final at Lord's between India and England has generated lots of interest in women's cricket. John Sibley / Reuters
The 2017 women's cricket World Cup final at Lord's between India and England has generated lots of interest in women's cricket. John Sibley / Reuters

ICC want to achieve a '50-50 split' of new male and female participants in cricket by 2023


Paul Radley
  • English
  • Arabic

The International Cricket Council (ICC) wants half of all new participants in cricket to be female by 2023.

Currently, women and girls only account for about 10 per cent of people who are actively involved in the game globally.

Will Glenwright, the ICC’s head of global development, believes all sports should aspire to have equal participation between males and females.

He says cricket’s Dubai-based governing body regard the women’s game as being the sport’s “low hanging fruit”.

“For all new participants that we attract to the game, we want to achieve a 50-50 split,” Glenwright said.

“That is something we want to aspire to. By 2023, the end of the current cycle, we would like to be in a position where 50 per cent of all new participants in cricket are women and girls.

“That won’t equate to a 50-50 split in the short term. But it has to be the long-term aspiration for all sports, especially ours, that we have to have a 50 per cent participation rate.”

Glenwright hopes the governing body can convert the viewership successes of the women’s World Cup in England earlier this summer into greater numbers of participants.

According to ICC statistics, 156 million people watched the women's World Cup in India. That included 126 million for the final alone, in which India lost to England at Lord's.

The performances of Mithali Raj’s side in finishing runners-up contributed to a 500 per cent increase in viewing hours in their homeland.

That was typical of the general trend in cricket’s leading TV markets. In the UK, the World Cup had a 300 per cent increase in terms of viewing hours compared to its previous edition. There was a 131 per cent increase in Australia, while in South Africa it was a massive 861 per cent.

Glenwright says countries far beyond cricket’s mainstream also provide reasons to be optimistic about the game’s growth among females.

He says the overall development project could learn from Vanuatu, the small island nation in the South Pacific where 40 per cent of an overall number of nearly 20,000 people involved in cricket are women and girls.

“The exciting aspect is, in my view, we can achieve major growth in overall participation rates by focusing on women’s cricket,” Glenwright said.

“Globally, among our 92 Associate Members, participation among women is about 10 per cent. That is too low.

“In Vanuatu, women’s participation is around 40 per cent. They are doing something right that we need to learn from.

“There are similar stories around the world. A number of countries are focusing on women’s cricket specifically.

“Whilst we can lament the participation rate, and it is too low, it is the low-hanging fruit, where the growth potential is.

“Cricket is very accessible. It is just as easily played by women and girls as boys and men. Mixed cricket is easier than other sports. Boys and girls can play together because there isn’t that physicality that is needed.”

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%202-litre%20direct%20injection%20turbo%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%207-speed%20automatic%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20261hp%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20400Nm%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20From%20Dh134%2C999%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

The bio

His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell

His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard

Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece

Favourite movie - The Last Emperor

Favourite personality from history - Alexander the Great

Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos

 

 

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid

When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid

Adele: The Stories Behind The Songs
Caroline Sullivan
Carlton Books

The biog

Age: 30

Position: Senior lab superintendent at Emirates Global Aluminium

Education: Bachelor of science in chemical engineering, post graduate degree in light metal reduction technology

Favourite part of job: The challenge, because it is challenging

Favourite quote: “Be the change you wish to see in the world,” Gandi

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Results

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1hr 32mins 03.897sec

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull-Honda) at 0.745s

3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 37.383s

4. Lando Norris (McLaren) 46.466s

5.Sergio Perez (Red Bull-Honda) 52.047s

6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 59.090s

7. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) 1:06.004

8. Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari) 1:07.100

9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri-Honda) 1:25.692

10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin-Mercedes) 1:26.713,

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

Our legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

The five pillars of Islam
EA%20Sports%20FC%2024
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20EA%20Vancouver%2C%20EA%20Romania%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20EA%20Sports%3Cbr%3EConsoles%3A%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20One%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Defined benefit and defined contribution schemes explained

Defined Benefit Plan (DB)

A defined benefit plan is where the benefit is defined by a formula, typically length of service to and salary at date of leaving.

Defined Contribution Plan (DC) 

A defined contribution plan is where the benefit depends on the amount of money put into the plan for an employee, and how much investment return is earned on those contributions.