Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, and others are fighting for their first ICC Women’s World Cup victory. BCCI and ICC are making efforts to promote and expand women's cricket. Now the Andhra Cricket Association has taken another step in that direction.
A few days ago, in a discussion with Andhra Pradesh minister Nara Lokesh, Smriti Mandhana had suggested naming two stands of the Vizag Stadium after Mithali Raj and Ravi Kalpana. That demand has finally been accepted. The Andhra Cricket Association has given special recognition to these two cricketers for their immense contribution to Indian women's cricket.
India will face Australia in a World Cup match at Vizag Stadium on October 12. ACA is completing this work before that. A special ceremony will also be organized before the start of the match. Mithali Raj and Ravi Kalpana will be specially honored there.
This initiative is mainly to honor the women cricketers who have made significant contributions to the improvement of Indian cricket, overcoming all obstacles. They have also inspired future generations. Earlier, CAB had named a stand after Jhulan Goswami at Eden Gardens, and now the Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association has followed the same path.
Andhra Pradesh minister Nara Lokesh has spoken about this. He also mentioned that Smriti Mandhana's suggestion played a big role. Lokesh said that people became emotional during that discussion with Smriti Mandhana. So they didn't delay even a moment in implementing this idea. Lokesh asserted that they aim to eliminate gender discrimination and recognize those who have played a major role as pathfinders in women's cricket.
Mithali Raj has scored 7805 runs in 232 ODI matches for India. She has played 12 Tests and 89 T20 matches. She retired in 2022. She had set the record of spending 20 years on the international stage as the first woman cricketer. She was also at the top of the list of highest run-scorers in women's cricket.
On the other hand, although Ravi Kalpana's international career was short, she was an inspiration to upcoming cricketers like Arundhati Reddy and Sri Charani.
