PANAJI
Former India Test and ODI cricketer Devieka Palshikaar believes that the women's cricket scenario in the country has improved leaps and bounds. Moreover, the task to develop the small-town centres has also been undertaken with the BCCI coming out with a series for India A for the first time in Women's Cricket history.
A decade ago, India lacked in infrastructure for women's cricket and there was a shortage of competitions for the girls. "I played for India 10 years back. Since then, a lot of infrastructure has been developed and girls are getting more games to play. The overall picture is positive and girls are also doing well.
"However, we need to improve on developing cricketers from lesser-known centres in the country. The start seems to have made though as the BCCI has organised the India A series for the first time. I hope they start such competitions for age-group girls as well," Palshikaar, who has completed a year as Goa coach, told The Goan on the sidelines of a practice match against Vidarbha at GCA Academy ground, Porvorim on Monday.
Goa women cricketers are gearing up for BCCI One-day League under former India assistant coach Palshikaar's guidance. She is looking for a healthy competition for places in the Goan senior women's cricket team and as such, has provided opportunities to a few Under-19 players to knock on the doors of the selection committee.
The State team for the upcoming BCCI Senior Women's One-day League will be selected soon, and the 38-year-old Maharashtrian coach has tried out some new combinations in the ongoing practice match series against the visiting Vidarbha girls.
"We have been practising for a month now. This is not the time to mark out mistakes, as much as it is important to notice talent and pick the best available players for the senior team. I am looking for cricketing skills amongst the probables that also includes junior players.
"We have three to four under-19 girls in the camp, who have done well in their category earlier this season. They are also doing well in these matches, which is a good sign for us. Result-wise, we won the first game and lost next three matches against Vidarbha," Palshikaar said.
"However, these are just practice games and results are not important here. I am focusing on providing chances and exposure to juniors to see if they can challenge the seniors for their places. Ultimately, we want to prepare the best team to perform well in the upcoming BCCI League in Kolkata. We are trying different combinations in middle-order and opening slot," the coach explained.
Goa is one of the smaller cricketing centres in the country but the emergence of all-rounder Shikha Pandey as the first India player from the State gives a big boost for women's cricket here. Having a India World Cup player in the side is always an advantage for senior as well as junior girls. I am sure the girls are discussing a lot of cricket with Shikha. Having an international player in the side helps in improvement of other players and Shikha is always supportive as she helps everyone regarding technical and tactical aspects," remarked Palshikaar, who has completed one year in coaching role with Goa.
