Key facts
- ICC declares motherhood and professional cricket can coexist
- Marks a landmark policy shift for women cricketers globally
- Move expected to pressure member boards to formalise maternity policies
- Relevant to BCCI's growing pool of contracted women players
The International Cricket Council has taken a landmark step by formally affirming that motherhood and cricket can coexist, marking a watershed moment for women's cricket globally. The declaration, reported by India Today, signals a significant evolution in how the sport's governing body views the rights and careers of its female players.
Until now, women cricketers who became mothers have often faced an informal but real pressure to choose between family and career, with limited structural support from boards or the ICC itself. The new stance challenges that status quo directly, and is expected to push member boards — including the Board of Control for Cricket in India — to formalise their own maternity policies for contracted women players.
The move follows the lead of other major international sports bodies, including FIFA and the IOC, which have in recent years introduced explicit protections for pregnant athletes and new mothers. For cricket, whose women's game has grown enormously in stature, viewership and prize money over the past decade, the policy alignment is both overdue and consequential.
In the Indian context, the announcement carries particular weight. The BCCI has expanded its women's cricket infrastructure substantially, including the Women's Premier League, meaning more players now have professional contracts. An ICC-level commitment to maternity rights gives those players — and their boards — a clear framework to follow. It represents progress not just in welfare terms, but in the broader professionalisation of women's cricket worldwide.