Fifty years ago, when Shantha Rangaswamy walked out for the toss at Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium, she was stepping into history. India were playing their first official women's Test match, against the West Indies, on October 31, 1976.
The stands were packed. Around 20,000 spectators had turned up, buying tickets to watch a team of women cricketers who had fought against enormous odds to reach the international stage.
Today, Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues belong to a generation enjoying the rewards of professional cricket – BCCI contracts, lucrative Women's Premier League deals and endorsements. But the foundations of that transformation were laid by Shantha and her teammates, who played without financial rewards or adequate facilities.
Shantha, now 72, has vivid memories of the match.
"The western stand was getting renovated, so spectators were not allowed there. Otherwise, the stadium was full. It was ticketed. We had around 20,000-22,000 spectators," she recalls.
{{/usCountry}}"The western stand was getting renovated, so spectators were not allowed there. Otherwise, the stadium was full. It was ticketed. We had around 20,000-22,000 spectators," she recalls.
{{/usCountry}}The match produced several firsts. Seventeen-year-old leg-spinner Shubhangi Kulkarni announced herself with a five-wicket haul on debut, helping India dismiss the visitors for 274.
The West Indies openers, Louise Browne and Gloria Gill, had added 77 before India fought back.
"I remember the excitement of playing international cricket. Their openers got off to a good start. I got one run out and took a catch, and then I picked up five wickets. It was memorable because I had done well on my debut," says Shubhangi, now 67.
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But the moment that brought the crowd to its feet came from the Indian captain's bat.
Shantha struck a six off West Indies pacer Patricia Whittaker, clearing the boundary between long-on and midwicket. It was the first six by an Indian woman in official international cricket.
Shubhangi was at the other end as Shantha launched an unusually aggressive innings of 74.
"Normally, I would go in when we were 12/2 or 20/2. It was always about survival. But this time, Fowzieh Khalili and Shobha Pandit gave us a good start. When I went in, we were around 124/3," Shantha recalls.
"I thought, let me see if we can enforce a victory. I played a T20 type of game. I went hammer and tongs against the bowlers."
The approach surprised even former India captain and chief selector Lala Amarnath, who was commentating. "He was a little upset because he had seen me play an entirely different type of game."
India declared at their overnight score of 269/6, hoping to force a result. But a delayed start on the final day meant the historic three-day Test ended in a draw.
For Shantha, who subsequently scored India's first women's Test century and became the first Indian woman captain to win a Test series, the individual milestones matter less than what that generation achieved collectively.
"When people ask me about my greatest achievement, I tell them it isn't the first century, the first six or the Arjuna Award. It is that, as pioneers, we laid a solid foundation," she says. “Mandhana, Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet and Shafali are all fruits of the tree we planted. Had we lost badly then, in the initial phases, this game would never have taken off the way it has now.”
Before the BCCI took women’s cricket under its wings, the Women’s Cricket Association of India was running their cricket.
Spelling out the challenges, Shubhangi says: “All of us had to think of a career option when we were playing. Our attention was actually divided. Seeing where the game is today, it feels really great. And, of course, the team winning the World Cup last year was a wonderful feeling. Despite all the struggles we went through in the initial stages, it was important for us to keep performing to keep the game going, even if it meant spending money from our own pockets. There were a couple of series when we were asked to contribute our own money for the tours and even help with the arrangements. So, it wasn't like we were just playing. We were also helping with the organisation at times because those were the early days, and it wasn't easy for women's cricket to attract sponsors. The effort that the administrators and players put in together to keep the game going was important in laying that foundation.”
Yet, as the golden anniversary arrives, Shantha is disappointed that the occasion has not received the recognition she believes it deserves.
“What is surprising is: We were not under the BCCI then. But women's cricket is under the BCCI now. 50 years of Test cricket - I was expecting they'll do something. I'm very disappointed. You know, like they did 500th Men's Test match in Kanpur. They called all former India captains, men and women. But surprisingly, they did nothing here. I hope there's still time. I feel all those who played should be called and something has to be done.”
“I would say the founding mothers deserve much more than is coming our way. We never got paid during our entire cricketing careers. I never got a single penny. The first money I got was BCCI's one-time payment during IPL in 2016 or 2017.”
Half a century after that historic afternoon in Bengaluru, the women’s game they helped build has never been richer. Recognition for those who made it possible, Shantha believes, is long overdue.