India's blind women cricketers chase history at first T20 World Cup
Visually impaired Indian women overcome barriers from rural backgrounds to compete in the inaugural Blind Women's T20 World Cup, with India aiming for a historic title.
The inaugural Blind Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup has spotlighted visually impaired Indian athletes who have overcome immense challenges to reach the world stage. Many players come from villages, farming families, or small-town hostels and learned cricket only in the last few years.
The six-team event features India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia and the United States. It began on 11 November in Delhi, with matches held in Bengaluru before the knockouts shift to Colombo, Sri Lanka.
India’s 16-member squad represents nine states — Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Delhi, Assam and Bihar. Many players were introduced to the sport through schoolteachers, disability groups, or community camps.
“Most of the players come from rural backgrounds. Language and culture were barriers, families and teachers were often reluctant to let them pursue the sport, and even explaining the rules of blind cricket took time. But now they are all competing with pride,” said team manager Shika Shetty.
Blind cricket uses a sound-emitting plastic ball with metal bearings. Players are classified as B1, B2 or B3 based on vision, and teams must include players from all three categories. The ball jingles and is bowled underarm. B1 players, who are fully blind, bat with runners, and each completed run counts as two.
The World Cup is a six-team round-robin tournament. India has won all five matches and was the first side to qualify for the semi-finals.
Meet the team
India’s captain, Deepika TC, hails from Karnataka and lost her sight as an infant after an accident. She found direction through specialised schools that encouraged her to try cricket. Leading India at the World Cup holds deep meaning for her. “This is the biggest moment of our lives. Earlier this month the sighted Indian women’s team won the World Cup, and we want to make it a double,” she said. She has drawn support from India’s World Cup-winning peers Jemimah Rodrigues and Shubman Gill.
Vice-captain Ganga Kadam from Maharashtra comes from a family of nine. Her farmer father enrolled her in a school for the blind to secure a stable future, and a mentor urged her to take cricket seriously. The 26-year-old’s progress—learning to trust sound, timing and orientation—has inspired visually impaired girls in her village to play sports.
Anekha Devi, 20, from Jammu and Kashmir, was born partially blind. Her uncle encouraged her to attend a blind-cricket camp in Delhi after school. Early sessions were overwhelming, but she soon adapted to the audible-ball system and earned a place on the national team within two years. She hopes to become the role model she never had.
Phula Saren, 18, from Odisha’s tribal community, lost vision in her left eye at five. A school-for-the-blind teacher introduced her to cricket, and despite travel and family challenges, she carried on. For her, the moment she belonged at the national level mattered more than any trophy.
Sunita Sarathe from Madhya Pradesh did not play cricket straight from school. After college and a spell in various jobs, she joined a blind-cricket camp on a friend’s recommendation. She found the sport fast and complex but persevered and is now one of India’s most dependable fielders.
The World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC), based in London, has overseen the sport since 1996. While the men’s game has a longer history—the first 50-over World Cup in 1998 and the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2012—this year marks the first-ever Women’s Blind Cricket World Cup. India’s women’s blind-cricket setup is still young; the Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI) was founded in 2011. Systematic scouting for a women’s team began in 2019, leading to their first international match in 2023 and a gold medal at the IBSA World Games in Birmingham the same year.
“We believed visually impaired women deserved the same opportunities as men,” said Mahantesh GK, CABI’s chairperson. “Creating this tournament required substantial effort—from funding to fielding teams. The response from the government, sponsors, the corporate world and the public has been remarkable. The future will be much bigger.”
The semi-finals and final will be held in Colombo, with the final scheduled for Sunday. All matches are streamed live on CABI’s YouTube channel and state-run Prasar Bharati platforms, while India’s games are also broadcast on Doordarshan, boosting the sport’s visibility.
“As more countries field women’s teams, the footprint of women’s blind cricket will grow rapidly,” Mahantesh says. “This visibility will change how families respond to girls entering the sport.”
Coach Shika Shetty adds that greater exposure will help families support their daughters’ participation and reduce hesitation about pursuing blind cricket.
Source: BBC News
India’s first-ever Blind Women’s T20 World Cup appearance highlights the resilience of athletes from rural backgrounds and signals a historic shift for visually impaired cricket on the world stage.
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