Former India cricketer Anjum Chopra has welcomed the Marylebone Cricket Club's decision to make amendments to the laws of the game to use the gender-neutral term 'batter' and 'batters' rather than 'batsman' or 'batsmen'.
On Wednesday, MCC announced that from now on, the gender-neutral term 'batter' would be used and these changes have been approved by the MCC Committee, following initial discussion by the club's specialist Laws sub-committee.
"It's a welcome change. We, many of the commentators have been using the term batters for a while now. But to have the term verified for its usability is a good confirmation," Chopra told ANI.
"It is not about being equal to men's cricket. I will say it signifies inclusivity and that is good to have for the women's game," she added.
The changes are effective immediately and updates have been made to the Laws of Cricket published at lords.org/laws. A number of Governing Bodies and media organisations are already using the term "batter" in their Playing Conditions and reporting.
The MCC expects and encourages others to adopt the updated terminology following Wednesday's announcement of the change to the Laws.
At the time of the last redraft in 2017, it was agreed, following consultation with the International Cricket Council (ICC) and key figures within women's cricket, that the terminology would remain as "batsman" and "batsmen" within the Laws of the game.
The changes announced reflect the wider usage of the terms "batter" and "batters" which has occurred in cricketing circles in the intervening period. The move to "batter" is a natural progression, aligning with the terms of bowlers and fielders that already sit within the Laws.
Women's cricket has enjoyed unprecedented growth at all levels around the world in the same period. England's victory over India in the 2017 World Cup Final took place in front of a capacity crowd at Lord's. A record international crowd saw Australia defeat India in the T20 World Cup Final in Melbourne three years later and earlier this year, Lord's broke the record for a domestic women's match as 17,116 watched Oval Invincibles defeat Southern Brave.
( With inputs from ANI )
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