South Africa skipper hails progress in gender equality with equal match fees

South Africa Cricket Captain Welcomes Equal Pay for Men’s and Women’s Teams

In an exciting step forward, the South African men’s and women’s senior cricket teams will now receive equal pay. This move has been welcomed by South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt, who sees it as a significant milestone in providing players with a safety net.

The announcement was made by Cricket South Africa (CSA) in August and came into effect during the women’s tour of Pakistan, which began on September 1st. It also marked Wolvaardt’s return as interim national captain.

Alongside equal pay, CSA introduced a new professional domestic format for women cricketers. The top six teams from the division will now be able to offer contracts to eleven players instead of just six. Furthermore, contracts will also be given to four coaches, including at least two female coaches.

“Having a bit of a pipeline of players coming through who are, hopefully, able to play full-time cricket is going to increase the depth for our country – something we’ve been lacking,” said Wolvaardt in an interview with Stumped podcast.

A Vision for the Future

With these positive changes taking place within South African cricket, Wolvaardt envisions the establishment of SA20 – a T20 franchise league exclusively for women – within the next five years. Drawing inspiration from Australia’s successful Women’s National Cricket League (WNCL) and Big Bash League (BBL), she believes that such leagues not only provide ample opportunities but also elevate the overall quality of cricket being played.

“Australia is so far ahead of the game and it’s not surprising that they’ve had one of the leading leagues in the world for about 10 years,” Wolvaardt acknowledged. “Just the amount of cricket you’re able to play, and the high quality those leagues provide, is something we’re missing.”

In order to bridge this gap, Wolvaardt emphasizes the need for more game time and exposure for South African women cricketers. She suggests starting with a mini version of SA20 involving three or four teams as a stepping stone towards having a fully-fledged league.

Transition Period and New Leadership

The recent changes within South African cricket have also seen several key players step down from their roles. Sune Luus, who captained the team to their first senior World Cup final earlier this year, unexpectedly announced her decision to relinquish captaincy amidst reports of unrest within the squad.

Additionally, former captain Dane van Niekerk retired in March while Chloe Tyron made herself unavailable for selection during Pakistan’s white-ball series tour. Notably, all-time leading ODI and T20 wicket-taker Shabnim Ismail and highest appearance-maker Mignon du Preez both bid farewell due to personal reasons. Furthermore, Lizelle Lee and Trisha Chetty cited fitness-related matters as factors behind their decisions.

Despite these departures, Wolvaardt managed to lead South Africa to victory in an ODI series against Pakistan recently despite narrow defeats in all three games of the preceding T20 series.

“There was a big lack of experience within our group on this tour,” explained Wolvaardt. “It was definitely challenging taking charge under such circumstances but I’m fortunate enough that we still have some experienced bowlers around.”