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Sanjay Bangar's child Anaya Bangar has criticised the England Cricket Board’s (ECB) decision to ban trans women from England women’s cricket. Recently, the ECB declared its new policy, which prohibits the participation of transgender women in all levels of women’s cricket in England, which also contains recreational and grassroot levels. The decision came following the United Kingdom (UK) Supreme Court’s verdict that stated the legal term “woman” based on biological sex. As per the latest guideline, only those whose biological sex is female are permitted to play in women’s and girls’ cricket competitions. However, transgender women and girls will still be allowed to play the game in the mixed-gender and open categories.
Before the start of English summer, ECB released a statement which read, “Our regulations for recreational cricket have always aimed at ensuring that cricket remains as inclusive a sport as possible. However, given the new advice received about the impact of the Supreme Court ruling, we believe the changes announced today are necessary.”
Anaya Bangar expresses discontent over ECB’s decision
Reacting to the ECB's new rule, Anaya expressed her grievance through a social media post. Bangar, who is among few transgender cricketers in Indian cricket, took to her Instagram handle and wrote, “To all those watching the news from England today yes, the ECB has officially banned trans women from participating not just in professional cricket, but also in recreational and grassroots levels of the sport. This isn't just a rule. It's a message.”
She also added, “They might control the pitch, but they will never control our spirit. This isn’t the end of our innings.” The English summer will start on May 21 with the contest between England Women and West Indies Women in a Women’s T20 International (WT20I), game to be played at St Lawrence.
