Franchise cricket is the future of women's cricket - Former India pacer Jhulan Goswami

Former India fast bowler Jhulan Goswami recently made a bold statement about the future of women's cricket. With her immense experience as a player and now as a coach, Goswami believes that franchise leagues are the way forward for the sport's growth and development. 

Women's cricket has been rapidly evolving, with the emergence of various T20 leagues around the world. These include the Women's Premier League (WPL), Women's Big Bash League (WBBL), The Hundred, and the Women's Caribbean Premier League (WCPL).

As these leagues gain importance, they have begun to clash with international assignments, leading to a debate about prioritization. Goswami, who is currently involved with Mumbai Indians in the WPL and set to join Trinbago Knight Riders in the WCPL, emphasized the importance of franchise cricket. 

"It's a big challenge for women's cricket. Earlier we saw these things happen for men's cricket but never expected it to happen for women's cricket, but that's happening. And I'm happy to see that. The ICC needs to take care, franchise cricket is the future of women's cricket. And that's the growth of women's cricket globally. You have to give priority to every franchise league otherwise cricket will not grow," Goswami said on ESPNcricinfo's Powerplay podcast.

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Give them certain windows and after that, you have the bilateral series: Jhulan Goswami

The former fast bowler opened up about the role of franchise leagues in nurturing talent. However, the rise of franchise cricket has led to scheduling conflicts with bilateral series. Notable players like Meg Lanning, Smriti Mandhana, and Heather Knight have had to make difficult choices between league commitments and national duties. 

"See how many quality cricketers were produced by franchise cricket in the last few years, starting with WBBL as well as the Hundred, WCPL, and WPL. We should make sure that when the premier league (franchise) tournaments are going on, give them certain windows and after that you have the bilateral series. It will help women's cricket's growth also. That is my personal view," she added.

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The packed cricket calendar for 2024, featuring back-to-back tournaments like the Hundred, WCPL, T20 World Cup, and WBBL, shows the need for careful scheduling and prioritization.

"If you have your bilateral series and franchise leagues clashing then you will lose out on quality cricketers. And if you don't have quality cricketers then your tournament is not going to be successful," she concluded.