‘Pay Parity’ in cricket: BCCI announces same match fee for Men & Women cricketers

New Delhi: In a path-breaking decision, the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) on Thursday declared same pay scale & structure for the contracted men & women cricketers.

The revolutionary move is set to bring monumental changes in the sport and will inspire other disciplines to follow suit.

BCCI Secretary Jay Shah took to Twitter to make an announcement in this regard. He said that the Board is implementing pay equity policy and this would result in same match fee for men & women cricketers.

I’m pleased to announce @BCCI’s first step towards tackling discrimination. We are implementing pay equity policy for our contracted @BCCIWomen cricketers. The match fee for both Men and Women Cricketers will be same as we move into a new era of gender equality in ?? Cricket. pic.twitter.com/xJLn1hCAtl

— Jay Shah (@JayShah) October 27, 2022

Jay Shah further said that this will usher in a new era of gender equality in cricket and will also mean ‘end of road’ for the alleged discrimination in the sport, based on gender.

With this announcement, the BCCI secretary has walked the talk. On an earlier occasion, he had promised to ensure level playing field for both men & women cricketers. This decisive change in pay structure of men & women cricketers will ensure that they are not treated differently in terms of monetary gains.

The @BCCIWomen cricketers will be paid the same match fee as their male counterparts. Test (INR 15 lakhs), ODI (INR 6 lakhs), T20I (INR 3 lakhs). Pay equity was my commitment to our women cricketers and I thank the Apex Council for their support. Jai Hind ??

— Jay Shah (@JayShah) October 27, 2022

Jay Shah tweeted that women cricketers will paid the same match fee as per male counterparts. For test matches, they will get Rs 15 lakh/match for Test, Rs 6 lakh/match for ODI and Rs 3 lakh for T20 matches.

He also thanked the Apex Council for enabling the Board to bring equality in pay structure of cricketers.

This is a laudable move to end gender discrimination in cricket, however, this is just one part of the pay discrimination. The The central contract offered by the BCCI still has gaping holes, reports a leading portal.