A History of Pakistan Women’s Cricket

THE 2014 ASIAN Games win had a far-reaching impact on the lives of many, including those who were not a part of the team, like Nahida Khan who, according to Marina Iqbal, is the real superstar of Pakistan cricket. The achievements of Sana Mir’s team had made cricket aspirational for more women and a lure for many parents who wanted their daughters to be seen on that same pedestal.

Nahida was the first international cricketer to emerge from the war-ravaged region of Balochistan. Her home was in Chaman – a small town near the Pakistan–Afghanistan border which has been a centre of constant violence, witnessing five insurgencies in six decades, with public infrastructure and educational institutes being routinely attacked. Violence between separatist groups and the state has been a constant in the province since Pakistan’s independence in 1947.

But the violence outside the house wasn’t the only deterrent for the softly spoken Nahida, who grew up in the Pashtun tribe-dominated region. Playing sports wasn’t an honourable act for women even among the peace-loving people of the community.

‘I grew up playing cricket with my brothers and cousins. It was fine when I was a kid. Once I grew up, I was shamed for it,’ reveals Nahida.

Through most of her growing-up years, cricket was played in secrecy.

In 2011, two years after making her international debut, when she headed for practice to the training stadium in Quetta, clad in a salwar-kameez to avoid detection, she was confronted by a rickshaw driver who had noticed her kitbag.

‘Looks like you’re going to play cricket. There is another girl who lives here, Nahida Khan, who plays the sport. Do you know her?’ he asked.

Such was the fear of being identified that she swiftly responded, ‘Yes, I do. She comes there to play with us.’

Looking back, she says, ‘I didn’t want any trouble. I just wanted to play cricket. Even when journalists came home to interview me, I wouldn’t show my face. I was scared that if someone found out I was playing, my cricket could stop all of a sudden.’

The fear stemmed from being admonished by relatives when her photo was published in a local newspaper as the standout performer in a college cricket tournament. Praise was far too much to ask. ‘Girls are expected to uphold the honour of the house, and playing sports wasn’t respectful for girls in our region.’

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That fear never left her, and even after playing five years of international cricket by 2014, she preferred to keep her identity a secret from people in her locality. If not for the support of her father, it would have been impossible for her to pursue her ambitions.

While Nahida’s fears lasted a few years, the events at Incheon in 2014, in the far east of the continent, had a catalytic effect on the lives of the people in Chaman, much as they did in the rest of Pakistan. It was the only gold medal for the country in the 17th edition of the Asian Games, and thus it had as much effect on the lives of those who were a part of the win as it did on Nahida.

Although it took Nahida three more years thereafter to feel secure being seen in public, she had become an ‘acceptable’ star in Balochistan. After that, she had the company of more girls from Chaman and the towns nearby while training. ‘The same people who stopped me from playing cricket for all those years were now showing interest in sending their kids out to play,’ Nahida points out. ‘With time, mindsets can change, and when they did, it helped me to open myself to the rest of the world.’

Over the years, the battlegrounds for women to pursue cricket have changed from the early days when the elite strata of society were at the forefront of the fight against the rigid, societal norms which marked Zia-ul-Haq’s regime. For them, the fight to play was external – taking on fundamentalist, religious groups with ulterior motives, or others of their ilk. In their pursuit, they were backed by the oligarchs, the financially and politically influential – businessmen, bureaucrats and lawyers.

Once the PCB took control of running the sport’s affairs, the reach of women’s cricket stretched beyond the grasp of the rich and the famous to the hinterlands. The problems arising after that were slightly different.

For a cricket-loving country like Pakistan, gaining success in the sport is the ultimate form of izzat (honour). And yet, several women who have attempted to play the sport testify to the beizzati (dishonour) their families fear it will bring.

Excerpted with permission from 'Unveiling Jazbaa: A History of Pakistan Women’s Cricket' by Aayush Puthran, published by Westland Sport.

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