The BCCI has refused permission to the players of the Indian women’s cricket team for the Fairbreak Invitational 2022, a privately-funded tournament slated for Dubai from 1-15 May.
According to a report in Hindustan Times, the likes of Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma were set to be part the tournament but the BCCI has not granted them NOCs. The organisers were told that the BCCI’s decision is due to the senior women’s national T20 tournament.
The Cricket Hong Kong event is being hosted by the Emirates Cricket Board and will feature over 90 women cricketers from 36 countries playing across six teams. The tournament also has the approval of the ICC.
“The Indian players were not allowed as the meet clashes with the domestic women’s T20 league. Also, key international players require adequate rest before the Women’s T20 Challenge,” a BCCI official was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
In previous years, Indian women cricketers from state teams like Delhi and Karnataka had been given NOCs to be part of Fairbreak’s Global XIs in 2018 and 2019.
The national tournament was earlier scheduled for February-March, when the India team was on tour, but had to be pushed back due to Covid. The knockouts of that tournament will end on 30 April with the semi-finals on 2 May and the final on 4 May.
The only other women’s cricket event over the next two months, the Women’s T20 Challenge, will be held during IPL play-offs, well after the end of the Fairbreak Invitational.
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