Former Australian all-rounder-turned-commentator, Lisa Sthalekar, bemoaned ex-England batsman Sir Geoffrey Boycott's comments that only men who have played Test match cricket should serve the game as expert commentators.
Boycott, who played 108 Tests for England, gave his remarks in a column for a British newspaper 'The Telegraph', writing: "You have to know the pressure, emotions and technique required and I do not believe you can learn that from reading a book or because you played club cricket, second XI cricket or, with great respect, women's cricket. As good as the women are at their game, it bears no resemblance to the power and pace of men's cricket."
Those words, questioning the whole relevance of female commentators, didn't go down well at all with Sthalekar, who, along with various other former women cricketers, has been a popular voice behind the mic in recent years.
"He is actually dissing the industry he has been a part of for a long period of time. It's time for him to leave the game and let's remember him as a great cricketer of a certain generation. Talk about power - I didn't see much power that he displayed," Sthalekar was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald.
"Let's call up his strike rate and look at some of the numbers compared to female Test cricketers of even that generation. I think some of the female cricketers would have had a better strike rate than he did."
Sthalekar reminded Boycott how the thought process regarding the game doesn't change irrespective of the gender of a player who turns commentator.
"It, obviously, helps to have been in similar situations to then go: 'This is what the players might be thinking'. But the thought process and how people play the game is still exactly the same whether you play men's cricket or women's cricket."
"It's got nothing to do with power. The other thing as well, and this is for guys as women's cricket is pretty cool and sexy at the moment, everyone is jumping on the bandwagon, but we need to remember that we don't need guys coming in asking women to compare it to men's because it is not. It is different."
Cricket as a sport is uniquely placed, thinks Sthalekar, where it has a place "literally for all shapes and sizes, for everyone, regardless of gender" and nothing then shall stop anyone from voicing his/her opinion.
"The same argument for him is that we shouldn't have any males commentating on our game because they have never played against females. But that is not what we [cricket] are about," she said.
"Cricket is a sport literally for all shapes and sizes, for everyone, regardless of gender. Everyone loves the game so why can't everyone share opinions on broadcasts that are from a diverse background, whether that be different countries, different genders, because that is what is happening in the living room when we are all watching and listening to the radio."
