New Delhi: Cricket is not just a gentleman’s game anymore. A new study by the BBC and Collective Newsroom has found that since 2020, the participation of women in cricket has doubled in India.
“The proportion of women who say they play cricket has risen from 5 percent in 2020 to 10 percent,” read the report titled Attitudes towards women’s sports, sportswomen and women in India. It was launched Friday by BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla at Hotel Cannaught in Delhi.
The study spans 14 states and covers the period from December 2025 to January 2026. It found that women’s participation in sports has increased across regions. Among the audience were all-rounder Deepti Sharma, other women cricketers, and sports officials.
Participation of young women in the age group of 15-24 has grown even more sharply. “16 percent of women aged 15 to 24 now say they play cricket, compared with 6 percent in 2020,” read the report, which was presented by Lucile Stengel, lead author of the study and Puneet Avasthi from Kantar India.
The 43-page report assesses women’s participation in sports and the wider societal attitudes shaping it, as well as the consumption of women’s sports in India today.
“Something good is happening as far as women’s cricket is concerned, and overall women’s sports are concerned,” said Rajiv Shukla, adding that certain challenges remain.
Shukla gave an example of the Women’s Premier League (WPL), saying that if the sports lovers of the country, irrespective of gender, come to see women’s matches, only then will change come about.
“If there is an achievement, people will talk about it. The moment we won the World Cup, everybody was calling women cricketers to their place,” said Shukla.
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Changes in viewership
According to the report, one in four young women aged 15 to 24 has considered sport as a career option.
“26% of the young women surveyed, aged 15 to 24, say they have considered a career in sport, up from 16 percent in 2020. The highest levels are in Tamil Nadu (27 percent), Madhya Pradesh (19 percent) and Meghalaya (19 percent),” the document read.
The report finds that in Uttar Pradesh, the levels of participation have increased tenfold—from 1 per cent to 10 per cent.
In the last five years, the gender gap has narrowed. The study indicates that for every woman who plays cricket, three men play the sport. In 2020, the ratio was one to five.
The report also finds certain reasons that hold women back in sports. About 13 per cent of women who do not play any sport cite safety concerns as a barrier, and 43 per cent say women’s sports are less entertaining than men’s. A total of 65 per cent of respondents who don’t play sports cite a lack of time as the main barrier.
“The findings show both progress and continuing barriers. While participation and viewership are rising fast, stereotypes and practical challenges remain,” said Rupa Jha, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Collective Newsroom.
Another popular sport among women is badminton, now played by 6 per cent of women surveyed, up from 4 per cent in 2020, the report finds. The spike has been observed in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Punjab.
However, the participation of women in kabaddi has fallen from 13 per cent in 2020 to 8 per cent in 2026.
The report also documents changes in viewership: 51 per cent of the respondents said that they followed the coverage of women’s sports in the past six months. The viewership of WPL has increased to 28 per cent from 15 per cent in 2020. The research suggests that the recent World Cup success by Indian sportswomen may have contributed to this growth.
“The findings indicate that viewing of women’s sports and attendance at women’s games have increased greatly. More women think sport is important in their lives,” said Tim Awford, BBC News Regional Director for South Asia. He said it is encouraging to see more Indian women are playing, following, and watching sport compared to 2020.
(Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)