Photo Credit: USA Cricket
- Vision to establish a more equitable gender balance and increased levels of female engagement across all aspects of American cricket
- Plan is supported by Sistar Mortgage and will target increased participation, increased engagement and improved performance through nine different ‘Growth Initiatives’
- Launch comes ahead of the return to international action for USA Women’s National Team next week at the ICC Women’s Regional T20 Qualifier in Mexico
USA Cricket is delighted to launch its plan to Shape the Future for Women and Girls in American Cricket during 2021-2023, aimed at establishing a more equitable gender balance and increased levels of female engagement across all aspects of the sport.
USA Cricket Board Member and Women and Girls Committee Chair, Nadia Gruny said, “The Plan has been developed to address the long-standing under-representation of women and girls in cricket. Historically, the women’s game in the USA has suffered from low participation levels, an inadequate domestic structure and a lack of investment in developing a more inclusive and welcoming environment. However, recent trends towards gender equity in sport and society and an increasing demand for women’s sporting content and new participation opportunities and programs, help to provide an environment in which we believe that material growth can now be achieved.”
“Through the strategic choices made in its Foundational Plan, USA Cricket has identified the importance of focusing on developing the sport for women and girls across the country. With that direction in mind, this plan has been developed by the Women & Girls Committee, with valuable contributions from current and former USA women players, staff, volunteers, clubs, leagues, the USA Cricket board of directors and other stakeholders. It aims to explain in simple terms how we plan to put that strategic choice into action over the next few years.”
USA Cricket Chief Executive, Iain Higgins, added, “”The central theme of the plan is growth – with nine growth initiatives identified across participation, performance and engagement. These are aimed at increasing the number of women and girls that are involved in all aspects of the game, increasing the number of participation opportunities for females across the country and increasing the level of engagement with women’s cricket. Through these initiatives, we hope to change the prevailing attitudes towards women’s cricket in this country, and support the creation of an inclusive, safe and welcoming environment for women and girls, wherever they play.”
Photo Credit: LinkedIn profile photo of Iain Higgins
“To deliver this Plan successfully, we will need to leverage the wide and long-established cricketing network of leagues, clubs, academies and events that already exist within the USA, and bring the entire cricket community on this journey. However, this country provides an increasingly supportive environment for women’s sport, and with exciting developments in the international arena, such as the recent creation of an ICC Women’s Under 19 World Cup and the potential for men’s and women’s cricket to be included in the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympic Games, it is a fantastic time to promote and support women’s and girls’ cricket in the USA.”
“On behalf of the USA Cricket Board, I would like to thank the Women & Girls Committee who have driven this forward, and our commercial partner, Sistar Mortgage, for its support and encouragement to focus on this important area. Together with the rest of the cricket community, we all look forward to creating an environment in which more women and girls can participate in the sport more frequently and in more ways than ever before.”
To see the plan in full, please click here or to watch the video explainer to the Plan, please click here to watch it on the USA Cricket YouTube channel.
Name of Author: USA Cricket
USA Cricket (USAC) is the governing body for cricket in the United States, overseeing the national men’s, women’s, and youth teams. It also manages Major League Cricket, the premier domestic Twenty20 competition in the U.S.
