Captained by all-rounder Tharanga Gajanayake, the team, comprised of newly recruited cricketers with mostly South Asian roots, will create history when they play hosts Oman in the opening game on Sunday by becoming the first Bahraini women’s side to ever play a T20 international match.
“I am very proud to announce that, after 50 years of Bahrain cricket, our women’s cricket team will be playing their first ever T20I,” Bahrain Cricket Federation (BCF) president Hatim Dadabai said at a capping ceremony held for the team at a local hotel on Tuesday.
The week-long tournament also features teams from Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“We are very proud of our team and wish them all the best for the tournament,” Dadabai said, adding that the 17-member squad had been selected based on players’ performances in a newly constituted Women’s Cricket League.
“In 2021, the BCF embarked on an initiative to drive women’s empowerment through cricket by building a robust community of women cricketers,” he explained.
“Promotional drives were implemented across the kingdom in schools, universities, sports and social clubs, expat communities and professional associations to identify talented women cricketers.”
Free training was provided to all the players who made the cut and, soon afterwards, Dadabai said, the BCF established the nation’s first Women’s Cricket League which eventually produced the players who are going to be part of the history-making side on Sunday.
