India’s Blind Women’s Cricket Team: Courage in Motion at the Inaugural Blind Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup
The inaugural Blind Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup has done more than launch a new chapter in sport. It has shone a bright, unwavering light on the extraordinary Indian women who refused to let darkness stop their dreams.
These are women who grew up in quiet villages, farming households, tribal communities, and small-town hostels. Many held a cricket bat for the first time barely a few years ago. Today, they stand on the world stage, not because the world opened its doors to them but because they pushed the doors wide open themselves.
The six-team tournament featuring India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia and the USA began on 11 November in Delhi, travelled through Bengaluru, and now nears its crescendo in Colombo, Sri Lanka. And through every match, one truth has echoed louder than the jingling ball they chase: Indian women’s blind cricket is here to stay, and it is here to inspire.
A Team Built From Nine States and a Thousand Silent Battles
The 16-member Indian blind women’s cricket team represents nine states Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Delhi, Assam and Bihar. Their journeys began in unexpected places: in special schools, community camps, small playgrounds, and disability organisations that first showed them what was possible.
Team manager Shika Shetty puts it plainly:
“Most of the players are from rural backgrounds. Language, culture, family fear everything was a hurdle. Even teaching the rules took time. But now, they play with pride.”
Blind cricket works differently: an audible plastic ball, underarm bowling along the ground, a mix of B1, B2, B3 players on the field, and B1 batters whose every run counts twice. But the spirit? That is the same fierce, fast, and fearless.
India swept all five league matches, becoming the first team to reach the semi-finals. But the real victory lies deeper in their stories.
Meet the Women Who Carry India’s Hopes
Deepika TC The Captain Who Turned Darkness Into Direction
Born in Karnataka and blind since infancy, Deepika TC never imagined cricket would define her life. Growing up in a farming family, sport felt distant. But teachers at a specialised school handed her a bat and changed her future.
Today, she leads India with a heart full of purpose.
“This is the biggest moment of our lives,” she says. And with the support of stars like Jemimah Rodrigues and Shubman Gill, she hopes to script India’s second women’s World Cup win of the month.
Ganga Kadam: The Vice-Captain Who Learned to Trust Sound
From a family of nine siblings in Maharashtra, Ganga Kadam entered a school for the blind because her father wanted her to have a stable future. Cricket entered her life casually, then claimed her fully. Learning to time shots using only sound felt impossible until it wasn’t. Today, she inspires girls in her village to dream far beyond what they can see.
Anekha Devi: The Young Batter Who Rose in Two Years
Only 20, from Jammu & Kashmir, Anekha Devi was born partially blind. Her uncle encouraged her to attend a blind cricket camp, and though the early days overwhelmed her, she adapted with astonishing speed. Within two years, she was wearing India’s colours. Now she wants to be the role model she once looked for.
Phula Saren: The Tribal All-Rounder Who Refused to Quit
At just five, Phula Saren lost the vision in her left eye and soon after, her mother. Cricket found her in a school for the blind in Odisha. Travelling to matches was tough, convincing her family even tougher. But she stayed, she fought, and she flourished. Her turning point wasn’t winning, it was realising she belonged.
Sunita Sarathe: The Late Bloomer Who Became a Wall in the Field
From Madhya Pradesh, Sunita Sarathe didn’t arrive at cricket early. She finished college, explored jobs, then walked into a blind cricket camp on a friend’s suggestion. The game felt fast and confusing. But something in her refused to step away. Coaches call her one of India’s most dependable fielders today.
A Young System, A Growing Legacy
Blind women’s cricket in India is still young. The Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI) was formed only in 2011. Scouting women began in 2019. Their first international match came in 2023 followed by a gold medal at the IBSA World Games.
CABI chairman Mahantesh GK says it simply:
“We believed we were doing injustice by not giving visually impaired women the same opportunities.”
This World Cup is not just a tournament, it’s a promise. A promise that women’s blind cricket will grow, thrive, and inspire far more than the sport itself.
A Final in Colombo, and a Future That Shines
The semifinals and final in Colombo are being streamed nationwide on CABI’s YouTube, Prasar Bharati platforms, and Doordarshan. For many families, this is the first time they’re seeing their daughters play on screen.
Coach Shetty believes this visibility will change everything:
“Families now know this is a path. A real one.”
And maybe that’s the heart of this story not the scores, not the trophies, not even the World Cup.
But the way these women turned a jingling ball into a beacon of hope.
The way they taught India that vision is not what the eyes carry but what the heart refuses to let go of.
