Will focus on improving TN women's cricket, says Sudha Shah

Last week, Sudha Shah was named in the three-member Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association. The former India captain expressed her surprise at the move, while talking about her goals in the role, especially with respect to women’s cricket.



“I was a bit surprised,” Shah was quoted as saying to Sportstar.



“It’s good for women that they have a representative in the CAC. I will have my focus both on the men’s team, where winning the Ranji Trophy is our goal, and the women’s team.”



Shah, who also coached India for a while before being a selector, said that Tamil Nadu fell short in the domestic competitions despite being brimming with talent.



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“Not too long ago, Tamil Nadu was a force in women’s cricket,” she said. “That is not the case now. We are not even qualifying for the next stage.”



“Because they do not make it to the later phases of a tournament, their visibility is low. Their performances do not get noticed. Girls from other states score over them.”



Shah said that the focus of the CAC will be to strengthen junior cricket in order to make the senior side formidable.



“If we take the right steps, our girls will be back in contention. A lot of thought and effort is needed to improve our junior structure. Once that happens, our bench strength will improve,” she concluded.