‘No.1 ranking should end debate on investing in women’s sport’ – Sana Mir

Mir, the former Pakistan Women captain, became the first bowler from her country to top the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s ODI Rankings after a good outing against Australia in Malaysia in late October.

Speaking to ICC in Guyana ahead of the ICC Women’s World T20 2018, she said her achievement should end the debates back home about whether it was worth investing in women’s sport.

“It’s a great feeling [to be No.1],” said Mir, who last year became only the sixth woman to complete the double of 100 wickets and 1000 runs in the 50-over format. “But more importantly, why this No.1 ranking is important to me is that it will give a lot of confidence to young girls, especially in Pakistan, that they can reach the top of any sport they pick.”

Mir, 32, who has played 205 internationals for her country, contributing with the bat and her off-spin, fell in love with the sport as a four-year-old, chasing her brother’s tape balls in their backyard and playing street cricket.

She knows the value of hard work and a supportive system.

“A lot of times, when sport is being organised in Pakistan, a lot of sponsors and corporates [ask] whether the Pakistani girls are good enough to take up sport as a career,” she said. “So I think this should end the debate about whether girls should play cricket, play sport or not.

“If I can achieve this No.1 ranking, any girl in Pakistan who puts in hard work and is true to the game can do that in any sport. So it should end the debate of whether we should invest in women’s sport.”