Earning same match fee as men felt like a real watershed moment: England captain Heather Knight
Aug 30, 2023
Hove [UK], August 30 : After England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced increased match fees for the women's side making it equal to the men's team, England captain Heather Knight said on Wednesday that she felt it was a real watershed moment
"That [series] felt like a real watershed moment," Knight said as quoted by Sky Sports. "It's remarkable how things have progressed. When you're in it and things improve gradually, you don't realise until you look back to what it was like back then in the early days of my career."
After a successful women's multi-format Ashes series that saw record crowds in the stadium, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced an increase in match fees for the women's side that will bring them on par with the men's team.
"It's mad when you look back to 2010 when I started, we barely got expenses. To now be in a position to be professional and then earn a decent living from the game is obviously really pleasing," she said.
"It's another really good step forward for the game. It's kind of reward from what's been a remarkable summer. You talk about the women's game playing a big role in the sport and I think this is backing that up with not just words but actions as well.
After a successful women's multi-format Ashes series that saw record crowds in the stadium, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced an increase in match fees for the women's side that will bring them on par with the men's team.
"When you look at things that happened like the Ashes, the amount of support we've had, the momentum that that series had and the support that it had, I think that felt like a real watershed moment. I guess this is kind of following on from that and just another progression," Knight added.
"There are still areas that we can get better and investing in the pathway and making the domestic game fully professional is another key priority to continue to have that sustainability of the women's game. It's really pleasing but hopefully there are more things down the line that will continue to improve."
The ECB has already increased salaries for women's domestic teams, while pay for players in the Women's Hundred has more than doubled from last year.
It's really important that we continue to drive the women's game forward and it's fantastic to see equal match fees.
