The pay parity announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is a significant step forward towards recognising the brilliant efforts put in by the Indian women's cricket team on the field, all throughout the game's history. With the announcement, new avenues have opened up for an already flourishing Indian cricket. Indian men's cricket rules the roost internationally. With right incentives in place, no less competent women's team will also join the party — giving Indian cricket a comprehensive flourish. Furthermore, the decision suits the stature and calibre of a cricket board like the BCCI. Along with the New Zealand cricket board, the BCCI has indeed set an illuminating example for all cricketing nations. While the pay parity in terms of match fee is all set to be ensured, gender parity is still a pipe dream. There is really a long way to go for bringing women's cricket at par with men's cricket in India. The wide chasm between the two international teams is not at all surprising. Indian women's cricket team was brought under the ambit of BCCI only in 2006. Since then, it has been making gradual progress. Over the past 5-6 years, the pace of growth has accelerated manifold. With new, flamboyant faces like Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Harleen Deol, Sneh Rana and many others coming to the fore, the optics of Indian women's cricket has transformed radically. Not only have these young players proved their mettle on the cricket field time and again, they also enjoy a wide fanbase that was rare for Indian women's cricket not long ago. Many critics term India's close, nail-biting finish against England in the 2017 ODI World Cup final as a turning point for the Indian women's cricket. The girls almost had it then, the cup! That was significant, but only a reflection — and not the turning point — of what was to come in the coming years. After that, India reached the 2020 T20 World Cup final but lost to the mighty Australians. The kangaroos retained their edge even in the maiden cricket event at Birmingham Commonwealth Games — leaving India content with a silver medal. This year, the Indian team failed to qualify for the semi-finals in the ICC Women's World Cup 2022 — losing to South Africa after giving a resilient fight. But the fire that was seen in the eyes of Harmanpreet Kaur and other players told the entire story. The new Indian cricket team is packed with a new zeal that can't be subdued under the cloud of negligence. While we give credit to these young girls for taking women's cricket to the present height, contributions made by erstwhile cricketers are also too big to be neglected. In fact, theirs was a role worth admiring. It is fascinating how they managed to survive Indian women's cricket parallel to men's cricket, despite not being governed by the BCCI. Cricketers like Anjum Chopra, Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami held the bastion for long years without getting the due award in return. Even much before that, someone like Diana Edulji — who played under Women's Cricket Association of India — recalls how in the early 1980s women cricketers paid a princely sum of 10,000 to play for India in Australia. That must have been some crude, unadulterated passion for the game of cricket. Today, when the country can dream of women's cricket reaching at par with men's cricket, it is the fructification of such efforts put in over decades. Coming to the present, it is true that despite the pay parity introduced in terms of match fee, the earnings of men's and women's cricket will remain highly unequal. Galloping disparities exist — in terms of annual retainership, contractual benefits, number of games played and other things. But then, progress will have to be made taking one step at a time. However, the time now is ripe to push the accelerator button. Be it the 2017 ODI World Cup or the recent ICC tournaments, the viewership of Indian women's cricket is consistently on the rise. If market and revenue are the parameters to attain equity, the scope for these is present in abundance. Credit to the emergence of spirited female cricket stars, Indian women's cricket can today claim a large market potential, waiting to be tapped. It will be interesting to see how the women's IPL pans out next year. It will be unrealistic to expect the outcomes at par with men's IPL, at least in the opening season, but the prospects look bright. The BCCI can play an active role in helping women's cricket gain a big market through the IPL — not with the perspective of charity but by exploring the business side of it. By aiming to "tackle discrimination", the BCCI has acknowledged the prevalence of discrimination, without caveats. This acknowledgement appears to be a surety for success. The future of Indian cricket has suddenly started to look brighter.