Last Updated on 12 months by Charbel Coorey
Cricket News: ICC bans transgender athletes from women’s international cricket | Transgender athletes not permitted to play women’s cricket
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has made the decision to ban transgender athletes from participating in women’s international cricket. The change was made with integrity and player safety in mind, but the ICC confirmed there is scope to review the regulation by the end of 2025.
In a release, the ICC stated, “It [the decision] is based on the following principles (in order of priority), protection of the integrity of the women’s game, safety, fairness and inclusion. The regulations will be reviewed within two years.”
ICC CEO Geoff Allardice also weighed in. “Inclusivity is incredibly important to us as a sport, but our priority was to protect the integrity of the international women’s game and the safety of players,” Allardice said.
Transgender player Danielle McGahey no longer permitted to feature in women’s cricket internationals
Following the change in regulations, Danielle McGahey will not be permitted to feature in women’s international matches. Earlier this year, McGahey became the first transgender player to feature in international cricket, lining up for Canada after moving from Australia in 2020 and then undertaking a medical transition in 2021.
McGahey featured in six T20Is, hitting 118 runs at an average of 19.66 and a strike rate of 95.93. McGahey took to Instagram in reaction to the ICC’s decision, vowing to fight for the future.
Brazil women’s captain Roberta Moretti Avery, speaking to ESPNcricinfo, said it is “unfortunate that this decision has been made after the event [of McGahey’s debut] once Danielle’s hopes had been raised and after she has already been exposed to a huge amount of scrutiny and abuse. The ICC lifted the hopes of a whole community and it feels like those hopes have now been dashed.”
Transgender athletes can feature in domestic cricket matches at the discretion of the boards. “The gender eligibility at domestic level is a matter for each individual Member board, which may be impacted by local legislation,” said the ICC.