Anaya Bangar has broken her silence after receiving a major boost to her cricket career from Cricket Australia, describing the decision as an incredibly emotional moment and saying she once feared she would never be able to play the sport again.
Bangar, the daughter of former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar, has been cleared to play women’s Community and Premier Cricket in Australia with immediate effect. More significantly, Cricket Australia has determined that she can become eligible for elite women’s cricket from March 2027, provided she continues to satisfy the governing body's eligibility requirements.
Reacting to the decision, Bangar said she was grateful to Cricket Australia for giving her another opportunity to return to the game. She said there was a point when she genuinely believed her cricket career had ended, making the clearance particularly meaningful.
The 25-year-old previously played age-group cricket in Mumbai and was part of the same cricketing environment as players including Sarfaraz Khan and Musheer Khan. Her father, Sanjay Bangar, represented India and later served as the national team's batting coach.
Bangar approached Cricket Australia earlier this year after seeking clarity about her eligibility. Cricket Australia's Head of Integrity, Jacqui Partridge, informed her that she could participate in Premier Cricket competitions because they are classified as Community Cricket rather than Elite Cricket under the board's policy.
Her pathway to elite cricket, however, comes with conditions. Under Cricket Australia's policy, players seeking to compete in the women's category of Elite Cricket must demonstrate that their serum testosterone concentration has remained below 10 nanomoles per litre for at least 12 months. Based on the medical information submitted by Bangar, Cricket Australia expects this requirement to be fulfilled in March 2027.
That means Bangar's clearance is not an automatic place in Australia's elite competitions. She will still need to meet the relevant requirements and establish herself through performances. Her long-term ambition is to compete in the Women's Big Bash League.
Bangar has also spoken about her previous attempts to understand her eligibility in India. She said she contacted the Board of Control for Cricket in India but did not receive a clear response. The BCCI currently does not have a specific policy governing transgender women playing domestic women's cricket, while the International Cricket Council has its own eligibility rules for elite women's international cricket.
For Bangar, the Cricket Australia decision represents more than simply permission to return to the field. It gives her a pathway to rebuild a cricket career that she feared was over.
Her next challenge is now straightforward: return to competitive cricket, perform consistently and earn her place on the field. As she herself indicated after the decision, the opportunity has been provided, but the place in elite cricket still has to be earned.
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