Lisa Sthalekar becomes first woman to be appointed as FICA President

Former Australia cricketer Lisa Sthalekar has become the first woman to be appointed as president of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Association (FICA). The 2013 Women’s World Cup winner was given this position at the FICA Executive Committee meeting that took place in Nyon, Switzerland.

Sthalekar is set to succeed former England cricketer Vikram Solanki. After getting this well-deserved post, an elated Lisa Sthalekar has gone on to say that she is really honoured and excited to take up this role and at the same time the cricketer-turned-cricket pundit also added that with more countries playing the game, cricket is well in its route to become a global sport.

We are entering a new phase of the game: Lisa Sthalekar

“I’m extremely honoured and excited to be FICA’s new president,” Sthalekar was quoted as saying. “We are entering a new phase of the game which covers more cricket than ever before for our male and female players. More countries are playing the game which demonstrates that cricket is certainly becoming a global game,” said Sthalekar as quoted by India Today.

“I look forward to working on behalf of our member players’ associations and players, and in particular to working with the ICC to ensure that all players have their rights protected and can work in partnership with administrators to make our game even better,” she added.

As far as Lisa Sthalekar’s illustrious international career is concerned that spanned from 2001 to 2013, she went on to represent Australia in eight Tests, 125 One Day Internationals, and 54 T20Is and is a multiple-time world champion. Apart from the 2013 Women’s World Cup, she was also a key member of the victorious Australian team in the 2005 ODI World Cup in South Africa and the 2010 edition of the Women’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies.

Another major achievement in her credentials is that Lisa is also a proud recipient of the prestigious Belinda Clarke award for two straight years in 2007 and 2008.