Dubai, June 22: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has released guidelines for women cricketers returning to the sport after pregnancy. These guidelines provide a structured framework for female players, member boards, and medical staff to assist athletes in resuming competitive cricket after childbirth.
As part of the ICC’s broader ‘100% Cricket’ initiative, the guidelines aim to normalize discussions around women’s health and ensure that motherhood and professional cricket are not viewed as opposing forces.
The guidelines introduce a six-step ‘6 Rs’ approach: Ready, Review, Restore, Recondition, Return, and Refine. This includes recovery, medical review, gradual training, cricket-specific conditioning, return to competition, and ongoing monitoring. This initiative comes at a time when many female cricketers are choosing to start families during their careers and successfully manage their responsibilities on the field.
Among the recommendations is the appointment of a dedicated case manager—typically a doctor or physiotherapist—who will act as the primary contact during the player’s pregnancy and return to the field. The case manager will coordinate support services, conduct regular reviews, and ensure that all decisions are focused on the well-being of both mother and child.
The ICC document advocates for continuous meetings to manage players at critical milestones during this journey, including the early announcement of pregnancy, the third trimester, six to eight weeks after childbirth, and every four weeks after the player begins returning to the cricket environment.
To ensure comprehensive care, the guidelines mention a multi-disciplinary support team, which includes medical staff, physiotherapists, strength and conditioning coaches, psychologists, dietitians, coaches, and family support networks.
Regarding privacy and medical matters, the global body stated that the decision to announce a pregnancy should be entirely up to the player, and member boards should not mandate pregnancy tests.
While the ICC guidelines encourage continuous exercise during pregnancy, they also emphasize that training and competition decisions should be individualized and made based on medical professionals’ advice. The document advises that players should refrain from participating in competitions after the first trimester, but it stresses that there is no fixed timeline for when to stop participation. Such decisions should be made collaboratively by the player, their treating doctor, and the relevant cricket board’s medical staff.
Bhupendra Singh Chundawat is a seasoned technology journalist with over 22 years of experience in the media industry. He specializes in covering the global technology landscape, with a deep focus on manufacturing trends and the geopolitical impact on tech companies. Currently serving as the Editor at Udaipur Kiran, his insights are shaped by decades of hands-on reporting and editorial leadership in the fast-evolving world of technology.