Runaway success

Sir — Hats off to the captain of the Indian women’s cricket team, Mithali Raj, for leading from the front to script a win in the third and final one-day international against the mighty English side. With her unbeaten knock of 75, Raj has also become the top run scorer in women’s cricket across all formats. This is quite an achievement and is yet another feather in her cap. She was rightly adjudged the Player of the Match.

Due credit for the win should also be given to our bowlers, especially Deepti Sharma, who were able to restrict England to just 219 runs. Although we lost the ODI series 2-1, our team will be a force to reckon with in the Twenty20 series. Shafali Verma’s aggressive batting should give India a rollicking start. However, it is disappointing that our star batswoman, Harmanpreet Kaur, is going through a lean patch. One hopes that she works on her batting and finds her groove during the upcoming T20 series. India should buckle up for the games ahead.

N. Mahadevan,
Chennai

Sir — The ace Indian cricketer, Mithali Raj, set a world record and scripted history by overtaking the tally of the renowned English batter, Charlotte Edwards, to become the highest run scorer in international women’s cricket. The Indian skipper must be congratulated for this achievement. Such landmark feats have made Raj a cricketing legend.

Sourish Misra,
Calcutta

Sir — People who are brushing off Mithali Raj’s achievement as not significant epitomize everything that is wrong with the sport. Had any male player achieved a similar feat, praises would have poured in. Those who argue that the over-10,000 runs that Raj has scored are not significant because the tally combines all three formats of the game have perhaps forgotten that women cricketers do not have as many opportunities to play as their male counterparts.

Moreover, cricket has always been an expensive sport to practise. Female cricketers in India are at a disadvantage because while they need to spend the same amount as men to develop their skills, they earn a fraction of what the men do and have fewer avenues of income through cricket. Raj thus deserves more credit than her male peers for her success.

Rima Roy,
Calcutta

Wrong formula

Sir — Students of creative writing are taught about point of view, setting, building character, dialogue, imagery and how to use these tools effectively to produce ‘good’ writing. But who decides what is good writing? Can teaching styles and methods that are used in classics help students develop an individual style? Imitation is a great form of flattery, but it does not make for great art. Teaching creative writing is another way of mass producing bestsellers.

Tara Mukherjee,
Calcutta