Trans athlete Anaya, daughter of ex-India coach Sanjay Bangar, set to play cricket in Australia
Trans athlete Anaya, daughter of Sanjay Bangar, set to play cricket in Australia Photograph: (X/Anaya Bangar)
Anaya Bangar, daughter of ex-India coach Sanjay Bangar, was cleared by Cricket Australia to play community cricket following gender-affirming surgery, with WBBL eligibility set for March 2027.
Anaya Bangar, daughter of former Indian all-rounder and ex-India batting coach Sanjay Bangar, will be returning to competitive cricket, but in Australia. The 25-year-old, who underwent gender-affirming surgery in March earlier this year, has received confirmation to play community cricket in Australia. She had previously represented Mumbai in U-19 age-group cricket alongside the likes of India Test cap Sarfaraz Khan. Bangar reached out to Cricket Australia in June, and a reply came in July allowing her to participate in women's community cricket. For Elite Cricket in Australia (e.g., Women's Big Bash League), she would have to clear Cricket Australia's testosterone-related eligibility criteria.
Anaya set for return to competitive cricket
“It is a great day for me, especially after knowing the fact that I can play cricket. There was a stage when I thought I would never play cricket again, but thanks to Cricket Australia, it has given me another chance,” Anaya said while talking to The Indian Express.
She moved to Cricket Australia after receiving no reply from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about her eligibility to play as a trans athlete. The ICC, the apex body of cricket, does not allow trans athletes to participate at the elite level of women's cricket if they have gone through male puberty, under a rule passed in 2023.
Cricket Australia, however, under its Transgender and Gender Diverse Players in Elite Cricket Policy, requires a player's testosterone to be below 10 nmol/L (nanomoles per litre) for a year to consider them eligible to play elite cricket.
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Anaya's transformation as a trans athlete
Anaya, born as Aryan Bangar, chose to have gender-affirming surgery to align her physical characteristics with her gender identity. After the surgery, she penned a note on Instagram, saying: "This journey has taught me that becoming yourself means losing people who only loved the version of you that made sense to them. Not everyone will hold space for your truth. And not everyone is meant to."
