Anaya Bangar, the child of former Indian cricketer and ex-batting coach Sanjay Bangar, has made a shocking revelation, alleging that several cricketers were harassed by sending nude photographs.
Anaya has discussed her journey since undergoing Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) to transition genders, reflected on the challenges she has faced, not just socially, but within the cricketing fraternity itself.
“There has been support and there have been some harassment as well…There have been a few cricketers who randomly sent me nude pictures of them,” Anaya Bangar said.
Anaya drew attention when she opened up about her life after her Hormone replacement therapy and began advocating for more inclusivity within cricket.
However, the latest revelations reveal a darker side of that journey, including being on the receiving end of inappropriate messages and alleged harassment from fellow cricketers during her transition period.
In the same interview, Anaya also spoke about the emotional toll of hiding her true identity her time playing as Aryan. She recalled how she had to mask her identity to avoid complications, even as she share the field with many cricketers like Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan and Musheer Khan.
She revealed that she also faced verbal harassment, including from senior and veteran players.
“I played with some well known cricketers now like Musheer Khan, Sarfaraz Khan, Yashasvi Jaiswal. I had to maintain secrecy about myself because dad is a well known figure. Cricket world is filled with insecurity and toxic masculinity,” Anaya said.
“The person used to give gaalis in front of everybody. The same person then used to come and sit beside me and ask for my photos. There was another instance, when I was in India, I told a puraane (veteran) cricketer about my situation. He told me let’s go in the car, I want to sleep with you,” she added.
Anaya’s story about her transition comes at an important time, as the International Cricket Council (ICC) recently changed its rules on transgender women in cricket.
Following the update, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) also updated its policy, now preventing transgender women from playing in international matches and top-level domestic women’s cricket in Tiers 1 and 2.
