India, Oct. 30 -- Fifty years ago, when Shantha Rangaswamy walked out for the toss at Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium, she was stepping into history. India were playing their first official women's Test match, against the West Indies, on October 31, 1976.

The stands were packed. Around 20,000 spectators had turned up, buying tickets to watch a team of women cricketers who had fought against enormous odds to reach the international stage.

Today, Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues belong to a generation enjoying the rewards of professional cricket - BCCI contracts, lucrative Women's Premier League deals and endorsements. But the foundations of that transformation were laid by Shantha and her teammates...