Ex-Cricketer Sanjay Bangar's Son Aryan Turns into Anaya After Gender Affirmation Surgery
Former India all-rounder and coach Sanjay Bangar, known for much resilience on and off the field, has become proud supporters for his child Aryan to turn into Anaya Bangar. Anaya accepted herself as a trans woman; her life transformed to make her another person after HRT and gender affirmation surgery.
Sanjay Bangar’s Daughter Shares Her Journey as a Trans Woman
Her 10 months of journey has been narrated on Instagram, sprinkled with the lessons she learned while dealing with all challenges. This is one among the very few trans women who have been interested in cricketing activities, motivated by her father's passion for the game. Left-handed batter Anaya, a sariant of a cricket enthusiast in every sense of the word, has always felt attached to the game since she spent most of her time playing for Islam Gymkhana in the local leagues of Mumbai, followed by Hinckley Cricket Club in Leicestershire. The hormonal therapy that defined her as a girl presented entirely new challenges. HRT reduced her muscle mass and put a cap on her athleticism. It affected her performance on the field. Reflecting on her struggle, she said: I never thought that I would ever consider abandoning cricket. As a trans woman on HRT, my body has changed drastically.
One of Anaya's main complaints is that cricket has done nothing to address integrating trans women into its policy. "I got to a point where the hormone level was the same as cis women," she stated, but cannot compete professionally. There is no space for me to represent my country as myself. It feels like the system is pushing me out, not because I lack drive or talent, but because the rules haven't caught up.
Anaya lives in Manchester and plays cricket for a county-level club. Confirmed from her is tccricket newshat on 16th October 2022, she played to score 145 runs - more than a year ago. But with the policy the ECB has been applying lately, becoming generally unfriendly to transgender women, that passion has not dropped to a drastically low level lately. From 2025, players who have undertaken male puberty will not play at the first two tiers of women's cricket. This will include The Hundred women's competition. They will only be permitted to compete in tier-three leagues and some recreational cricket.
There are also restrictions from international organizations. The International Cricket Council (ICC) bans trans women who have undergone male puberty from playing international women's cricket since November of 2023. Anaya's story is one that tells of the struggle trans athletes face in pursuit of inclusion into competitive sports.
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Sanjay Bangar, known for being the batting coach of the national team and head coach for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL, has always been supportive of his child as she finds her path. The courage of Anaya must have reflected her father's own resilience that bodes well with a legacy of determination and perseverance.