While agreeing that the huge disparity in pay between men’s and women’s players is a hard pill to swallow, West Indies Women’s captain Stafanie Taylor has said that she has become accustomed to it.

Taylor when quizzed about her view on the complaint made by Deandra Dottin, who labelled the disparity as “ridiculous” and “discouraging”, supported the marquee Barbadian player’s protest.

Dottin’s outcry came after the team’s victorious campaign at the recent Twenty20 World Cup in India, where the men’s side pocketed US$1.6 million for beating England in the final of the tournament, while their women counterparts won a mere US$100,000.

This led to the comparison of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) retainer contracts, where the figures of 11 West Indies women’s players range between US$1,500 and $3,000 per month. The men’s contracts are worth anywhere from US$100,000 up to nearly $150,000.

“Money will always be an issue when you dedicate all your time and effort to the sport and you don’t think you are getting what you deserve,” Taylor said.

However, the 24-year-old all-rounder, who was the lone Jamaican in the successful West Indies squad, expressed optimism that the women’s maiden Twenty20 title will assist in addressing the situation going forward.

“It (disparity) is something you have become accustomed to, but at the same time, you are getting older and you have dedicated so much to cricket. In that case, you definitely want to know that when you reach a certain age you could see that you are getting something from cricket.

“So I guess for her (Dottin), she is not seeing where she is getting something from cricket. So yeah it (disparity) has been happening for some time now, but all I can say is I hope that with this (World T20) win, we hope that there will be much to come in cricket,” Taylor told journalists, while at the Scotiabank/Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) Prep Schools’ cricket competition launch at Lucas Cricket Club on Tuesday.

The instrumental captain, who was named player of the World Twenty20 tournament for outstanding contributions with bat and ball, gave the Scotiabank/JCA grass-roots competition her full endorsement.

She applauded the sponsors for providing the platform to produce more young players, in particular female players on whose shoulders Jamaica and West Indies Women’s cricket can be carried forward.

“I think that it is a really good move by Scotiabank. They have been doing it for years and they continue to throw their support behind the development of cricket. It is making a huge impact, because this is where West Indies cricket starts… from the grass-roots.

“So I definitely think that it is a great project, especially because they have the female players involved and I hope they will continue for years to come,” said Taylor, who was among the specially invited guests at the function.