After the most sensational summer of sport one could possibly imagine, its finally cricket’s turn to step in to the global spotlight. The ICC World Twenty20 is back for its fourth edition - the third at which the women will be involved as well as the men - and it promises to offer two and a half weeks of fantastic cricket, and most importantly plenty of fun. In this first of three preview articles I look ahead to the women’s tournament, which might just offer yet more English success in the Indian summer of 2012.
Holding the women’s tournament at the same time as the men’s is a fantastic way of promoting the ladies game. As well as reducing the costs of running the event, it allows a captive media and television audience to enjoy a fast improving branch of the game, and therefore for the exceptionally talented players to take their places in the spotlight. The semi-finals and finals take place before their male equivalents, using a formula used to some success for women’s international matches in England, Australia and New Zealand. Unlike the men’s tournament there are only eight teams participating and so go straight into two groups of four and then onwards to the knock-out stages. England are joined by Australia, India and Pakistan in Group A, with New Zealand, West Indies, South Africa and hosts Sri Lanka making up Group B.
The favourites
England will undoubtedly go into this event as heavy favourites. Charlotte Edwards’s team have won their last eighteen completed fixtures and, on the evidence of this summer, are as far ahead of the field as Sarah Storey was for Great Britain in the Paralympic cycling (a long way for those that weren’t watching!).
The team benefit from fantastic levels of funding from the ECB these days, and all of the players are now near enough professional cricketers. Like the men’s setup they have an extensive coaching team - Mark Lane plays Andy Flower and Cookie Patel fills Richard Halsall’s role - and it is clear that as a result of these factors they are comfortably the best drilled unit. Edwards herself has been a fantastic batter for a number of years as well as an inspiration to the team, whilst Laura Marsh and Sarah Taylor are comfortable with scoring at a good rate - something which some of England’s opponents have struggled with. Katherine Brunt and Anya Shrubsole form the most fearsome new ball pair in the women’s game, although with this tournament being staged on the traditionally spin-friendly ground in Galle, it is very likely that one of Marsh, Holly Colvin or Danielle Wyatt will bowl spin with the new nut.
And if you thought that was all bases covered its not. Lydia Greenway is perhaps the one fielder in the world - male or female - to keep an eye on over the coming weeks; some of her work in the outfield during the recent matches against India would have been impressive from any male cricketer. And Sarah Taylor is not only fast becoming the world’s best batter but is the women’s games best ‘keeper too.
Overall, England would appear champions elect already. But they messed up in the last World Twenty20 - going out in the group stage after a loss to West Indies - and will know that in this form of the game anything can happen. They’ll also need to be wary of how they go in Asian conditions - the make up of their team suggests that they shouldn’t be a problem, but its true that many of the last eighteen wins have come in England, Australia and New Zealand.
The pretenders
After beating New Zealand 4-0 in a home series earlier this year, its Australia that will lead the chasing pack. Included in their ranks are Ellyse Perry, who has also played international football, and is a very useful right-arm seam bowler. Other players to watch out for include Lisa Sthalekar, an experienced off-spinning all-rounder who played a key part in her team’s 2010 success and Alyssa Healy, niece of fellow wicket-keeper Ian, who scored 90 in a recent Twenty20 International against India in Asian conditions. All being well they would expect to make the final, and they’ll be telling themselves that anything can happen after that.
New Zealand are a team in decline but can still expect to put up a decent showing in this event, and would certainly expect to win Group B. Captain Suzie Bates, who hit 168 in a Super Six match at the 2009 World Cup aged just 22 and represented New Zealand in Basketball at the Beijing Olympics, remains one of the stars of the women’s game and if she really gets going could prompt an upset in the semi-finals. However, a number of retirements have weakened the team overall, putting a lot of pressure on Bates, wicket-keeper Sara McGlashan (brother of one time Black Cap Peter) and the experienced all-rounder Amy Satterthwaite.
Shane Warne once said that Monty Panesar hadn’t played 30 Tests; instead he’d played the same Test 30 times. And that can also be said of India’s Women’s Twenty20 team. In the form of Mithali Raj, who with a superb technique would appreciate less focus on the shortest form of the game, and tall fast bowler Jhulan Goswami they have two of the leading lights of the women’s game. But as a team they constantly post under-par totals in the 110 region, and lack the depth of bowling to make a sustained impact against the best teams. Any hope for this tournament is therefore likely to rest on being the most at home in Asian conditions among the top five. Whether that will be enough to take home the trophy is highly doubtful.
West Indies surpassed all expectations in reaching the semi-finals of their home World Twenty20 two years ago. Unlike India they like to play their shots, but, on the evidence of their ongoing series in England that is unlikely to get them out of trouble. They will expect to get out of the easier Group B though, and with Stefanie Taylor, the 21 year-old batting all-rounder who has been nominated for the ICC’s Cricketer of the Year in their ranks, will have hopes of perhaps beating the Kiwis. They are a young side, with most of the squad in their late teens and early twenties, but despite their shock victory over England in 2010, it is hard to see them reaching the final this time round.
The outsiders
Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka are perennial outsiders in the women’s game, largely because of a lack of funding from their respective boards. Given the health of South Africa’s men’s team it is probably most disappointing to see that they have failed to make any impact at all on the ladies game. Recent defeats to Bangladesh, who failed to qualify, suggest that an immediate improvement is beyond them. Meanwhile, Pakistan were roundly beaten by England in two recent matches, and also lost to both England’s Academy and Under-19 sides on the tour. Sri Lanka can at least claim home advantage in their favour but a win over South Africa must be their only realistic target.
Overall, it would be foolish to put money on anybody other than Charlotte Edwards’s England girls. But Twenty20 is a funny old game and an upset shouldn’t be ruled out. Whatever happens the tournament is sure to continue the promotion of the women’s game, and holding it in Sri Lanka, a country without a tradition in women’s cricket, could be what is needed to accelerate the global growth of a form of the game which allows female cricketers to demonstrate how good they now really are.
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