Women's cricket goes global

The history of women’s cricket is traced back to a quintessentially English occasion - a contest between the villages of Bramley and Hambledon near Guildford in Surrey. In their reporting of that match, the Reading Mercury commented that ‘The girls bowled, batted, ran and [took] catches as well as most men could’. It may come as a surprise to recent converts that this match took place in 1745, a full 103 years before the birth of W.G. Grace.

Progress in that time has not always been smooth. Although the women beat the men to staging a World Cup, England’s players were demeaningly forced to wear restrictive skirts until as recently as 1997. Meanwhile, the international game has been monopolised by the traditional power houses of England, Australia and New Zealand, who between them share all of the global silverware ever awarded. India have been competitive at times without ever winning a trophy. Those outside this clique have often looked short of class. That was true as recently as the previous World Cup in 2009, when none of the lesser teams got close to causing anything describable as an upset.

However, times are quickly changing. The ongoing World Cup in India has seen plenty of promising performances, and  even more compelling characters, emerge from the less established nations.

It is worth dwelling on Sri Lanka’s efforts. The team was not formed until 1997, and despite quickly overtaking Ireland and the Netherlands, had not beaten one of the top four in thirty attempts before this tournament. Last time round, in 2009, they finished dead last after being bowled out for 75 by South Africa in the 7^th place play-off. Now, just four years on, they have smashed their highest ever ODI total by thirty runs and pulled off the highest ever run chase in Women’s World Cups against two of the tournament favourites. The one game in which they were Dottined by West Indies aside, on the basis of the tournament so far there is little reason to believe that they couldn’t reach the final.

Dottined? That is a reference to Deandra Dottin, dubbed as ‘the female Chris Gayle’. Many male players would love to call on her hitting ability, which is second to none in the women’s game. But she is not even West Indies’ brightest star. That is Stafanie Taylor, who at 21 already has four ODI centuries, 70 wickets and has been nominated for the ICC’s Cricketer of the Year. Like Sri Lanka, West Indies were unheralded until recently. But they are now a genuine threat to any international outfit.

There is strong correlation between the introduction of de facto full-time contracts and the evident improvement in the teams benefiting from them. In Sri Lanka modest contracts, linked to the military, were launched in 2011 and players now receive a match fee. This allows the players to focus on their cricket virtually full-time without having to worry about bringing money in through other means. This has also been seen in the West Indies, whose key players are on annual retainers. Although Pakistan are yet to enjoy real success they now have more contracted players than any other nation, and themselves hit their highest ever World Cup total in the 7^th place play-off against India. It is only in recent years  that even the top teams started receiving remuneration: until 2005 Claire Taylor, one of England’s greatest batters of all time, had to combine her cricket with a job in I.T. Thus, it is an indicator of the pace of progress that even those boards that we could traditionally accuse of apathy towards the women’s game are making a sizeable investment.

But why has it taken so long? I’d argue that the absence of media coverage hindered women’s cricket for a long time. The 2009 event was the first World Cup to receive a global telecast (contrast that to tennis, where the Wimbledon ladies’ singles final has been televised for decades). The presence of cameras has allowed fans, and perhaps just as importantly administrators around the world to challenge their prejudices about the women’s game. This development has been paralleled by a substantial increase in coverage in newspapers, in magazines and online. As a result success and failure are increasingly visible, meaning that those responsible for the development of the game can no longer afford to be an embarrassment.

The ongoing World Cup has already been the most competitive women’s international cricket tournament of all time, and with the continuing improvements in funding, exposure and facilities the global spread of the game can be expected to continue. If one thing has already been proved it is that now, just as in 1745, women around the cricketing world can bowl, bat and take catches just as well as most men can.

Women's World Cup deserves better than fixture farce

Preparations for the tenth Women’s Cricket World Cup in India have descended into farce, following a BCCI decision to make late changes to the schedule. Just a week before the opening matches new venues have not yet been announced to replace Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium and MIG Club Ground. As well as undoubtedly affecting the teams as they prepare for a tournament set to be more competitive than any previous ICC women’s event, there is also a great deal of uncertainty for broadcasters. Test Match Special will be broadcasting all of England’s matches live for the first time, and the Wankhede was the scheduled venue for the marquee televised games during the first week. There must now be some question marks over whether the matches will be televised at all.

And the reasons for switching the venues are highly questionable. The Wankhede Stadium is being taken out of use primarily to allow Mumbai to use it for the Ranji Trophy final. Whilst its possible that crowds will flock in to see Sachin Tendulkar playing first-class cricket in his home city for quite possibly the last time, an ICC event which has been in the schedule for years should surely take precedence. Admittedly, the Wankhede was not an ideal venue to be chosen in the first place: for this tournament it would have been best to choose smaller venues which see less cricket, and where attendances might be higher. Meanwhile, there is little sense in the decision to prevent the Pakistan team playing in certain cities. Less than a month ago their male counterparts toured India with no trouble: now it seems that a few unhelpful protestors are being allowed to stop a Pakistani team going to Mumbai.

This uncertainty really isn’t good enough for a global event being hosted in a cricket mad country. In light of recent political developments in India, where the gang rape and murder of a student in Delhi led to mass protests against Indian attitudes towards women, this tournament should have been a perfect opportunity to demonstrate what women can do. The standard of women’s cricket is constantly improving, and on the basis of recent results this will also be the most competitive women’s event in years. England and Australia will as ever go in as favourites, but England haven’t always  been successful in Asia, and Australia’s recent series with New Zealand was close fought. The hosts must also have a chance, possessing Mithali Raj, one of the world’s leading female batters. With her classical style Raj has struggled to make an impact in Twenty20 events, but is one of the most prized wickets in ODIs.

Some people are likely to dismiss the women’s game as a low quality irrelevance amongst the big-hitters of the IPL and the male international game. Of course, it is indisputable that the quality is not the same as in the men’s game. But that shouldn’t stop people from watching and enjoying it. As a prime example of how sport which isn’t elite male sport can be enjoyed, just look at the London Paralympics last summer. After nervously looking in for the first couple of days, people quickly started seeing what the athletes could do rather than what they couldn’t. Whilst the Olympics were always likely to go well, the Paralympics were the success story of the summer, transforming perceptions of both disabled sport and disability in general. The same attitude should be taken towards women’s cricket. Whilst no female player can yet hit the ball like a Chris Gayle or MS Dhoni, or bowl as fast as Dale Steyn, that doesn’t mean that their skills are necessarily any less worth watching. Lydia Greenway fields as well as just about any player (male or female) in the world, Sarah Taylor’s batting is beautiful to watch, and a lot of the spinners on show could teach a few male cricketers a thing or two.

I do believe that this tournament could yet be a big success. If the Indian public can be galvanised to turn out at least for the matches in which the host team is playing it will make the tournament feel like an event - there must be little more annoying for international performers than playing in echoey stadiums in their home country. Meanwhile, with little major international cricket scheduled over the next few weeks the cricketing media, at least in England, are likely to give the tournament some column space. But at the moment the administrators are allowing the female game’s showpiece occasion to turn to farce. The players and supporters deserve better than that.

ICC World Twenty20 Preview - Part 1: Women's tournament

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.