Birmingham 2022 will mark the first time in history that Cricket has made an appearance at major games, and it will be our female players that get the opportunity to raise the curtain. With all of the world’s major cricketing nations forming part of the commonwealth, we will get to see the world’s best teams in action this summer.
The matches will be held at the 25,000 capacity Edgbaston, a stadium that has provided some memorable Ashes moments over the years. Bet365, which provides betting and free offers on cricket, made England the favourites to lift the ICC Women’s World Cup earlier this year however, they were upset by Australia in New Zealand. The record 7-time World Cup winners will be hoping to complete an incredible season by adding the inaugural gold medal to their collection, however these two nations below aim to stop that dream from becoming a reality.
England
In recent years, England have been the best women’s cricketing team on the planet. They swept all before them as they romped to the 2017 World Cup, defeating India in the final by 9 runs to lift their fourth title. They’ve gone from strength to strength since then and looked set to win consecutive world crowns in New Zealand earlier this term, only for Australia to bring them crashing back down to earth with a thumping 71-run victory. That result was the second time the Australians had got the better of this summer’s hosts in barely a month after they also defeated them in the Ashes series this winter. But the English aren’t to be written off. They’ll be spurred on by boisterous home support and will be fuelled by the thought of revenge.
India
When you think of cricket, you think of India. It’s a country of almost 1.4 billion people, the vast majority of which are cricket-mad. The sport’s richest tournament – the Indian Premier League – calls the country home. Their men’s side are two-time world champions as well as the 2007 World T20 winners. But their women are still waiting for the crowning moment.
They came close in 2017, losing out by the smallest of margins to aforementioned England. It was a tournament in which they had impressed, culminating with a victory over Australia in the semifinals thanks to a sensational knock from Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored an unbeaten 171 off 115 balls. The opening match at the Commonwealth Games will be a rematch of that memorable semifinal, and India will be hoping for a strong start to set them on their way to their first major honour.
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