As a reinvigorated push to achieve complete equality in all areas of life occurs, women’s sport is receiving increased attention.
World Rugby has recently announced that the Women’s Rugby World Cup is to be renamed to the Rugby World Cup, so it will share the same name as the male competition. In football, the FIFA Women’s World Cup received a lot more attention than in previous years, with broadcasters like the BBC providing live coverage of every game.
A new generation of female sports stars is helping to spread the message that women in sport can achieve just as much, and often more, than their male counterparts.
It is not just in cricket either, in football, the United States has won the Women’s World Cup more than any other team (and more than the US men’s team). Stars like Alex Morgan are also helping to act as role models for future generations, as she was one of the key reasons for her team to win the Women’s World Cup, three times already.
Women are also making waves in cricket.
In March 2016, the Twenty20 cricket world championships for men and women were held in India at the same time. The International Cricket Council paid for the men’s teams to travel in business class, while the women’s teams were stuck in the economy. However, this changed the following year, when all female cricketers heading to the Women’s World Cup in England had business class tickets and were granted the same daily allowances for expenses.
There’s still a long way to go for many areas of women’s cricket, but some players are setting examples for more to go after them. Here are some of the greatest female crickets of all time.
Rachael Heyhoe-Flint
Playing for England between 1960 and 1982, Rachael Heyhoe-Flint helped her team maintain an unbeaten record in the Test series.
She led England to their first Women’s World Cup in 1973, a tournament that she also helped to organize. Rachael was the first female cricketer to hit a 6 during a Test match and averaged 45.54 across the Tests she played.
She arguably did more than anyone else to develop and build awareness of women’s cricket, continuing her work off the field by becoming a director of the ECB and lobbying for women to become members of the Marleybone Cricket Club.
In recognition of her work, she was awarded an OBE by the Queen, and a life peerage, becoming Baroness Hayoe-Flint of Wolverhampton.
Stafanie Taylor
Stafanie Taylor is one of the most powerful all-rounders currently in the sport. Her performances have been crucial in the recent success of the West Indies’ strong results in recent years.
Taylor has made over 200 international appearances and despite not playing in a Test match, has become the only woman to score a century and take four wickets during an ODI match.
When she led the West Indies to the 2016 I.C.C Women’s World T20 title, she was the only player to be ranked first in both bowling and batting rankings simultaneously.
She continues to lead the West Indies as they remain one of the leading teams in women’s cricket.
Mithali Raj
Debuting in 1999 in an international match against Ireland where she achieved a century, Mithali Raj set the tone for the rest of her career.
At 19, she set a world record in a Test match against England when she scored 214; then in 2005, she was captain when India finished runners up in the Women’s World Cup.
Betty Wilson
Australian, Betty Wilson had to delay her international career due to World War 2, finally playing a match in 1948.
She was the first-ever (male or female) cricketer to score a century and take 10 wickets during a Test match.
She is one of only two cricketers to be entered into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame.
From these examples, it is evident that women’s cricket has had strong characters for the best part of a century, with many helping to create the game that we have today.
Players Baroness Hayoe-Flint has helped pave the way for more female cricketers to achieve success, while those like Betty Wilson have demonstrated that women are on par with their male counterparts.
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