WOMEN’S T20s GOING FROM SEDATE TO RAMPAGING SHOW
HITTING PROWESS OF KAUR AND HER ILK IN T20S RAMPING UP SCORES
The first-ever international T20 match was a women’s game — between England and New Zealand at Brighton on August 5, 2004.
Men’s cricket saw their first T20I six months later when Australia took on New Zealand at Auckland — on February 17, 2005. However, despite being a trendsetter in the shortest version of the game, women cricketers fell well behind their male counterparts on popularity quotient.
One reason that made men’s T20s hot property across the cricket world was the increasing scoring rate in these games. Teams scored at a frenetic pace with batsmen clearing the fence at will. Players like Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum, Andre Russell and Glenn Maxwell took power-hitting to a new level as scoring at over eight runs per over became a norm.
In contrast, women’s cricket lacked power-hitters and no team was able to take its runrate even over seven till two years ago. Barring Australia (6.68), England (6.57) and New Zealand (6.38), none of the other teams had a run rate above six in WT20 internationals till 2016.
Things have changed dramatically in the last two years with the emergence of a number of power-hitters, bringing the much-needed intensity in women’s cricket.
Since January 1, 2017, the run rate has skyrocketed in women’s T20s with Australia (8.06) and England (8.22) scoring at over eight runs per over and India (7.60) and New Zealand (7.49) taking their scoring rate to seven-and-half.
India’s case deserves special mention here for they have emerged as the most improved team in terms of run rate in this period with a difference of 1.85 between their earlier run rate and the scoring in the past two years. This period has witnessed a spurt in the run rate of all the teams with West Indies (6.62) and South Africa (6.87) too ramping it up.
BIG TOTALS, WHIRLWIND TONS
In the first 12 years of women’s T20Is, only one team posted a total of above 200 —South Africa against Netherlands at Potchefstroom on October 14, 2010. In comparison, this year alone has witnessed four totals of 200 plus with England amassing a record 250/3 against South Africa in a tri-series match at Taunton on June 20. The same day, New Zealand also stacked up 216/1 against South Africa at the same venue, in the tri-series opener.
The number of players scoring centuries has also gone up manifold since January 2017. While only three players — Meg Lanning, Deandra Dottin and Shandre Alvida Fritz – registered centuries in women’s T20Is till December 2016, in the last two years as many as seven cricketers have gone past threefigures. The most recent hundred came from Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who plundered a 53-ball 101 to sink New Zealand in the opening Group B match of the ongoing Women’s World T20 in the West Indies. Needless to say, Harmanpreet has made a splash as a power-hitter, which she also demonstrated with an unbeaten 115-ball 171 to sink Australia in the 50-over World Cup semi-final in England last year.
With every team possessing at least a couple of power-hitters these days, these numbers are only going to get better in women’s T20Is.