Brunt: KSL still has some way to go to match Bash
THE inaugural Women’s Super League launch may have been a major step for English cricket last summer, but allrounder Katherine Brunt admits there is a long way to go before it gets anywhere near Australia’s Big Bash.
Brunt has just returned from Down Under, where she played for Perth Scorchers for the second straight year as they finished runners-up to Sydney Sixers.
The 31-year-old made 35 not out in Perth’s run chase, but they fell seven runs short in the final after dramatically losing five wickets for 25 runs and finishing on 117-7.
Brunt admits the pressure got to her side and compared the competition’s intensity to a World Cup – with big crowds, the TV cameras and a greater public interest putting it on a different level to any other tournament.
And the Yorkshire Diamonds star hopes the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) can learn a thing or two from Australia’s successful model.
“Even though the (Kia) Super League was new, the ECB have a lot to learn from the Big Bash,” she said.
“The money and the backing Cricket Australia are able to give the Big Bash makes a big difference, and we are miles behind.
“If you have money then you can do anything but if you have not got any then there is nothing you can do. The ECB have done as well as they can, but it is all about growing from there.
“The final was huge this year. You cannot replicate a final feeling in training. Last year we did not make the Grand Final and we were the underdogs going in.
“There are more games on TV and it felt like a massive deal, almost as big as playing for England in a World Cup. The expectation to perform in every game is huge.”
Brunt is now looking forward to a busy season, with the 2017 World Cup next on her radar in June as England hope to win on home soil.
The format for the competition has changed this year, with all eight qualifiers playing in one large group and the top four progressing to the semifinals.
And Brunt, who was part of the side which finished third four years ago, admits the disappointment from that tournament is driving the team to greater heights this time around.
“It is a huge year. I have been looking forward to this World Cup for some time. I think we were robbed in 2013, it was awful to be a part of because of the disappointment,” she said.
“We completely threw it away and let a team as poor as Sri Lanka were at the time beat us. It cost us. This is a huge one and the work the girls have been doing while I have been away is huge.
“When it comes to the World Cup, nobody can say they will not have worked hard for it. The feeling of what happened last time has driven us. We need to avoid injury, be smart and improve on our weaknesses.
“We love working on our strengths but you don’t get better if you only do that.”