Women’s game needs grass roots 50-overs focus
The editor of Cricket Statistician analyses recent events
The final of the Women’s World Cup was a tremendous game of cricket, more exciting than any of the Champions Trophy games, played in front of a full house at Lord’s and a monster TV audience – though not so much of that in the UK, given it was shown on Sky rather than free-to-air.
Before the final, the tournament had already produced two epic innings, both against Australia, favourites for the tournament, six-time winners, and generally rated the best team in the world.
Chamari Atapattu’s unbeaten 178 for Sri Lanka was not enough to win the group match, and even that innings was overshadowed by Harmanpreet Kaur’s 171 not out which won India the semi-final.
This was one of the most remarkable innings ever played in any one-day international in a serious tournament by a man or a woman. India’s 281-4 off 42 overs would have been a potential matchwinning score in a men’s game.
If we look back to the first running of this tournament, not all the games in the first women’s World Cup in 1973 were played on first-class grounds.
The competition had its final at Edgbaston (which was not full) where a golden performance by England saw them score 279-3 from 60 overs, the highest score of the tournament.
For many years one of the complaints about the women’s game was that it was too sedate, with comparatively slow scoring and no big hits.
Certainly there were no sixes in the 1973 final and even when Belinda Clark hit 22 not out for Australia against Denmark in 1997 she hit no sixes. That, obviously, has changed.
It is clear, then, that the women’s game at elite level has made progress. Anya Shrubsole is quoted as saying: “This could be a watershed moment,” but what would that look like? More people playing, or just more TV coverage?
There is a problem in that the basic format for the women’s game at higher levels is the 50-over game, but the top level below international cricket, whether the Big Bash, the Women’s Super League, or even a women’s IPL, are all 20-over games.
T20 has had some positive impacts on other forms, but it does require some changes in attitude. And, wherever you go, the level of domestic 50-over cricket is too low for a transition to international level to be easy.
For this to change will require a much higher level of participation, which means organisation. At the lower levels it is starting to come, with most clubs now running women’s teams, but it is hard work at that level that will really move the game on.