Maia becomes first girl in a boys’ team to play at Lord’s

A TEENAGE cricketer from London has made history by becoming the first woman to play at Lord’s in a school’s first XI.

Maia Bouchier, 18, from Maida Vale, is the only female player in Rugby school’s formerly all-boys’ cricket team.

The Rugby team took on Marlborough College’s first XI at Lord’s on Saturday, making Maia the first schoolgirl to play in an “all male” s c h o o l ma t c h at the home of cricket.

Maia, who took her A-levels this summer, said: “I am so proud to be part of a great team.

“The boys have been brilliant in supporting me during my time at Rugby and we are all so excited to have the chance to play at Lord’s.

“Our coach, Michael Powell, and his team have given me the confi- dence to play men’s cricket and I love it — even if their bowling is much quicker than the girls’.”

The Rugby vs. Marlborough fixture is an annual event and was held at Lord’s this year — for the first time since 1972 — in celebration of Rugby School’s 450th anniversary.

Rugby lost to Marlborough by 30 runs.

Maia has played count y-level cricket since she was nine and has been part of the English Cricket Board Women’s Development programme since she was 15.

She has played cricket for Rugby School’s 1st XI for the past two years. Last year she was second in the school’s bowling averages and third in the batting averages.

She also plays for Middlesex Women’s Cricket, and although she is one of the youngest members of the squad, last season she hit 130 runs for the senior

side and was named as the Middlesex CCC 2016 female youth player of the year.

Peter Green, headmaster of Rugby School, said: “With the recent Women’s World Cup cricketing victory, this couldn’t be better timing for Maia to play at Lord’s. She has had a terrific cricketing career and is a wonderful role model for all the other girls who play cricket at Rugby.”