Scottish Daily Mail

Howzat? Cricket turns woke and banishes ‘batsman’

- By David Wilkes and Paul Newman

CRICKET’S lawmakers have been accused of ‘woke nonsense’ after replacing the term ‘batsman’ with the genderneut­ral ‘batter’.

Marylebone Cricket Club – recognised as the authority on the game’s laws since its foundation in 1787 – said the change would take immediate effect.

The MCC, which owns the Lord’s ground, said it made the change to achieve greater inclusivit­y, but the move prompted a backlash on Twitter, with users calling it ‘woke nonsense’ and ‘political correctnes­s gone mad’.

Former England captain Nasser Hussain said: ‘I’ve been saying “batters” for some time now and I’m glad the MCC have made it official. We have to make the game inclusive to everyone.

‘If anybody does slip up on air during a men’s game and says “batsman” in future, it would not be the end of the world – cricket has more important things to worry about – but I’m all in favour of this change.’ Alex Hartley, a member of England’s 2017 Women’s World Cup-winning side, said: ‘There are a lot of dinosaurs who have reacted really badly to this, but if changing batsman to batter makes one person feel more comfortabl­e playing or watching cricket then it’s worthwhile. ‘It’s a small change but a huge one for girls and transgende­r people. I went further during the women’s Test this year when I called a nightwatch­man a nightwatch­er. I hope that one sticks too!’ But cricket commentato­r David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd said: ‘There’s no need to go overboard on this. I don’t see it as a gender issue at all. ‘Batsman and third man are just what they’re called – you certainly don’t need to say batswoman – and nobody has ever asked me to call them anything else.’ Women’s cricket has enjoyed unpreceden­ted growth at all levels in recent years. Earlier this year Lord’s broke the crowd record for a domestic women’s match as 17,116 watched the Oval Invincible­s defeat Southern Brave in The Hundred tournament.

The change was approved by the MCC committee following initial discussion by the club’s specialist laws sub-committee.

The matter was previously addressed in 2017, but it was decided not to make a change. The MCC said the new name reflects ‘the wider usage of the terms “batter” and “batters” which has occurred in cricketing circles in the intervenin­g period’.

‘The move to “batter” is a natural progressio­n, aligning with the terms of bowlers and fielders that already sit within the laws.’ Jamie Cox, assistant secretary for cricket and operations at the MCC, said: ‘MCC believes in cricket being a game for all, and this move recognises the changing landscape of the game in modern times.’

He added: ‘It is the right time for this adjustment to be recognised formally and we are delighted, as the guardians of the laws, to announce these changes.’

‘Make the game inclusive’

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom