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2014 Diary

A Ramble on Women's Cricket
 - with diversions -

This diary will be updated erratically throughout the year.

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Continuing on the theme of summer 2014, England followers saw a few newcomers (or relative newcomers anyway) in England shirts. I was especially pleased when Sonia Odedra donned a white England shirt, even if the colour of the lions is incorrect - well in my opinion anyway.

[Sonia Odedra] © Don Miles

As a stalwart performer for Notts for some years, and always a bowler to be reckoned with, she deserved a chance to show what she can do.
Kathryn Cross was someone who seemed to bowl as swiftly as anyone I saw during 2014. Here she is representing the MCC in the anniversary match against the Rest of the World side at Lord's.

[Kate Cross] © Don Miles

And if there was a prize for the unluckiest player, perhaps it should go to this lady...

[Rebecca Grundy] © Don iles

A major injury kept Rebecca Grundy from the international summer. England need variation in their spin attack in the absence of Holly Colvin and Rebecca looked ideal to fill that slot. Hopefully, at the time of typing, and as I'm watching my wife struggle with a pair of crutches following an operation, I do hope hers have been dispensed with.

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The most memorable moment of the 2014 season happened to me on the pitch rather than on the boundary. If you are wondering if I have dragged out my old boots and tried them on for size, you'd be wrong.
Wormsley saw me tick one item of my bucket list - in fact one I didn't even know was on it!
Following the day's play I offered one of the journalists a lift back to the hotel in which we were both staying. She had still to finish her copy and so, since I had been unable to get a phone signal all day, and dusk was falling, I wandered out to the centre of the pitch to try my luck. A groundsman working away at some machinery around 100 yards away appeared to be the only other human around. The bars on my phone indicated that at last I had a signal and I was about to make a call when something sped past my knee at high speed in the gathering gloom. I knew at once it was a swallow and soon many more were whirling all around me and in the sky above. The call waited as I absorbed the atmosphere, standing in the middle of the most beautiful ground in England, the light dimming and these amazing creatures quite happy to pass me only a few feet away. It was a totally magical experience and one I'll never forget!

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Following on the heels of the cancelled West Indies men's tour to India, the BCCI has asked for a huge sum in compensation.  It is too soon to say how this will work itself out. The amount may be increased as other "incidental" costs are discovered by the BCCI but the WICB could equally argue that the losses have been reduced by Sri Lanka agreeing to a last minute tour.  Whatever happens, if the WICB is obliged to hand over appreciable sums then grass roots cricket in the West Indies is bound to suffer and that will inevitably include the women's game. It would be a great shame if the men's search for more remuneration reflects badly on the women who can only dream of the salaries the men currently enjoy.
We have to hope the women's future tours will not be affected.

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The Ashes Fixtures have now been released, and there are some very interesting aspects to both the fixtures and the change in the points system.
Firstly, as far as the points allocated to each match goes, a number of people have suggested that the reduction from 6 to 4 for the Test Match favours the side from the antipodes as they are stronger in the other forms of the game. This may be true, but England have recently lost a Test to India, so their confidence will not be high currently. Taking both these points into consideration, I am not sure it makes much difference, other than, once again, giving the impression that Test cricket  is of lesser importance than other forms of the game. It would be perfectly valid to counter that with the argument that Sky TV are going to transmit the entire game live. It's an interesting prospect to see whether other media outlets, newspapers etc. increase their coverage too.
Other means of selecting the winners have been put forward. For instance, there are three formats. Should the winner be decided on who wins most formats? There's a bit of a risk here if bad weather plays much of a part resulting in a non-representative result. I would like to see, however, the total points add up to an odd number. That way there's (I assume being no mathematician) less risk of an Ashes tie. I would reduce the points for a T20 to one per match, but that's never going to happen (!) or maybe make it three each for the ODIs.
And while we are speaking of ODIs, they are, of course, a part of this ICC Championship. For these games the ICC allows reserve days to be allocated, but so far I have heard nothing about possible dates, venues, or even if there will be any.  Australia are, as I type, top of the ICC Championship Table and England have before had the possibility of picking up more points if reserve days had been available. I hope the same mistake will not be made again.
Now the schedule produces even more interesting prospects from the point of view of the domestic scene here in the UK. Several county matches fall in very close proximity to the international games. Will this mean England will 'pull' their squad as these games are played? I, for one, would have no problem with this, providing they pull ALL the squad. The 2014 season was severely affected by  the absence of some England players, due not to the international schedule it's true, but what to many seems like poor training and preparation giving rise to an inordinate number of injuries.
The schedule shows England back at "the Home of Women's Cricket" for the first time for some time, and I'll be delighted to be back there even if my favourite stand and vantage point will probably have been razed to the ground by then. There is also a match at the ground some are now considering the new Home of Women's Cricket, Chelmsford, where crowds regularly exceed anywhere else in the UK, and I include the double headers with the men, where just a handful if spectators bother arriving for the start of the women's game, and where the cost of tickets does put off some otherwise regular England supporters. Now don't get the idea I am against these fixtures, but I feel there's no substitute for a Chelmsford-type crowd, which could be found elsewhere around the country if only the publicity is handled as well as theirs obviously is.
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