At the half-way(ish) point in this World Cup, who’s top of the class… and who is in the corner with the dunce’s cap?

Australia
The Southern Stars head the table, having won all their games, but somehow without ever looking entirely convincing. Their saving grace is their long batting line-up – even if they find themselves 5-down, they’ve still got Alyssa Healy to come in and smash a half century at a Strike Rate of over 150, as she did against Pakistan; but sooner or later they are going to come up against someone who won’t let them off the hook for scoring just 18 runs in the powerplay, as Pakistan did that day. In fact if I was an Australian fan, I might actually be hoping that they lose to England this weekend, because this team have a loss in them somewhere, and if it isn’t now, it might just be at Lords in two Sundays time!
Grade: A

India
India played 14 ODIs in the 12 months leading into this World Cup, losing just one of them, and it shows! Yes, they were mainly against lower-ranked sides, including 3 hammerings of a very young Ireland team in South Africa; but winning is a habit, and one that has continued here, as their opening victory against England has set the tone for 4 wins and no losses. Then there is Smriti Mandhana – she only played 3 of those 14 ODIs, due to injury, but she has come back with some big, classical runs; and if anyone looks ready to grace “The Home of Cricket” in that final, it is this 20-year-old prodigy.
Grade: A

England
England were lucky with the program after the opening loss to India allowed them to regroup with matches against the two weakest sides coming into the tournament, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The real test was South Africa, and their batsmen passed it with ease – plundering 373 runs from their world-leading bowling attack. But… but… their bowlers then proceeded to allow South Africa’s most-definitely not world-leading batting lineup to take over 300 off them in return; and it is clear that overall the bowling – particularly the much-vaunted opening partnership of Shrubsole and Brunt – is not quite hitting the high notes for whatever reason, and that has to be a worry when it comes to the crunch.
Grade: B

New Zealand
After a slightly scratchy opening win against Sri Lanka, where they looked rusty in particular in the field, New Zealand are starting to come together. Yes, they lost to Australia, but it was a close-run thing in the end, and there were big positives to take from that game: the bowling of Amelia Kerr – no one will ever play her without a little trepidation again, after the way she did Meg Lanning and Elyse Villani; and then their win against the West Indies, where Rachel Priest got things back on track with the big, quick runs that the White Ferns need from her.
Grade: B

South Africa
The Women Proteas are another side who have played a lot of ODIs in the past year – a whopping 31 of them prior to #WWC17. (England played just 9 in the same period.) They have a bowling attack which actually merits the word “attack” and their slaughter of the West Indies for 48 has shown that you can’t underestimate them; but are they the unlucky team that have the best bowling unit in a batsman’s World Cup? The weather gods probably did them a favour by handing them a draw against New Zealand, but New Zealand have already ground-down the NRR advantage the big win against West Indies gave them, and they still have Australia and India yet to play, so a semi-final spot remains a big ask; but what they have done here already is prove that they indeed belong among the “Top” sides.
Grade: B

Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka… if they were honest with themselves… probably expected to be bottom at this stage of the tournament, so in a way they have definitely over-performed, despite not winning a match. Chamari Atapattu hit a half-century to make a game of it versus New Zealand, and then followed-up with that huge 178* against Australia – currently the biggest knock of #WWC17. They put on 200 against England, and then came closer than India would have liked to causing an upset in their match, finishing just 16 short.
Grade: D

Pakistan
After coming close to taking advantage of South Africa’s batting fragilities in their opening game – the closest match of the tournament so far – they have struggled. They are very, very dependent on Sana Mir to prop things up with both the bat and the ball, but at 31 she won’t go on for ever, and what they do then… goodness only knows!
Grade: E

West Indies
Who could have predicted that the West Indies would be taking an early flight home from #WWC17? Well… to be fair… anyone who looked at their recent stats, which make the World T20 win look more like a blip than the start of something – and so it is proving here. Their stars – Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin and Hayley Matthews – aren’t firing – none of their batsmen has hit a 50 yet; whilst their bowlers can’t buy a wicket – they have taken just 7 in the tournament so far.
Grade: F

Pakistan captain Sana Mir has been sanctioned for a slow over rate during Pakistan’s loss to England yesterday at Leicester.

Pakistan were ruled to be just one over short of the required target, after time allowances were taken into consideration.

Mir has not been fined (fines are only applicable to men’s matches) but if she receives a second sanction during the World Cup, she will be suspended for one match.

If you could pick one side England would NOT want to face in their opening World Cup game, who would it be? I think it might just be India – a game England probably HAVE to win if they are to avoid the unseemly Net Run Rate scrap in 3 weeks time for the 3rd and 4th semi-final spots.

India are the strongest of the middle-tier sides, having taken the honours recently against both South Africa in the World Cup Qualifiers and the West Indies in India; and while it is true that West Indies qualified directly for the World Cup ahead of India, that was only because politics forced India to forfeit their series against Pakistan.

So a game against India would be a definite proverbial “banana skin”… which is unfortunate because India are exactly who England face at Derby tomorrow!

England would have been planning to go into the World Cup with a well-balanced and mainly settled side, the bulk of which were automatic picks; but the injury to Lauren Winfield does make things a bit interesting.

1. Tammy Beaumont – Having had a chequered England career under the previous regime, “TB” was the success story of last summer, filling her boots against Pakistan and adding two more half-centuries, against West Indies and Sri Lanka, over the winter. Although in some ways the jury is still out on her ability to compete at the highest level against the Australias and the New Zealands, this is her chance to put those remaining doubts to rest.
2. Heather Knight – Knight vacated the opening spot when she inherited the captaincy last year; but with Winfield out, it looks like she might have to step back up – Knight has never scored an ODI century, so now would be an ideal opportunity to change that by leading from the front! Knight was also England’s leading wicket-taker in the Women’s International Championship; but she has been bowling a lot less recently, and the likelihood is that she will just fill-in two-or-three overs here and there during this World Cup, especially if she is opening the batting.
3. Sarah Taylor – Taylor’s return is potentially the difference between an England who will be “there or thereabouts” and an England who will challenge for the trophy. Certainly the only England player in this team who is already a nailed-on “All Time Great” – though that isn’t to say others might not later add themselves to that list!
4. Nat Sciver – Sciver has quite quietly become a pivotal player for England recently. Having made her debut as a back-up bowler just 4 years ago, her batting has since taken centre-stage, but her role as a bowler is still rather important. She isn’t quite good enough to open the bowling (she did the job when Anya Shrubsole was injured over the winter, and her limitations were exposed) but as a “We Need A Wicket” change option, she is England’s go-to, and she will probably bowl close to her allocation in most matches.
5. Fran Wilson – Having made her “re-debut” last summer, after a false start to her international career back in 2010, Wilson was probably competing for a spot with Georgia Elwiss – the former is a better bat; but the latter offers a few overs with the ball. However, with Heather Knight set to move up the order to open in Winfield’s absence, it now looks likely both will play.
6. Georgia Elwiss – See above!!
7. Dani Hazell – Hazell’s position in the squad is an odd one – she is the unofficial “reserve captain”, having done the job in Sri Lanka over the winter and in one of England’s warm-up games, even though the official “vice captain” (Anya Shrubsole) was playing; and yet she isn’t guaranteed a place in the side, with Robinson seemingly preferring Laura Marsh as the right-arm compliment to Alex Hartley’s left-arm spin. But with Danni Wyatt misfiring more often than not with the bat at the moment, there is a good chance that Hazell – a solid batsman, who can definitely chip-in if and when things get tough – will get the nod, especially as it would take the pressure off Heather Knight to bowl as well as opening the batting.
8. Katherine Brunt – The Hardest Working Woman In Cricket-Business, as Anya Shrubsole recently put it: “With Katherine, every ball’s an Effort Ball!” Injury worries mean she probably won’t play every game – especially if England have already qualified by the time their final group matches come around – but there is literally no one else in the women’s game you’d pick to open the bowling; plus she can also hit the kind of quick runs down the order which can turn a good total into a big one.
9. Laura Marsh – Just over a year ago, it looked like Laura Marsh’s England career was over – playing through pain, plagued by a chronic shoulder injury, and dropped for the World T20 in India. But after flying out to India as a late injury replacement for Dani Hazell, she grabbed her opportunity and now seems to be Mark Robinson’s first choice right-armer; though it is likely that the plan was to rotate her with Hazell, which is something we may see ultimately presenting a dilemma if England reach the final!
10. Anya Shrubsole – Shrubsole of course needs no introduction as the other half of England’s opening attack; but she is a very different bowler to Brunt – looking to get movement in the air where Brunt gets it off the deck – the variety just one of the reasons why they are so intimidating as a partnership. The vice-captain will, also like Brunt, have to be “managed” so perhaps won’t play every match, but she will play all the important ones.
11. Alex Hartley – Variety is clearly something which Mark Robinson sees as the spice of life, and he tried two left-armers last summer in the search for adding something different to a mainly right-handed mix. Despite a tough introduction to international cricket last summer, Hartley was selected ahead of the much younger Sophie Ecclestone for elevation to the contracted squad, and repaid that faith over the winter, particularly in the West Indies, where she took 13 wickets – a record for England in a bilateral series – ensuring that she goes into this World Cup as England’s first-choice spinner.

Lauren Winfield has been ruled-out of England’s opening World Cup match against India tomorrow; and will probably also miss the second game against Pakistan on Tuesday.

The opening batsman injured her wrist in the warm-up against New Zealand. Having also kept wicket, she opened the batting in that match, but retired hurt on 27 after facing 10 overs.

This leaves coach Mark Robinson with a big headache – Winfield has opened the batting in all the ODIs England have played since last summer, and her partnership with Tammy Beaumont has been a foundation of England’s recent 9-2 winning record in one-day cricket.

The logical choice would be for Heather Knight to return to the opening role she vacated when she inherited the captaincy – it isn’t a role she wants; but sometimes needs-must!

On a melting hot day at North Maidenhead CC in Berkshire, Lancashire came away with two wins, whilst last year’s champions Kent left empty-handed.

Berkshire v Kent

In the first encounter of the day, a 64-run partnership between Anna Harris and Carla Rudd carried Berkshire to victory over Kent in a low-scoring thriller which went down to the final over.

The day couldn’t have began any worse for Kent as Emily Thompson swished at a wide first ball loosener from Lauren Bell, only to edge it to Carla Rudd behind the stumps.

Thereafter Kent never quite got going, with only Alice Davidson-Richards (16) and Tash Farrant (20) making it to double-figures as wickets fell throughout – 3 apiece to Emma Walker and Lissy Macleod, and 2 to Lauren Bell; with Kent eventually bowled out for 84 in the final over.

It wasn’t the total Kent might have wanted to defend on a perfect day for batting; but they made early inroads as both openers departed for ducks. Coming in at 5-2, Carla Rudd on nought nudged some straightforward catching practice to Alice Davidson Richards at slip; but ADR fumbled it, giving Rudd a life, and throwing Berkshire a lifeline.

Rudd didn’t look back after that, as she and Harris dug in to take the home side to within sight of the target. Harris was eventually run out for 29; but Lauren Bell gave Rudd the backup she needed to drag Berkshire over the line, smashing a final 4 through midwicket to bring up the Beavers’ first win of the season with 2 balls to spare.

Kent v Lancashire

The second match of the day was rather more one-sided than the first, with Lancashire showing just how far they have come over the past couple of years – dominating Kent with both bat and ball in a 72-run victory.

Having won the toss and elected to bat, Lancashire accumulated a formidable total across their 20 overs – 143-4 – building on a strong foundation, with 81 up on the scoreboard before the first wicket went down. Openers Emma Lamb (33) and Eve Jones (40) both batted beautifully – Jones sending a delivery of Megan Belt’s flying high over the square leg boundary for the only six of the game.

It was Belt who eventually got the breakthrough, having Jones caught at mid-wicket in the 13th over – but number 3 Kate Cross simply carried on the good work, finishing with 30 runs to her name. Ellie Threlkeld also chipped in with consecutive boundaries off the last two balls of the innings, ending with a somewhat ridiculous strike rate of 400!

Kent’s reply was distinctly unconvincing – from the time their first wicket fell in the 4th over they barely managed to stem the flow of batsmen making their way back to the cool of the North Maidenhead pavilion. Ultimately it was Extras (28) who top-scored by a long way, as only one of the Kent batsmen, Grace Gibbs (11), made it into double figures. Up-and-coming stars Sophie Ecclestone and Lamb both took advantage, finishing with figures of 3-6 and 4-15 respectively, as the game wended its way to a slow and inevitable conclusion.

— Raf Nicholson

Berkshire v Lancashire

In the day’s final game, Berkshire made things a little harder for Lancashire, but ultimately not hard enough, as the Red Roses cruised to a second victory by 28 runs.

Having won another toss, Lancashire again chose to bat, with Eve Jones (17) and Emma Lamb (14) once again hitting the ground running, before both were out in quick succession. With Kate Cross dismissed cheaply after coming in at 3, it was left to the middle-order to make their mark, which they did thanks to Natalie Brown (26) and Jess Couser (21). The Berkshire bowlers continued to put up a good fight, aided by some fine work in the field, to leave Lancashire 9-down when they closed on 130.

Berkshire once again lost early wickets – Lauren Bell and Carla Rudd the ducks on this occasion, whilst Lissy Macleod bashed her way to 22 off 17 balls. Once she was dismissed though, followed by two further ducks, things started to slip away from Berkshire. and although Mia Rogers (18) and Ashleigh Muttitt (also 18) had some fun at the end, the game was realistically already out of reach by that stage, with Berkshire eventually all out for 102 – Emma Lamb again the pick of the bowlers with 2-11.

Afterwards, Lancashire captain Meg Fairclough told CRICKETher:

“It was a long journey down, setting off at 7 o’clock this morning, but definitely worth it – the girls did great in both games.”

“This team has been together for 4 or 5 years now – a lot of the girls are in the England Academy; and then we’ve got these great players coming in – Sophie Ecclestone from Cheshire and Eve Jones from Staffordshire –  and so we’ve come on really strong this year.”

With Warwickshire having won both their matches, versus Somerset and Surrey, by huge margins, Lancashire are unlikely to be in 1st place when the table is calculated after this round; but they have set down a marker for this season, and perhaps many seasons to come, that this is now a team to be reckoned with at the highest levels of the women’s domestic game.

Warwickshire kept their County Championship dream on track with a stonking win over Berkshire at North Maidenhead CC, as Amy Jones led them romping to victory after the Beavers had been bowled out for 73.

Jones hit 34 off 14 balls, finishing things off with two sixes in the final over, somewhat eclipsing New Zealand superstar Sophie Devine at the other end, who finished on 20* at a Strike Rate of “only” 200!

The toss was won by Berkshire, who opted to bat; but it was downhill from there for the home side, as Annabel Flack was bowled for a golden duck by Laura Crofts in the second over, with Crofts’ opening spell of 3-12 also accounting for Carla Rudd and Anna Harris, whilst at the other end Sophie Devine sent Rachel Priest and Sherissa Gumbs packing – all for single-figures – leaving Berkshire in horrible trouble at 26-5.

Berkshire recovered a smidgen of respectability via Lauren Bell (14) and Lissy Macleod (24) who took them past the 50 mark; but after Bell sliced a slower ball from Jenny Gunn to Kathryn Bryce in the gully, Berkshire collapsed again to 73 all out in 28.1 overs.

With bonus points a potential factor in deciding the Championship, Warwickshire went out determined to chase the required runs down quickly. They had 18.5 overs to do it in… but they needed just 7 to walk away with 18 points, ensuring that they sit in first place at the season’s half-way mark, regardless of Yorkshire’s result against Sussex.

Afterwards, Warwickshire captain Marie Kelly told CRICKETher:

“We wanted to bat first and show everyone the score that we could get – get the top six in and all score runs; but sometimes that doesn’t happen. We lost the toss; but we knew that we could get 10 wickets – it was just about how quickly we got them – making sure we were ruthless and didn’t give anyone a chance to settle and get in – and we showed that by bowling them out for 73.”

“Crofty [Laura Crofts] bowled so well – I was at mid off so I got to see the lines and areas she was bowling and some of those balls were just unplayable.”

“Then it was so good to see Amy Jones and Sophie Devine doing their thing – it is a pleasure being able to watch them both.”

Warwickshire travel to Middlesex tomorrow, where they will be targeting another win; whilst Berkshire must pick themselves up, coming back to North Maidenhead to face Notts.

Sarah Taylor has been named in England’s 15-strong World Cup squad announced today. Taylor has only played one competitive match in over a year, scoring 61 for Sussex v Kent last weekend, but has continued to train with England throughout most of that period. If England ultimately decide she unable to play, they will be able to name an injury replacement.

Missing out are Tash Farrant, Kate Cross and Amy Jones – but all will presumably be on standby in case of injuries.

Full Squad:

• Heather Knight (Berkshire)
• Tammy Beaumont (Kent)
• Katherine Brunt (Yorkshire)
• Georgia Elwiss (Sussex)
• Jenny Gunn (Warwickshire)
• Alex Hartley (Lancashire)
• Danielle Hazell (Yorkshire)
• Beth Langston (Yorkshire)
• Laura Marsh (Kent)
• Anya Shrubsole (Somerset)
• Nat Sciver (Surrey)
• Sarah Taylor (Sussex)
• Fran Wilson (Middlesex)
• Lauren Winfield (Yorkshire)
• Danni Wyatt (Sussex)

UPDATE (18/05/2017) – We’ve now seen some fuller details: 8 KSL matches will be part of the FTA package, plus 1 women’s T20 international – so basically… it is all good news – no but!!!

Today’s exclusive by Elizabeth Ammon in The Times – that the KSL Final will be broadcast free-to-air from 2020 – is welcome news for the women’s game.

The KSL Final will be one element in a package of matches, including two men’s T20 internationals, which the ECB will require whoever wins the next broadcasting contract to make available free-to-air.

It is worth noting that this doesn’t necessarily mean these games will be shown on traditional “TV” – for example, BT Sport will this year fulfil similar contractual requirements for men’s football by partnering with YouTube.

Nevertheless, it’s good news… right?

It is… but there’s a but!

By continuing the policy of folding the women’s broadcast deal in with the men’s, it seems that this one match will be the only women’s cricket which will be shown free-to-air – Pay TV (be it Sky or BT Sport) will therefore likely retain exclusivity for England women’s internationals and the rest of the Super League; dashing hopes that a stand-alone women’s free-to-air TV deal might have become the driver for a surge in interest in the sport, as we’ve seen with both women’s football in England and women’s cricket in Australia.

With all the good news we’ve had recently, from All Stars Cricket (which anecdotally really does seem to have hit a sweet spot) to live-streaming of the Women’s World Cup, there’s no doubt that we do seem to be moving in the right direction – but it will take more than one game on free-to-air to change the landscape.