Kent have won a record 8th Women’s County Championship title – seeing off both their closest rivals over the Bank Holiday weekend to crown themselves with a game to spare.

Taking on Yorkshire at Harrogate, Kent were bowled out for 121 off the final ball in a rain-affected game – Fran Wilson and Maxine Blythin joint-top-scoring with 32. It proved 5 too many for Yorkshire, who finished 116-7, Leah Dobson 30* at the end.

This left Kent needing 15 points from their game the next day against Lancashire to make the title mathematically certain, and this they achieved as promising teenage fast bowler Chelsey Rowson took 4-24 to bowl Lancashire out for 161. An undefeated half-century from Fran Wilson then wrapped things up with 6 overs to spare, to send the trophy back to its forever-home in Kent!

Elsewhere, Hampshire picked up their first two wins – Providence Cowdrill taking 4-19 as they defeated Warwickshire, and captain Katie George hitting 80* to see off Notts. Warwickshire also finally got a win on the board – Amy Jones smashing 101* off 96 balls to defeat Surrey – completing a sorry weekend for Surrey, who also lost to Notts despite a run-a-ball hundred from Bryony Smith.

Meanwhile England fans will be delighted to see that Sarah Taylor made her return for Sussex, after missing most of the season through injury; though it didn’t help them much as they failed with the bat yet again versus Yorkshire – bowled out for 139. Sussex did get a win against Lancashire, thanks to Nancy Harman who took 4-19 as Lancs failed to chase 135 in a rain-reduced match at Kate Cross’s home club ground – Heywood CC.

A maiden century from skipper Amara Carr proved in vain, as Sophia Dunkley drained Devon’s Div 2 title hopes with her 5th consecutive 50+ score in the Women’s County Championship for Middlesex.

Having won the toss, on a day when the weather could not make up its mind whether it was hot, cold, windy or still, Devon chose to bat at picturesque Eastcote Cricket Club.

Middlesex got an early breakthrough with the big wicket of in-form Georgia Hennessy – Katie Wolfe, having passed the bat several times in the early overs, going up for a huge appeal for caught behind, and Hennessy walking without the umpire needing to raise his finger.

Gaya Gole then clean-bowled Claire Varcoe for 1; but the match soon seemed to be turning in Devon’s favour, as Amara Carr and Emma Corney played sensibly, paddling the ball around to bring up their 50 partnership in the 19th over, and taking the score to 77-2 after 20 overs.

Carr brought up her 50 off 55 balls in the 27th over, and Corney’s half century followed shortly afterwards off 84 balls. The hundred partnership came too, but was finally broken shortly afterwards as Corney was bowled by Sonali Patel for 56.

Emily Edgecombe came and went – caught behind off Emily Thorpe for 3 – but Carr, who will be playing for Middlesex in the T20 London Cup at Lords this week, bustled her way on through the 80s and 90s to bring up her maiden County Championship hundred off 104 balls.

Carr was finally run out at the death on 105, by a direct hit from Naomi Dattani as she went for a sharp single, as Devon finished on 222-9, with Gole the pick of the Middlesex bowling taking 3-16.

In reply, Naomi Dattani and Cordelia Griffith – the latter fresh from a hundred the previous day against Somerset – got off to a flying start, with some generous help from the extras column, but were pegged-back a bit by a pair of maidens towards the end of the powerplay, which finished 56-0.

Dattani’s innings was ended by Charlie Phillips, though perhaps not in a way that the bowler herself would have wanted – the Middlesex captain caught by Ellie Mitchell off a high full toss for 19.

Griffith brought up her half century in the 22nd over, and she immediately followed it up by taking advantage of a very short boundary to smash a straight 6 over the sightscreen in celebration.

After 65 off 66 balls, Griffith didn’t quite get the full force of the bat on a lofted drive straight down the ground and was caught – Mitchell again the catcher – to give Phillips her second wicket of the afternoon.

Phillips had a chance for a third in her final over, but put down a tough caught and bowled opportunity from Sophia Dunkley, to finish with 2-41.

Dunkley passed 50 and was dropped again on 51, but gave no further alarms as her and Tash Miles (36*) cruised past the target with more than 5 overs to spare – Dunkley finishing things off with a lovely lofted drive for 4, to close on 75*.

Dunkley currently averages 113, having scored 451 runs in the Championship this season – yes it is Div 2, but surely enough to earn her selection for England’s up-coming series against the West Indies?

Meanwhile Middlesex go into a virtual “final” next weekend against leaders Berkshire, with the winner likely to take the Div 2 title as the County Championship draws to a climax one last time.

After their win at Yorkshire yesterday, Kent are now 15 points away from winning the last ever Women’s County Championship at Newton Le Willows CC on Merseyside today, where they meet Lancashire.

After Lancashire lost yesterday to Sussex, Kent’s nearest challengers are now Nottinghamshire on 64 points – Kent have 85* – 21 points clear with two games to play.

Notts could in theory reach 100 points with two “18 pointers” but because Kent have the head-to-head win against Notts in the bag, that means they only need to match them – i.e. Kent need to reach 100 points to take the title with one game left to play.

They can do that today by (a) winning, for 10 points; and (b) taking 5 of the 8 available bonus points.

Here’s a reminder of how bonus points work:

Bowling

Bowling points are pretty simple – you take wickets; you get points!

Batting

Batting points are a bit more complicated, because they are calculated on the run rate, rather than the number of runs. To give you an idea, we’ve shown a 50 Over Equivalent score below; but remember if your side are chasing, it is really how quickly they score the runs rather than how many they score.

NB – If you are all-out, the run rate is calculated based on the full allocation of overs.

———————-
* Play Cricket says 84, but Kent’s batting bonus points from yesterday are wrong – 121 runs / 36 overs = 3.36 RPO = 3 bonus points, not 2! (HT @WomensCricDay for pointing this out!) This is now corrected!

A half century from Australian overseas Sophie Day set Berkshire up for a 36-run victory over Durham, which combined with Devon’s loss to Essex put the Beavers 11* points clear at the top of Division 2 of the Women’s County Championship.

Day, together with Emily Cunningham, got Berkshire off to a great start on the way to a hundred partnership – Cunningham hitting Rachel Petherick for 4-6-4 in her second over, as the Beavers, whose batting has struggled of late, cantered to 50-0 off the first 10 overs.

After seven 4s and one 6, Cunningham was eventually undone by one that kept low from England Academy leg-spinner Helen Fenby, LBW for 41; but the left-handed Day went on to bring up her 50 in the 28th over with a pull through midwicket for two, before being bowled shortly afterwards by Hannah Knowles for 59.

England captain Heather Knight followed shortly afterwards, caught off a toe-edge for a nice 38, but with the score on 174 Berkshire were already in a very strong position.

With heavy drizzle coming down and the ball slipping around like a raccoon on roller-skates, spinner Laura Ellison struggled with her length, finding herself called for no balls for both high full tosses and double-bounces – but still managed to get the wicket of Anya Shrubsole, who plonked a full toss straight into the hands of Ami Campbell at mid off.

But a 40-run partnership between Lissy Macleod and Amanda Potgieter took Berkshire past the 200 required for maximum batting bonus points. Potgieter was eventually clean-bowled for 15 by Hannah Knowles; but Mcleod continued to tonk and bonk her way to 53 off 43 balls, helping Berkshire to a final total of 284-6.

In reply, Durham made it through the powerplay for the loss of just 1 wicket – Laura Hockaday LBW to Anya Shrubsole; but a second wicket followed almost immediately afterwards – Rachael Petherick also LBW to Phoebe Graham, leaving them 42-2.

Durham kept wickets in hand, but the run rate was starting to climb, and by the time drinks were taken at 17 overs it had already hit an ominous 7-per-over.

Remarkably though Durham, who had just the one win coming into this match, were keeping up more or less with that rate, hitting at around 7-an-over to keep the chase in sight, as Rachel Hopkins and Becky Glen targeted cow corner with some lusty blows to put on 81 for the 3rd wicket, until Glen became the 3rd LBW dismissal of the innings to Kate Coppack.

But the turning point came with the dismissal of Hopkins, who got to a half century before she went for one big shot too many against Macleod, lost her balance and was stumped for 54.

As darkness began to descend upon both Durham and the greying skies above North Maidenhead CC, Ami Campbell (42) skied a slog-sweep towards Heather Knight at long off – the England captain making no mistake taking the catch; and Emily Cunningham took a brilliant one-handed catch at gully, leaping high and back to dismiss Laura Ellison off Phoebe Graham for 16.

Berkshire’s thoughts could then turn towards bonus points, which they duly reeled-in, Graham finishing with 3-39 and Coppack with 3-38, as Durham closed on 249-9, with Berkshire taking a maximum 18 points from the game.

————
* The current table shows a 9-point gap, but Devon have incorrectly banked bonus points from their abandoned match against Berkshire last weekend, which (we assume!) will at some point be removed.

With 4 wins out of 4 already in the Women’s County Championship, Kent are in a very good position to seal the title this weekend, as their official Twitter account tweeted:

However… they do need to do a little bit more than “just” win those two games.

Kent’s nearest challengers are Lancashire, who right now have 57 points – so assuming they do indeed lose to Kent on Monday, the most they can therefore get is 101 points – 8 bonus points v Kent, and two “18 pointers” from their other two fixtures.

Assuming, again, that Kent have beaten Lancs, Kent would have the “head to head” so would only need to finish level on points to win the title – ergo 101 points is Kent’s target!

Kent currently have 69 points – so two wins alone (with zero bonus points) takes them to only 89 points.

However, two wins with maximum (18) bonus points will get them to 105 – 4 more than they need.

So in other words the thing to watch is Kent’s bonus points – they can afford to drop 4 over the weekend and they will then be champions on Monday evening, regardless of anything that happens elsewhere.

Of course, this situation will have changed by Sunday evening, depending on the results of other games, so stay tuned and we’ll keep doing the maths so you don’t have to!

The top of Division 2 is unchanged this weekend, after the key match between the top two was abandoned, and the game between 3rd and 4th was tied, leaving things very-much “as you were”!

Top-of-the-table Devon were left cursing the weather after Georgia Hennessy’s 78* helped them to 203-5 against second-placed Berkshire. The Beavers, whose batting hasn’t been their strong point this season, were then in some trouble at 4-2, with both their openers out for golden ducks. With no Heather Knight to rescue Berkshire, Devon must have been anticipating virtually wrapping up the title there and then, but then the rain came down and didn’t stop – the game eventually abandoned and the points shared.

Middlesex’s trip to Wales saw Sophia Dunkley hit her second century of the season – 114 off 126 balls – as Middlesex posted 163 all out. 43 from Rachel Priest set Wales on their way, but they ended up with numbers 9 and 10 – Lydia Clements and Naomi Davies – at the crease, needing 11 off the final over for the win, which they couldn’t quite do – running two off the final ball to leave the scores tied.

Further down the table, Essex made hard work of beating Somerset, despite bowling them out for 123 – a marathon 46 off 115 balls from Jess Bird helped get Essex over the line with just 3 balls to spare. Meanwhile up in Durham, Worcestershire captain Georgie Adcock top scored with 75, but it wasn’t enough as the Rapids went down by 31 runs to give Durham their first win of the season.

Next weekend sees Devon take on Essex and Middlesex, whilst Berkshire host Durham before travelling to Wales.

As we pass the half-way point in the Women’s County Championship, with 3 games left to play, Kent opened up clear blue water between them and the pack with a win over Hampshire, as their closest challengers Lancashire slipped-up against Yorkshire.

It wasn’t quite the perfect performance from Kent – at Polo Farm in Canterbury they missed out on maximum bonus points by taking just 6 wickets as Maia Bouchier top-scored with 64, and Suzie Bates hit 63, to help Hampshire to 233; but a frantastic (!) 74 from Fran Wilson, set them on course to win by 3 wickets and maintain their unbeaten record this year. (Full report here.)

At Harrogate, Lancashire went down to their first defeat of the season in the Roses match against Yorkshire. Katie Thompson and Beth Langston shared 3 wickets apiece as Lancashire were bowled out for 158. Lauren Winfield’s miserable county season for Yorkshire continued – her run of scores thus far: 2, 21, 0 and 2 – but it didn’t stop Yorkshire chasing down their target by 5 wickets, Katherine Brunt finishing 48* at the end.

The return of Danni Wyatt to Sussex didn’t help their struggling batting much – Wyatt made 2 off 7 balls, and it was left to Carla Rudd (36), Ella Mccaughan (33) and Freya Davies (23) to get them out of trouble to 176-7 against Surrey, which they might have defended had it not been for Nat Sciver, who made 80* to give Surrey their second win of the season.

Finally, Warwickshire endured another agonisingly close defeat to stay rooted to the foot of the table. Set 207 to chase by Notts, with Scotland’s Sarah Bryce making 51 and Georgia Davies taking 4-43, Warwickshire fell just 4 runs short – Amy Jones 89 and Jo Gardner’s highest ever championship score of 59 not quite enough to get them home.

Kent aren’t anything like home and dry yet – they’ve got a difficult road trip next Bank Holiday weekend to their two closest challengers – Yorkshire and Lancashire – but two wins there could potentially make them champions by Monday evening if bonus points and other results elsewhere fall their way.

Despite a flurry of late wickets from seamer Katie George, Kent eventually got over the line at Polo Farm against Hampshire with 2 and a half overs to spare, taking them to a 7-wicket victory against the former County Champions.

Fran Wilson top-scored for the hosts with 74 from 75 balls, her second big score in her maiden season for Kent after she made 87 against Warwickshire two weekends ago. Both performances should put her in contention to claim a place in the England squad ahead of the internationals against West Indies which begin next month.

Wilson came to the crease with Kent 0-1, chasing Hampshire’s 233 – Alice Davidson-Richards having been bowled by Maia Bouchier before her side had troubled the scorers.

Wilson, though, quickly took charge, with Hampshire feeding her some short and wide balls outside of off-stump which she gobbled up eagerly. She raced away to 50 with partner Tammy Beaumont still on only 15*.

Hampshire eventually found the right line to bowl to her, cramping her for room and having her trapped LBW to Charlie Dean. Beaumont fell the very next ball, caught behind to Charlotte Taylor, leaving Kent stumbling somewhat at 123-3.

Laura Marsh and Maxine Blythin then came together in a 72-run partnership, scampering singles to take the hosts within touching distance of victory.

There was one last twist in the tale for Kent, in the shape of Katie George’s second spell of the innings. George initially surprised everyone with a lone appeal for caught behind against Marsh, which the umpire acquiesced with. In her next over she took two further wickets in two balls, having Tash Farrant caught at cover and Izzy Cloke done for pace and bowled.

Lauren Griffiths successfully survived the hat-trick ball, but George got her eventually – trapping her LBW in her next over. At that point George had 4-62 and Kent were 213-7, still needing 21 runs to win.

It was left to Blythin and Chelsey Rowson to hustle Kent over the line, and they got there in the end – Blythin finished with an unbeaten half-century, and Rowson showed her mettle with a four creamed through the covers to finish things off.

Earlier, Hampshire had initially stumbled after winning the toss and choosing to bat – both Dean and George falling LBW without scoring.

The return of superstar Suzie Bates from the Women’s IPL, though, appeared to have a transformative effect on the rest of Hampshire’s batting, which looked a million miles away from last week’s showing against Sussex.

Bates herself racked up 63 in a partnership of 88 with Bouchier, though she lacked some of her usual fluency and was dropped on 6* and 23*, both chances coming off the bowling of Marsh. Beaumont finally snaffled her at midwicket in the 39th over.

Bouchier, meanwhile, went 1 run better and showed her strength in the V to top-score with 64 (86 balls), before being done by a Sarah Taylor-esque piece of glovework from Griffiths, who – standing up to the stumps for Farrant – had the batsman stumped from a leg side wide.

Hampshire’s lower order then also came good, with Emily Windsor hitting an attacking 34 before Taylor (22*) and Lucia Kendall (28*) put on 39 in the last 6 overs of the innings – Kendall celebrating her 15th birthday in some style! In the context of a close Championship race, Kent’s failure to dislodge either of the pair meant they missed out on not just 1 but 2 bowling bonus points, which could prove crucial.

For the moment, however, Lancashire’s loss to Yorkshire puts Kent firmly atop Division 1, with 3 matches left to play in this year’s Women’s County Championship.

An 18-point victory over Worcestershire took Devon past Berkshire to the top of Div 2, with 3 out of 7 games played in the second tier of the Women’s County Championship.

Spinner Becca Silk’s breakout season continued with 5-12 as Devon bowled Worcestershire out for 69, and Georgia Hennessy then hit 40* as Devon reached the target in just 16 overs.

Meanwhile Berkshire dropped a bonus point after they were bowled out for 160 by Somerset, with Heather Knight making 75. Knight then took 3-12 as Somerset were rolled-over for 86, with only keeper Nat Wraith (47) reaching double-figures.

Sophia Dunkley continued to prod England Head Coach Mark Robinson ahead of the international summer, with an all-round performance at Durham. Dunkley took 4-18 with her leg-spin as Durham set Middlesex 171, and then hit a half-century to set her side on course to victory, with veteran Beth Morgan closing the deal, finishing 44* at the end.

Finally at Panteg, half centuries from Rachel Priest (67) and Dani Gibson (57) set up a big win for Wales, posting 211 against Essex, who could only make 139-8 in reply, Gabby Basketter finishing with figures of 3-10.

The top two meet next weekend at Sidmouth in a match which could decide the season, while Middlesex head to Wales, Essex entertain Somerset, and Durham play Worcestershire in a match which will give one or the other their first win of 2019.

Kent and Lancashire pulled ahead in the Women’s County Championship this weekend, both taking maximum bonus points as they remained unbeaten at the top of the table.

Kent visited Surrey at Reed’s School, and the home side got off to a good start with the bat – Bryony Smith (55) and Kira Chathli (35) putting on 98 for the first wicket. But after Megan Belt dispatched both in quick succession, Surrey collapsed to 148 all out, with Tash Farrant taking 4-26. Tammy Beaumont then hit an unbeaten 79 to steer Kent home in 30 overs for the loss of only 3 wickets.

Lancashire entertained Notts at Carnforth, where Ellie Threlkeld hit a rapid 72 off 70 balls to help set Notts a target of 241. Kate Cross then continued her good form, taking 3-36 as – despite a half-century from Sonia Odedra (67) – Notts fell well short on 195-9.

Sussex moved into 3rd with a 1 wicket win in a rather attritional match at Hampshire, with England bowler Freya Davies saving the day for Sussex after their top order failed again – full report here.

Meanwhile Yorkshire inflicted a third defeat of the season on Warwickshire. After putting Yorkshire in, Warwickshire had them 6-4 early-doors; but New Zealander Leigh Kasperek shepherded the tail to a semblance of respectability at 112 all out, as Warwickshire speedster Issy Wong took 4-25. The Bears then found themselves in almost as much trouble as they’d had the Yorkies in, at 9-3 as Beth Langston got to work on their top order – Langston finishing with 5-8 as Warwickshire were bowled out 5 short for 108.

Looking forward to next weekend, the big game will be the Roses match between Yorkshire and Lancashire at Harrogate; while Kent draw the short straw of having to play Hampshire with Suzie Bates back in yellow after her stint at the Women’s IPL out in India. Both will be looking for a win to set up a potential title-decider when the two sides meet on Bank Holiday Monday May 27th as the Championship draws to a climax.