Oxford's oldest student newspaper

Independent since 1920

In-form cricketers looking to Lord’s

Oxford’s female cricketers were faced with one of the toughest tests of the season, as they tackled the Cambridge University Women’s team at The Parks this term. The two sides had previously met in an extremely close BUCS fixture the week before, therefore promising for an exciting match between the rivals.

Cambridge won the toss on a somewhat cold and damp day at the Parks and decided to bat first. Webster and Ravi got their side off to a positive start with 28 off the first 4 overs, before Oxford were rewarded with their break- through of the wicket of Webster, for 10, from the introduction of spin from Ridhi Kashyap. The following two wickets of the Ravi twins fell within the space of 5 balls as Chatterji picked up her first wicket of the season and Kashyap furthered on an impressive spell with a great catch from keeper Lucy Stuchfield, to take the wicket of opener Nikhila Ravi for an orderly 27 off 33 balls.

From then on, Oxford remained on top in the field as they managed to hold their catches and keep the pressure on Cambridge as the wickets started to fall. The next 10 overs saw Cambridge only able to score 15 runs as Moore, Oberoi and Bath all picked up a wicket each, with a notable finishing spell from captain Tina Gough, bowling back to back maidens in order to restrict the opposition, after a late flurry of wickets in the last 2 overs, with an impressive direct hit run out from Watts, seeing Cambridge to 77 all out from their allotted 20 overs.

Oxford knew that they were in the driving seat after a promising performance in the field, but the early wicket of opener Chatterji in the first over, proved Cambridge were not giving up quite so soon. The introduction of Lucy Stuchfield saw an impressive 51 run partner- ship off just 41 balls with Ellie Bath, to see Oxford take control. Stuchfield ended her knock of 31 from 24 balls, as she was trapped leg before from the bowling of Nikhila Ravi. Gough was then able to join Bath at the crease, which provided the vital innings for the Oxford team to build around of 29, as Oxford chased down their target at ease with 7.5 overs to spare.

Oxford now go into the 50-over Varsity match at Lord’s in a strong position, looking for a hat trick of wins over the Tabs for the season.

The Women’s 50-over Varsity cricket match dates back to at least the 1960s and was originally a declaration contest. This was changed to the modern 50-over format of the game in 1996, and has remained this way since then.

At first the venue of the match alternated between The Parks (in Oxford) and Fenner’s (in Cambridge), however from 2001 onwards the match has been contested at Lord’s cricket ground in London.

The Women’s match takes place on the Nursery Ground, behind the main stage, and concurrently with the men’s Varsity match which is played on the Main Ground.

The matches are followed by a joint reception in the Long Room, one of the most prestigious interiors at any sports ground in the world.

The 2013 season was very successful, with OUWCC finishing at the top of their league and gaining promotion in BUCS. However, the main event, the Varsity 50-over match, was washed out last year, so the team go into this year’s fixture with extra determination to win.

The Women’s game has been growing from strength to strength in recent years, becoming more popular with live audiences as well as on television. This growth is particularly evident in Oxford. Past and current members of OUWCC have represented England, England U21, County XIs and the British Universities Com- bined XI.

The game is also accessible to anyone who wants to play. As a result of the high standard of coaching, many of the players join OUWCC as complete beginners and leave as important members of the team.

The cricket Varsity matches are to be held on Friday 20th June this year at Lord’s. Last year’s Men’s fixture proved very exciting with Sam Agarwal breaking the Varsity batting record. The fixture draws large crowds to the home of cricket, and is set to be a great day.

Check out our other content

Most Popular Articles