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BBC News
22-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Essex hope 'family feel' will help women's team
Essex captain Grace Scrivens hopes a "family feel" will help them to be a competitive force in the inaugural domestic season of fully professional women's tier one teams will compete in the One-Day Cup and T20 Blast this season, with a new county-based format replacing the regional structure of recent Essex players were part of the Sunrisers squad which won the 50-over Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy in 2024 and they start their One-Day Cup campaign away to Durham on Wednesday."We're all excited and to launch the new Essex team will be really fun," Scrivens told BBC Essex Sport. "I think it's really important to have the base at Chelmsford, and build the fan base as well. We love playing here, it's always a great home for us. "Every set-up is very different, but I think we're luck have a real family and home feel around Essex."Scrivens recently returned from Australia where she played six games for England the 21-year-old hopes that recent changes to the senior England set-up, with Charlotte Edwards being appointed as the new head coach, may lead to international opportunities for those who do well domestically. "There's been a lot of chat about county performances getting you recognised and that's really exciting for the domestic players, they want to put a hand up and play for England. "If I can contribute some match-winning performances (for Essex), we'll see where that will take me." One of the new faces in the Essex squad is Sophia Smale, who played for Western Storm last season and Scrivens expects her to make a big added: "We are lucky to keep a lot of the (Sunrisers) team together which is nice but we've added Soph Smale, she's a left-arm spinner and a great batter as well, so I think she'll really add to the team."Following their trip to the North East, Essex will play their first home game against Warwickshire on chief executive Dan Feist wants to establish a strong connection to the team across the county and wider region."Chelmsford - we've seen it with women's international games - can create a really vibrant atmosphere. If we can get good numbers in here to watch, and that will grow over time as we've seen with the WSL [Women's Super League football] teams, it's going to be a great place to play, and great place to come and watch women's sport," he said."It's not just about showcasing the women players on the field, but also the opportunities and roles off the field as well, psychologists, through to our physios and administrators."It's not just about playing but also inspiring women's and girls at community clubs to think if I don't quite make it as a player, I can still be heavily involved in elite sport, and that's really important to us as well." Women's One-Day Cup opening fixtures (Wednesday 10:30 BST start)Chester LS: Durham v EssexBeckenham: Surrey v SomersetTrent Bridge: The Blaze v LancashireEdgbaston: Warwickshire v Hampshire
BBC News
03-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Coppack swaps law for full-time Essex cricket deal
According to the Marylebone Cricket Club website, there are 42 different laws of cricket, external, most of them divided into multiple sub-sections, plus an player who would feel right at home immersed in such fine legal details is seam bowler Kate Coppack, who will be part of the Essex women's squad this who helped Sunrisers win last summer's Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy under the old regional format, is an employment lawyer by at the age of 30, she is temporarily turning away from the world of litigation and affidavits, having signed a professional contract at Chelmsford as the women's county game enters a new era."When I was growing up, it [turning pro] wasn't an option at all," Coppack told BBC Look East."Even when I was at uni, it wouldn't have been an option for me to be a professional cricketer - law was always the career path and cricket was playing on the weekends, seeing how high I could go amateurly."But when the game became professional, there were added incentives, the standard got better and I really enjoyed working hard at my game and seeing where it could go. It was kind of a natural progression to try to get a fully professional contract while I still can." Essex are among eight women's county sides granted fully-professional tier one status by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) - although Nottinghamshire will continue to use their old regional name, The Blaze - and will take part in their own T20 Blast and 50-over One-Day Cup competitions this played for Sunrisers on a 'paid-by-game' basis and took 4-27 as they beat South East Stars in a rain-affected RHFT final last September, for which she was named player of the she now has the chance to concentrate fully on cricket this summer, as her legal career takes a back seat."In terms of how much studying I did, and training, in total it was seven years - five years of studying, then two years in practice," she said. "It's a long road to become a lawyer and I didn't stop it lightly. I did think about it for a while."I will miss it, I love the firm I was working with, the team I was working with, but it's good I can now focus on cricket."I will miss that intellectual stimulation and I am going to try and do a bit of work while playing cricket. In the winter, there'll obviously be a lot more opportunity for that, there's quite a bit of downtime when I can do some legal work still so that's the best of both worlds really." Apart from last summer's final, Coppack has a couple of other more notable achievements on her cricketing she was 13, she became the first girl to play for the first XI at King's School in Chester and also made six appearances as a guest for Peru at the 2018 South American Women's Cricket now, following a training camp in Abu Dhabi, everything is geared towards Essex's One-Day Cup opener away to Durham on Wednesday, 23 April."We always had a few full-time professionals (for Sunrisers), but now some of those girls who were juggling careers with playing part-time are now full-time which is great for them," said Essex team director Andy Tennant."It gives them the chance to fulfil their potential and I know they'll be even more excited than the full-time pros. We're just looking forward to having a whole collective that we've got every day of the week to train."Eventually, the women's game will have to stand on its own two feet. This is the next step for the domestic game for us to start getting more bums on seats here at Chelmsford and earning our corn, if you like, on top of the ECB investment that's already come into the game."Tennant hopes the Sunrisers' improvement in 2024, which brought their first major trophy, can be continued by Essex, who have signed several other members of their squad, apart from Coppack."We just want to be competitive in all formats - we'll focus on doing what we do well and hopefully at some point, somebody will give us some silverware," he Eva Gray believes the fact that members of the squad have taken "different routes" to reach this point is a strength."We have people that weren't full-time until about a week ago but also people that have been full-time for five or six years," she said."The whole way through the Sunrisers era, we were all pretty understanding of different scenarios and people's commitments. Now, for us to pull together as one big full-time squad is really key. We're looking forward to seeing the progress we can make."For Coppack, as one of the oldest members of the squad, it remains to be seen how many years she wishes to commit to the professional she added: "There's plenty of time to be a lawyer, we'll enjoy cricket for now."
Arab News
28-01-2025
- Sport
- Arab News
India's Bumrah named cricketer of the year after stellar 2024
NEW DELHI: India pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah has been named men's cricketer of the year for 2024, the International Cricket Council announced Tuesday, a day after he won the Test award. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport Bumrah, 31, ended last year as the top wicket-taker in Tests with 71 wickets and inspired India to the T20 World Cup title in June. 'The year 2024 was incredibly special — winning the men's T20 World Cup 2024 in Barbados and also contributing as much as I could across all three formats of the game,' said Bumrah. 'I dedicate this award to everyone who has believed in me, the power of hard work and dreams, and to bowlers worldwide who continue to inspire and strive for excellence.' Bumrah beat England batters Harry Brook and Joe Root as well as Australia's Travis Head to the award — the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy, given by the sport's governing body. He is fifth Indian to receive the award after Rahul Dravid (2004), Sachin Tendulkar (2010), Ravichandran Ashwin (2016) and Virat Kohli (2017, 2018). Bumrah has claimed 443 wickets in 204 international matches since his debut for India in 2016. New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr was voted women's cricketer of the year to win the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, after she won the T20 cricketer of the year on Saturday. Kerr becomes the first New Zealander to win the trophy after she inspired the White Ferns to their women's T20 World Cup victory in October last year. The 24-year-old overcame South Africa skipper Laura Wolvaardt, Sri Lanka's Chamari Athapaththu and Australia's Annabel Sutherland to win the award.
Al Jazeera
28-01-2025
- Sport
- Al Jazeera
Jasprit Bumrah, Amelia Kerr named ICC Cricketers of the Year
India's pace bowling maestro Jasprit Bumrah has been named the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Men's Cricketer of the Year 2024, while New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr has won the Women's Cricketer of the Year award. Bumrah and Kerr won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy and the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy respectively as the ICC named its top award winners on Tuesday. It was Bumrah's second award in two days as he was also named the Men's Test Cricketer of the Year on Monday, while Kerr won the Women's T20 Cricketer of the Year award on Saturday. Bumrah, who is also India's Test vice-captain, returned to the five-day format in late 2023 following a lengthy absence due to a back injury. The right-arm quick, 31, was the leading wicket-taker in international Test cricket in 2024, topping the charts with 71, well clear of second-placed Gus Atkinson of England (52 in 11 matches). His bowling average across the year was a breathtaking 14.92 and he ended 2024 with a strike rate for the year of just 30.1. 'Test cricket has always been a format I hold close to my heart, and to be recognised on this platform is truly special,' Bumrahsaid, after being named the top player in the sport's oldest format. Bumrah beat England batsmen Harry Brook and Joe Root as well as Sri Lanka's Kamindu Mendis to the award, given by the game's governing body. Smriti Mandhana made it a double success for India as she was voted women's one-day international cricketer of the year for the second time. The opening batter scored 747 runs at an average of 57.46 in the calendar year as she clinched her second ICC ODI award since 2018. 'It is an immense joy and a matter of pride to represent my country at the highest level and it makes me happy to play a role in helping the team succeed,' India's all-format vice-captain Mandhana said. 'I want to dedicate this award to my teammates, coaches and family who have been my absolute pillars of support.' Afghanistan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai clinched the men's ODI award after scoring 417 runs and taking 17 wickets in the year. Unassuming pace bowler Arshdeep Singh, who played a vital role in India's T20 World Cup-winning campaign in 2024, was named the Men's T20 Cricketer of the Year. Singh was also included in the all-star T20 Team of the Year, alongside compatriots Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Bumrah. Sri Lankan batter Kamindu Mendis, who had a breakthrough year with 1,451 runs across all formats, was named the Men's Emerging Cricketer of the Year honour as South African all-rounder Annerie Dercksen won in the women's category. Full list of ICC Awards 2024 winners
Int'l Cricket Council
28-01-2025
- Sport
- Int'l Cricket Council
All-round excellence decides winner of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy for ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year
New Zealand star Melie Kerr is the latest recipient of the illustrious Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy as the stand-out player of 2024, beating Laura Wolvaardt, Chamari Athapaththu and Annabel Sutherland to the top honour in the women's game. Kerr was outstanding in all three facets of the game throughout the year, setting the standard for world-class all-rounders. Her brilliance in the field lifted New Zealand time and again, and she was one of the most dangerous leg-spinners in the world, acting as the White Ferns' go-to strike bowler. With the bat, Kerr was the rock in New Zealand's line-up, capable of playing expansive knocks to build on strong starts or acting as a stabilising force to anchor the innings if the openers didn't fire. Melie Kerr revels in claiming the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Award | ICC Awards 2024 The Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy was first awarded in 2017 and has been shared between three players since then, with Australia's Ellyse Perry, India's Smriti Mandhana and England's Nat Sciver-Brunt each winning the award on two occasions. Kerr becomes not only the first New Zealander to win the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, but also the first Kiwi to win the overall ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year in any guise. Kerr's highlight of 2024 came at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup where she was named the Player of the Tournament and won the Player of the Match award against South Africa in the final as New Zealand's women won their first ICC T20 World Cup. In nine One Day Internationals during the year, Kerr scored 264 runs at an average of 33, and she also bagged 14 wickets in the format. But it was in T20 Internationals where her performances earned her the Cricketer of the Year award. In 18 T20Is in 2024 she scored 387 runs at an average of 24.18 and bagged 29 wickets – a national record for a single calendar year. Melie Kerr on the 'huge honour' of winning T20I Cricketer of the Year Kerr's 15 wickets at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup made her the tournament's leading wicket-taker and is the biggest haul ever by a bowler at a Women's T20 World Cup. She frequently got opponents' key batters out throughout the tournament, including the prized scalp of Deandra Dottin in the semi-final against West Indies and two of South Africa's top three – Laura Wolvaardt and Anneke Bosch – in the final. The 24-year-old saved her best for last with the bat at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup, scoring 43 from 38 to top score across both teams in the final. Kerr anchored New Zealand's innings, coming in during the second over and departing in the penultimate one having played a key role in lifting the Kiwis to a match-winning total of 158/5. She followed up those batting efforts with an excellent catch and stand-out figures of 3/24 with the ball, including two wickets in an over to turn the tide in New Zealand's favour after a strong Powerplay from the Proteas openers. Kerr's all-round brilliance deservedly earned her the Player of the Match award in the final, capping off a remarkable year of individual excellence. ICC - Awards 2024 News highlighed news Women's News Breaking News Amelia Kerr 10/13/2000 New Zealand Women Awards
