Claire Taylor is the first woman to be named Wisden’s Cricketer of the Year. She remains the highest scorer, male or female, in an ODI at Lord’s. She was the Player of the Series when England won both the ODI and T20 World Cups in 2009. She studied mathematics at Oxford and left a well-paying job at P&G to be a full-time cricketer when there was no money in the women’s game. Excerpts from an interview Taylor gave The Hindu at Lord’s:

Women’s cricket has undergone quite a transformation since your playing days.

Transformation is the right word. There have been a number of incremental changes on the way, and the difference is huge between when I played 15 years ago and now. They are supported all the way through. They have their kit sponsors. Whether they are Indians or English, they get the best venues in their countries. They get the best coaches. What you are seeing is fully professional female cricketers. And they are paid to play.

You had to leave your job.

If I wanted to be a better cricketer, I had to make some sacrifice. It was a difficult decision. You know, the guy who I worked alongside, I would meet him two or three years later. He has a lovely job, a lovely house, a Porsche and everything. And I don’t have a job and I live at home with my mum and dad and I definitely don’t have a Porsche, right? So it was hard that I dropped off that career ladder. But it was easy as well because if I had wanted to stay on the career ladder, I would have had to go to Geneva or Cincinnati and they don’t play much cricket there, do they? But I wanted to be a brilliant cricketer. And I was part of teams that won World Cups. That is what it is all about, isn’t it?

How do you look back at those World Cup wins in 2009?

Australia was a wonderful tour. Ahead of the ODI World Cup, we had some good warm-up fixtures and then beat Sri Lanka, had a good run, lost to Australia, but beat New Zealand in the final, which was just amazing. To watch Nicky Shaw come in late, take four wickets, and then Holly Colvin hit the winning runs through — shall we call it forward square or mid-wicket? — it was all great.

That whole period, we talked world domination. We were focused on winning the T20I World Cup at home, which we did, beating New Zealand again in the final, here at Lord’s. One of the really interesting things is for me to have that innings [76 not out off 53 balls] at the Oval, in the semifinal against Australia, which brought together everything that I had been working towards in terms of how to dominate another team and how to work with my batting partner and so on.

Because the bowlers felt so pressured by what had happened against Australia, who got 160-odd runs, and it made us look foolish. The bowlers came out here, we won the toss [against New Zealand], we put them in and Katherine Sciver-Brunt got three for six in four overs. It was a great spell of bowling from the Nursery End, got their captain out and we were only chasing 86 to win a World Cup final at Lord’s.

You had another memorable outing here back in 2006. Your 156 not out against India remains the highest ODI score at Lord’s.

I remember Jhulan Goswami was absolutely unplayable. It rained earlier that day. The pitch was a little bit green. I couldn’t get bat on ball. She was too good. If she had been worse, I might have got an edge on it. She was so tall. She was moving it a mile. She was metronomic. If there is a female bowler that you would compare to Glenn McGrath, it is Jhulan.

In 2009, you made history by becoming the first-ever woman to be named by Wisden as one of its cricketers of the year, breaking a century-old tradition.

It wasn’t something I ever expected. When Scyld Berry, the Wisden editor, said, ‘Come, can I meet you for lunch?’ I just thought he wanted to talk about the upcoming World Cup, which he did. Then he said, ‘Okay, the reason I asked you for lunch today is that I want to name you as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year. What do you think?’ And I was like, ‘Sorry, you what?’ I didn’t really understand it, because you don’t think about that. That is not ever on your radar. It is not something you want to achieve.

It is a credit to him as well?

Indeed. It was incredible. To be named a Wisden Cricketer in 2009, you have to have had influence in 2008. I was basically never out. Every game we chased, we won. We were on our journey to world domination at that point.

Ruling Lord’s: Taylor’s 156 n.o. against India in 2006 remains the highest score at world cricket’s most famous ground.
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The batters that have influenced you?

I think you can divide my career into maybe three chunks. You can divide it into that first, trying to figure out what was going on and getting a bit of coaching and everything. Then maybe a period between 2001 and 2005 when I was trying to be one of the best players in the world. Rather than trying to emulate players like Belinda Clark, Charlotte Edwards or Jan Brittin, I decided I didn’t need to be them. I was never going to be as good as them, only a second-rate version of them. I wanted to be the best version of me. There are different ways of being brilliant. That is the amazing thing about cricket though, isn’t it? There is so much space in the game for all sorts of people.

I was influenced by two batters, one of which wasn’t a woman. I liked the way Debbie Hockley hit the ball to all parts of the ground. I also liked Ricky Ponting, who was just a little bit unorthodox. His bat didn’t come through perfectly straight in the same way that some other batters did. But he was incredibly effective. Because he would take the ball and he would hit it in slightly unorthodox areas. And never gave his wicket away. He minimised his weaknesses and he maximised his ability to score from elsewhere.

What is it with Taylor and England women’s cricket? Clare Taylor, the one who also played at the football World Cup, was telling me the other day, ‘We used to say if your name is not Taylor, you are not going to be selected’. And Sarah Taylor, the wicketkeeping great, was your teammate.

And there were Taylors in the team before Clare. Maybe someone in this England team should change their name and be a Taylor, so we could be World champions again.

Published – August 01, 2026 07:50 am IST

Issy Wong is one of the quickest bowlers in the women’s game. After being out of the England team for almost a year, she returned to international cricket recently, and is now looking forward to the upcoming T20 World Cup at home. She took the Women’s Premier League’s first-ever hattrick, in the inaugural edition in 2023, in which she played a key role in Mumbai Indians’ triumph.

Excerpts from Wong’s interview over the phone with The Hindu:

Who do you think could be the strongest contenders at the T20 World Cup that starts next week in England?

We just had a really competitive series against New Zealand and they are the reigning world champions. We obviously know that the talent of Australia, India and South Africa is enormous.

But the brilliant thing about cricket is that it is an individual team sport, isn’t it? So, you know, any team is only one brilliant individual performance away from beating anyone else. That is why people love the game. That is why people watch cricket. It is genuinely a sport where anything can happen.

You did very well in the inaugural edition of the WPL, in which you helped Mumbai Indians win the title.

I love playing out there in India. As a place to tour and as a place to play sort of franchise cricket, it is right up there. I love the passion for the game that you always feel there is in India.

It is super exciting to know what you are doing has that entertainment factor. That is why we do it, isn’t it? In India, that first year of the WPL really gave me that platform to go out and enjoy my cricket and try and hope that people enjoy that too.

The one thing that stands out for me personally is the hattrick [against UP Warriorz]. That was also the sort of moment where we thought, ‘We are almost in the final here’. That will go down as one of the best moments in my career. I had a good group of people that I just enjoyed being with and sharing the field with.

How was it being part of the champion side?

It was cool. It was my first experience of being part of a championship-winning side. And there was so much to learn off all the people involved. I got to spend a lot of time with Nat [Sciver-Brunt]. You know her skillset. Her experience and being from an English background as well, it was cool to watch her up close.

There were of course other overseas players, Hayley Matthews, Amelia Kerr, and the Indian superstars as well, like Harmanpreet Kaur, Yastika Bhatia. Building relationships with those players, learning a bit from them. How they see the game is sometimes quite different to us. I found that fascinating. We had a good run as well, which always helps. I guess you always have more fun when you are winning.

And your coach at MI was Charlotte Edwards, whom you have now reunited with in the England team.

She is all right, isn’t she? It was cool to build that relationship with Lottie. She was the perfect sort of coach, especially in that first year, given the last-minute nature of it. She just kind of helped us ride that wave as a playing group. There can be a lot of noise around that competition and a lot of distractions away from what we do on the pitch.

The toughest batters you have bowled to?

Good question. I think there are so many good batters and it feels like the batters just keep getting better and better. As bowlers, it’s hard for us to keep up with them; maybe balls are going farther. But I think we are also bowling quicker or turning it more.

We have just played against Sophie Devine, and she has played, I think, one of the great T20 innings at Canterbury. Last year, Matthews got a hundred at Canterbury as well. Those two recently have really tested our bowling attacks and they are pretty tricky.

And also, the Indian team is stacked full of brilliant batters and they just keep coming as well, don’t they? You get one of them out and then out walks Harmanpreet. Every batter has her own strengths and weaknesses. And it’s exciting to be able to test yourself against them.

Who are the cricketers that you admired growing up?

Being English, there were obviously Anya Shrubsole, Katherine Sciver-Brunt. You can’t really get two better pace-bowling role models than them. To see them running in, representing England, their passion and extraordinarily high skill level…It was really inspiring to watch as a kid. From other countries, you look at people like Shabnim Ismail, Jhulan Goswami, and seeing those bowlers just makes you passionate about bowling fast.

How is The Hundred helping women’s cricket in England?

We have got players like Tilly Corteen-Coleman that have had success in The Hundred. I think about my time at MI and players like Saika Ishaque and (S.) Sajana that ended up representing their country and that happened quite quickly.

It has been really cool to see the young players coming through and embracing that platform that The Hundred gives them. Also, you look in the stands, you find lots of young girls, but also young boys coming to watch women’s cricket.

You have got both young girls and young boys really engaging with both the men’s and the women’s game and being entertained by both. We have seen it as well with women’s football in this country, everybody getting behind it. It is no longer just women’s cricket for women to watch. I think The Hundred talks a lot about equal exposure. And for us as players, it is really nice to promote that because we are playing for the same clubs, playing on the same days. It is such a fun tournament to be part of.

What are your memories of watching the 2017 World Cup final at Lord’s and how did it impact you as a young aspiring cricketer?

It has had a massive impact. There was a good core of us, probably younger players in the side now, that were in the stands at Lord’s and it just felt like a brilliant day watching women’s cricket. The final couldn’t have been much more dramatic than it was. And I think as a spectator, that was brilliant. And it really captured the hearts of loads of young, especially girls in England, you know. Nine years have gone by now. When you sit there at Lord’s watching our players win a World Cup for England on home soil, there is nothing more inspiring than that, nothing that makes you want to follow in their footsteps more.

Have you had a look at this boy called Vaibhav Sooryavanshi?

Yeah, a little bit. He whacks it, doesn’t he?

(This interview was facilitated by Sony Sports Network, which is broadcasting the England-India women’s bilateral series)

Published – June 06, 2026 12:47 am IST

Not worrying about pressure and being “ruthless” have been the hallmark of the Indian team so far as it aims to retain the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, said left-arm spinner Parunika Sisodia after guiding her side to the final of the prestigious tournament on Friday. India are just win away from retaining the title when they take on South Africa on Sunday and Parunika said the team enters every match with the determination to dominate. India crushed England by nine wickets to set up a summit clash with South Africa, who defeated Australia by five wickets in the other semifinal.

“We have made it our motto that we are not going to worry about pressure, we are just going to enjoy the game. Whatever happens, we will go through it together. It’s ’11 against all’,” Parunika, who returned excellent figures of 3/21 in four overs, told ICC after the match.

“We have been playing together for seven or eight months. Our support staff has always been there and made sure we are together, making sure we are having fun,” she added.

Parunika had a major task to achieve after England were off to a flying start, racing to 37 for no loss after four overs. She made an instant impact, removing Jemima Spence and Trudy Johnson to stem the flow of runs, before coming back to dismiss the dangerous Katie Jonesas the rivals were restricted to 113/8.

G Kamalini then struck a fine half-century as India reached the target in 15 overs for the loss of one wicket.

“This was the goal, getting to the final and performing well all through the tournament. We are here to dominate, and every time we enter the field that is the goal, we are going to dominate and be ruthless,” she said.

“I’m happier that we are in the final than getting ‘player of the match’ or getting those wickets. Since this morning, I had that butterflies-in-my-stomach feeling. It’s relaxed now that we are finally there, one more game to go.” The 19-year-old said that speaking to her father Sudhir Singh Sisodia, a former domestic player and her coach, before every match gives her the confidence to go all out in every match.

“Today, I woke up very early and had nothing to do. We have a team room so I went there and had a yoga and meditation session. Then I came back, had breakfast and talked to my dad.

“I will always talk to my dad before coming to a match. He played domestic cricket and now he is a coach and me playing is something that has deepened our bond.” “When I was younger, every time he used to take me to a ground, I was never interested at first, but gradually I started getting that interest. He is the happiest person to see his daughter choosing the game that he loved. I’m very happy to give that happiness to my dad,” she added. 

Annabel Sutherland etched her name into history on day two of the Ashes Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), becoming the first woman to score a Test century at the iconic venue. The young all-rounder played a masterful knock of 163 off 258 balls, guiding Australia to a commanding 422-5 at stumps, with a lead of 252 runs. Sutherland, who started the day on 24 not out, dominated the English bowling attack, dispatching 14 boundaries in an innings filled with elegant stroke play and resilience.

She reached the historic three-figure mark with a precise cut shot, a moment she described as a dream come true.

Speaking to Fox Cricket after her record-breaking innings, Sutherland expressed her delight at achieving this feat at her home ground.

“It’s a pretty special place, especially as a Victorian. I’m stoked I could spend a bit of time out there, and we’re in a really good position, which is nice. Growing up, there was no better place to be than the ‘G, watching the cricket, watching the footy – a few Grand Finals as a Cats fan, which is cool. To be out there in the middle, it’s such a cool occasion for the whole group.”

Sutherland’s knock was part of a 154-run partnership with Beth Mooney, who remained unbeaten on 98 at the close of play. Mooney’s innings saw her surpass Karen Rolton as Australia’s fourth-highest female international run-scorer.

While Australia’s batters put on a dominant display, England’s fielding woes played a significant role in their struggles. The visitors dropped nine catches, with wicketkeeper Amy Jones also missing a crucial stumping opportunity. Sutherland herself was dropped twice and survived the missed stumping, while Mooney was given three lifelines before reaching 19.

Former England captain Alex Hartley criticised the team’s lackluster fielding, calling it their worst performance of the Ashes series.

“England’s fielding has been under the pump throughout this Ashes series, and in Test cricket, it shows you’ve got to be switched on every single ball,” Hartley told TNT Cricket.

“A couple of really easy chances for England there, and they just weren’t able to take them. Annabel Sutherland averages 418 when she gets past 28, and she’s made England pay for those dropped catches.”

Australian captain Alyssa Healy contributed 34 runs before being trapped LBW, but her dismissal wasn’t without controversy. Healy immediately reviewed the decision, with replays showing the ball wedged between bat and pad, making it difficult to determine if it had hit the bat first.

The third umpire took several minutes to review the footage before ultimately backing the on-field decision. Former Australian cricketer Alex Blackwell weighed in on the tough call, saying:

“It just looks to me there’s small deviation into the pad. Even on the replay, you can see a small deviation. It is a tough one for the umpire.”

The Aussies built their huge first-innings lead without the involvement of Ellyse Perry, who left the field on day one with a hip injury. While Cricket Australia confirmed Perry was fit to bat if required, captain Healy admitted they were uncertain about her involvement.

“To be completely honest, we’re still a little unsure about Pez,” Healy told Fox Cricket.

“What that does to our batting line-up, we’re not sure. I think today we’ll just look to solidify what we’re doing and then probably assess as we go throughout the day as to if we do have a cheeky little bowl tonight. But I dare say we’ll try and get as far in front as what we possibly can.”

With Australia firmly in control, the focus will now be on when Healy decides to declare. With Perry’s injury and the massive first-innings lead, the hosts will look to put England under pressure and aim for an early breakthrough when they bowl.

India would like to continue their flawless campaign when they take on England in the semifinal of the Women’s U-19 T20 World Cup here on Friday. Following a 10-wicket thrashing of hosts Malaysia in their tournament opener, India hammered Sri Lanka by 60 runs, Bangladesh by eight wickets in their first Super Six game and ended the round with a massive 150-run win over Scotland. The Niki Prasad-led side has been in red-hot form across departments with their last Super Six outing against Scotland sounding an ominous warning to the opponents.

The in-form opener Gongadi Trisha notched up a fabulous 110 off 59 balls with 13 fours and four sixes, while her opening partner G Kamalini also gave a commanding display with a 42-ball 51.

With scores of 4, 27 not out, 49, 40 and 110, Trisha has been the leading run-scorer in the competition with 230 runs in five outings at 76.66, way ahead of England’s best batter Davina Perrin who has 131 runs to show from four matches at 32.75 with one fifty.

India had shot our Scotland for a mere 58 runs in 14 overs in a Super Six match with Vaishnavi Sharma (3/5), Aayushi Shukla (4/8) and Trisha (3/6) leading the charge.

Vaishnavi and Aayushi have been at the forefront in the bowling department with 12 and 10 wickets respectively in the competition, which has helped India’s cause to a great extent.

England will be wary of India’s batting firepower and hope their players find their touch quickly in the contest, as a couple of wins and as many defeats in the four Super Six games do not really instil confidence.

Teams:

India: Niki Prasad (c), Sanika Chalke, G Trisha, Kamalini G, Bhavika Ahire, Ishwari Awasare, Mithila Vinod, Joshitha VJ, Sonam Yadav, Parunika Sisodiya, Kesari Drithi, Aayushi Shukla, Anandita Kishor, MD Shabnam, Vaishnavi S.

England: Abi Norgrove (c), Phoebe Brett, Olivia Brinsden, Tilly Corteen-Coleman, Trudy Johnson, Katie Jones, Charlotte Lambert, Eve O’Neill, Davina Perrin, Jemima Spence, Charlotte Stubbs, Amuruthaa Surenkumar, Prisha Thanawala, Erin Thomas, Grace Thompson.

Match starts at 12:00pm IST. 

Australia moved one step closer to the semifinals with a dominant performance on their way to a seven-wicket victory over a listless West Indies in the U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup here on Saturday. After winning the toss, Australia opted to field and immediately applied pressure, reducing the West Indies to 16-3 by the end of the powerplay. The West Indies batters struggled to settle as Australia kept striking at regular intervals, eventually bowling them out for just 53 runs in 16.3 overs.

Eleanor Larosa, Caoimhe Bray, and Tegan Williamson were the standout bowlers, each taking two wickets. Eleanor Larosa was named Player of the Match for her brilliant bowling performance, finishing with figures of 2/6.

Australia’s chase was swift and efficient. Despite a brief rain delay, they comfortably reached the target in 10.5 overs, with skipper Lucy Hamilton leading the way with 28 runs off 29 balls.

This victory brought Australia closer to a spot in the semifinals, while the West Indies find themselves in trouble, sitting at the bottom of Super Six Group 1.

New Zealand beat USA after getting bowled out for 97

New Zealand made a remarkable comeback as they successfully defended a measly total of 97 to beat USA by 18 runs in their Super 6 Group 2 match.

The slow bowlers, led by leg-spin talent Rishika Jaswal (2/14), pulled off the seemingly impossible task, grinding USA’s run chase to a halt and triggering a batting collapse.

After bowling out the Kiwis for 97, the United States were dismissed for 79.

USA’s superb effort in the field placed them in a prime position to start their Super Six campaign with a win.

New Zealand’s top order made it into the 30s without the loss of a wicket, but that’s when their fortunes shifted.

The first dismissal set off a run of five wickets for just 12 runs, including a marvellous in-swinging yorker from Lekha Shetty and a Ritu Singh off-breaker that turned sharply to bowl dangerous hitter Eve Wolland.

Singh shone with the ball, taking 5/15 from her four overs to edge Jaswal for Player of the Match honours.

Hannah Francis’ 25 off 33, along with Jaswal’s 17 off 27, ensured New Zealand had something to defend.

USA opener Disha Dhingra (30 off 24) had her team on track before Jaswal and Kate Irwin took over, finishing with two wickets each.

USA could not recover from those blows and ended 18 short of their target.

South Africa aim to continue flawless run

In a rain delayed contest which was reduced to 10 overs, South Africa bowled out Ireland for 35 before registering a seven-wicket victory in Sarawak.

Ireland won the toss and elected to bat, but South Africa instantly piled on the pressure by picking regular wickets and not letting any batter to settle.

Monalisa Legodi and Kayla Reyneke were the star bowlers for South Africa, picking four and three wickets respectively.

England, Nigeria match abandoned

Nigeria and England shared the points, after wet weather in Sarawak failed to ease and led the game being abandoned. 

England faced a shocking six-run (DLS method) defeat in the second T20I of the ongoing women’s Ashes against Australia on Thursday. With this win, Australia are 2-0 ahead in the three-match T20I series and have already won the Women’s Ashes. The match, which was curtailed by rain, saw a brilliant fighting knock from England skipper Heather Knight while chasing the revised target of 175. Knight scored 43* off 19 balls but her side still fell short by six runs, which forced the England skipper to give a controversial gesture.

In the last over of the match, England 22 off 6 balls to win. Knight hammered a boundary on the very first ball of the over of Annabel Sutherland and England were hopeful of a stunning win. However, fate had other plans in store as the rain got heavier and match had to be abruptly stopped.

With a score of 168/4 in 19.1 overs, England were six runs short of DLS par score. Resulting which, Australia were declared the winners. Knight, who was batting at 43*, could not believe this and threw her bat on the ground in anger.

Heather Knight throws her bat in frustration.

The DLS par score is 174. #CricketTwitter #AUSvENG pic.twitter.com/5m609x1FL4

— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) January 23, 2025

Later, she picked up the bat and disappointingly walked back to the dugout.

After the game, Knight admitted that her reaction was an emotional one and the umpires made the right decision.

“It was right decision by the umpires. I was really in the zone to try and win us that game, and obviously frustrated that we were going off, but it wasn’t at the umpires at all. It was pretty wet, even when we were running it felt pretty slippy and it was quite hard to attack those twos. So yeah, it was the right decision, hundred per cent,” said Knight as quoted by News18.com.

“It was brilliant game of cricket. Felt like I could get us over the line. I felt really set, and I had some really good boundary options on a very good cricket wicket. It was an awesome crowd and they deserved a finish, and you could hear the frustration from the fans that that we were going off, and the game wasn’t able to reach its conclusion,” she added.

Following England losing the Women’s Ashes, former men’s captain Nasser Hussain has raised the question if the side has been making any improvement under skipper Heather Knight and head coach Jon Lewis. Hussain’s stern words come after Australia retained the Women’s Ashes with a win in the first T20I at the Sydney Cricket Ground and take an unassailable 8-0 lead in the multi-format series. Though there are four more games left, it looks unlikely that England will make a fightback to at least draw the series.

“The reaction and what has happened reminds me very much of when we were playing out there. I don’t think we were whitewashed – and this England women’s side haven’t been whitewashed, but they’ve lost their first four games.”

“The Ashes have gone; I lost them in 12 days, Heather Knight in nine days – albeit different formats. It must be hugely disappointing. Australia have shown their class. To put it in context, just how good Australia are as a cricketing nation, they haven’t lost an ODI series at home for 38 years!

“They’re one of the greatest sides there has ever been. But, instead of looking at the opposition, have a look at your own side. Are you improving under Knight and Jon Lewis? That’s the question that needs to be asked,” said Hussain on Sky Sports’ Cricket Podcast.

England last won the women’s Ashes 11 years ago, and last won a trophy under Heather’s captaincy when they clinched the 2017 ODI World Cup on home soil. Lewis, who took over as head coach in 2022, is yet to coach England to a big trophy.

After England suffered an early exit at last year’s T20 World Cup, former left-arm spinner Alex Hartley claimed that some players were “letting their team down” with their fitness levels. More recently, she claimed that spinner Sophie Ecclestone refused to speak to her for a TV interview. Hussain, though, chose to sympathise with Alex’s viewpoint.

“I thought what Alex Hartley said was pretty fair. It’s part of her job to call it as she sees it. And it’s part of you to react; I’ve been there, with three fingers held up to (Ian) Botham, (Bob) Willis and (Jonathan) Agnew. It’s also part of your responsibility to do the media.”

“But I’ve known the odd player in the men’s game actually who will ask the question, ‘who is doing the interview?’ She questioned the fitness and the fielding in particular. And obviously certain members of the team have reacted poorly to that. It’s been a disappointing couple of weeks,” he concluded.

England’s Alex Hartley with teammates.© AFP

Glimpse of the hot-air balloon of Women’s Ashes© X (Twitter)