Women's Rapids
By Chathura Pinnawala
As you google across from the gift of the naked eye sitting in the battle hardened New Road press box, the sights of Basil D’Oliveira stand and the backdrop of the famous Worcester Cathedral meets you with grace. Add River Severn’s calming influence, notwithstanding the occasional rebellious acts, this is a sight to behold.
New Road is probably the only existence a wise head missed when quoting, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder.’ If that’s the fascination us, the less priviledged, who gets to stay beyond the boundaries peel out of it, imagine the bedroom eyes the ones who gets to play in the hallowed turf would have.
As Worcestershire Women’s Rapids return to New Road on June 26 for a double header against Staffordshire and Essex, the captain Lauren Rowles recalls a day resembling it last year when they played their first ever match at the county ground, “I am very proud to say I was the first Worcestershire Women’s captain to lead the side out in the club’s 150 year history, but my god I was extremely nervous. We were playing our first ever match at New Road, and we had to win to mark the occasion. It was fantastic to have supporters there cheering us on, it created a fantastic atmosphere to play cricket. Thankfully, we got the win!”
It was August 30, Devon Women’s XI were the bridesmaid to a memorable occasion which lit the fire to a new era of Women’s Cricket in Worcestershire. Women’s cricket is pushing hard to enter a phase of professionalism and although the county didn’t receive its own team for the inaugural Super League, no stronger message can be sent than these opportunities to smell the grass of its county ground which other teams rarely get.
Rowles agrees, “It’s very special to play at New Road. Having the women play there sends a message that even with things like super league around and Worcestershire not having a team in that, Women’s cricket is still taken very seriously within the county and that things are moving in the right direction.”
Women’s Rapids are in triumphant mood having easily dispatched Essex women in their previous ECB Division Two 50 over fixture and having qualified from Division Three of the T20 competition last year with an unblemished record, they would greatly aspire to start the new campaign on a winning note. They have the weight of history to always inspire them.