England Women’s XI v Ireland, One day International, Kibworth C.C., 7 July

A new record here, I think, for turning in match reports late – in this case a fortnight after it  took place.  I don’t think even Alan Gibson managed that.  On the other hand, anything I can remember about it must have been quite memorable.

Kibworth (a large village – or small town – a few miles from Harborough) play in the Everards’  League, and have a lavishly appointed new ground with a pavilion larger as large as Derby’s

and two pitches.  The smaller of the two is somehow sunk into the earth and is almost circular (like a sort of Greek theatre).  (Note the pylon in the background, by the way, pylon fanciers - the announcer described the bowling coming from this end of the ground as being from the Pylon End.)

In fact it’s exactly the sort of place that could (and should)  be used to host a County match – imagine the scenes if a Sunday League or 20/20 match were to take place there – I picture the whole of Kibworth en fete.

What is has been hosting, though, is a three-day series of one-day matches between the women’s teams from England, Ireland, New Zealand and the England Academy, and I attended on the third day, when England played Ireland on the main pitch. 

I have seen two women’s international matches before – a one-dayer at Northampton about five years ago and the first day of a Test Match against India at Grace Road.  The one-dayer I’d enjoyed, the Test Match, I’m afraid, was a bit slow, even by my standards – at one point in the Indian innings the run rate on the scoreboard dipped below one.  If the batters aren’t compelled to take a few risks there are few bowlers penetrating enough to bowl a side out twice, and draws are always the likeliest result (India have drawn 25 of their 35 tests, for instance). 

Some of the things you might expect about women’s cricket (if you haven’t seen it) are true.  There is no big hitting, or at least there are hits that look as if they’re going for six but fall short somewhere in the outfield (no sixes at all in this match).  With one exception, the fast bowlers aren’t very fast and there is little short-pitched bowling.  The Irish seamers seemed to specialise in a delivery that looked as though it was heading upwards over the batter’s head then dipped onto a normal length.  Some of the strokeplay and spin bowling (Charlotte Taylor and Holly Colvin in this match) are exemplary, though spin isn’t as dominant as you might expect.

The revelation to me was Katherine Brunt, the England fast bowler.  When I saw her on the cover of the programme, described as “Queen of Speed : fearsome fast bowler Katherine Brunt” I was a little sceptical, but she was decidedly nippy, and far too quick for the poor Irish openers, one of whom turned her back on a bouncer and had to be taken off to the Cottage Hospital with a broken arm.  Given how rare bouncers are in women’s cricket, a constant stream of them must have come as a nasty shock, Brunt apparently pinging the thing over the batters’  heads for the sheer animal pleasure of it.  At one point she was warned for intimidatory bowling, which I imagine must be a rarity in women’s cricket.

 Brunt learned her cricket in Barnsley, and says she was inspired by Darren Gough, but the bowler she reminded me of in the classical beauty of her action was Fred Trueman, though rather less broad in the beam and with the face – from a distance – of Tuesday Weld.

I’m afraid to say that the arm-breaking incident did cause a little ill feeling between the two sides.  When England moved a fielder in to short leg, for instance,  a voice  from the balcony (rather reminiscent of Bernie the Irish nurse from the Katherine Tate show) was heard to say “Wrap the bat round her head – put her in A&E too”  – and a good deal more in that vein