West Indies Women to tour England for a five-match T20I series in September

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) are all set to resume the women’s international cricket with a T20I series. The West Indies women cricket team will tour England for a five-match series which is scheduled to begin from September 21. All the five matches will be played in a bio-secure bubble at Derby.

This will be the first international women’s match between major nations since the T20 World Cup final in March. ECB had been very clear with the fact that staging an international series for Women cricket team in summers is their priority. However, they were in search of an opposition team after the India and South Africa pulled out of the scheduled tri-series due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notably, the third T20 International of the series, scheduled on September 26, will air live on BBC and will become the first women’s fixture shown on free-to-air TV in the UK since the 1993 World Cup final. ECB’s Chief Executive Officer, Tom Harrison is looking forward to hosting the West Indies and is delighted to see the progress that women’s cricket has made in England since past few years.

“It has been critical to us that our efforts to deliver bio-secure standards and support visiting opponents have been equal to those that have so successfully delivered in the England men’s series,” Harrison said as quoted as ESPNcricinfo.

“There were 86,000 fans in attendance at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup final in March and the direction of travel in the women’s game in England and Wales has been relentlessly positive over the last few years. That momentum must continue despite the challenges of Covid-19, and we do not underestimate our role in driving that agenda.” he added.

We’re grateful to the West Indies, says Clare Connor

Clare Connor, the ECB’s Managing Director of women’s cricket, also expressed his happiness over scheduling of an international series for the women’s team despite the challenges due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

“It’s so pleasing after many months of work and communication with colleagues across the international game that we are now able to confirm international cricket for England Women this summer We’re grateful to the West Indies for the pace and determination with which they have worked with us over the last couple of weeks. We’re all still adapting and will need to continue to adapt to the sporting landscape left by COVID-19.”

With the T20 series being scheduled later in September, ECB has decided to let the 24-player training group participate in the first two rounds of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy on August 29 and August 31. Also, the finals of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy has now been postponed to September 27 as it was clashing with the third T20I of the five-match series.