Jan Brittin Dies
It was with a very heavy heart that I heard of the death of Jan
Brittin aged just 58.
Just three years after watching my first women's cricket match I
decided that a day at a Test Match starting at Guildford would
re-introduce me to the sport. Little did I know that two of the people
I would watch that day would be instrumental in my watching hundreds
of matches thereafter. The World Cup Final of 1993 played at Lord's
had whetted my appetite but it was this match that made me a convert.
Walking out to bat, following New Zealand's first innings of 362/5
declared went Jan Brittin ("JB") at left and a young Charlotte Edwards
making her Test Match debut.
Jan Brittin and Charlotte Edwards open for England -- photo © Carol
Salmon
A rather younger me, complete with binoculars, at left, unaware the
picture was being taken
Jan made a half century and Charlotte a creditable 34.
I was to watch Jan a number of times after that, both at club and
international level. On the field she always seemed cool, composed,
and thoughtful. She always acknowledged my presence on the boundary,
and encouraged me to keep watching the sport. She was in a class of
her own in both skill and courage.
Reading her stats, impressive as they are considering the very small
number of games played in her era, will not give you a picture of JB.
She was as elegant and complete a batsman as you will ever watch, and
dogged in defence and unflappable in any situation. Her courage was
limitless.
One of her fellow 1993 World Cup winners summed up JB more accurately
and succinctly than I ever could.
"She was great as a player and as a person. So unassuming about her
immense ability. [She was] intelligent and always supportive"
A former Indian captain : "I used to adore her... I had the good
fortune of playing against her"
On Twitter:
Barbara Daniels "The best I ever played with or
against, and a truly lovely person"
Anya Shrubsole "Someone whose skill and passion
for the game inspired many including me"
For myself, it is hard to realise we will never meet on a boundary
again. I owe her more than I was ever able to tell her.
A Diversion
I have described this blog frequently as a "Ramble with Diversions" -
and since we haven't had a diversion for a while, and to distract me
from the awful news above this note - here is one.
On my way to KSL Finals' Day at Hove a week or two ago I decide to park in
a multi-storey nearby. That in itself was something of a diversion as
by the time I reached the top open-air level it wasn't just my head
that was spinning. Anyway I managed to locate a spot there and went to
pay at the machine. In front of me a family with a couple of kids, and
patently on their way to the match too, were struggling. I noted their
western hemisphere accent and the Canadian flag on one of their
number's clothing and they finally managed to pay. They paid using a
credit card. Stepping up to the machine, coins in hand, I noted the
LCD screen displaying the instructions. It was telling me what to do
but not in English. Having passable, but very schoolboy, French I
recognised the language and figured what I was supposed to do. During
the process, which included typing in my number plate, it continued in
that language.
This rather intrigued me. I was left with a couple of possible
scenarios and would be fascinated to know which might be true. If you
can figure this out, please press the 'contact button' on the menu
above left and let me know.
1. The machine has simply glitched.
2. The couple in front of me were French Canadian and the machine was
clever enough to work this out from the credit card they inserted. If
this was the case then that might be excellent technology except that
it should also be bright enough to know that the next customer
probably wouldn't be French or speak it as their main language. At the
end of the transaction it should revert to English. Since I wasn't
inserting a card, but paying in cash, it happily ploughed on in
French.
3. An explanation I haven't thought of...
As I departed with my ticket I warned the people next in the queue and
should have stopped to see how it went from there. I failed to do so,
so the mystery remains.
Even telling this rather odd story, can't, I'm afraid, divert me from
the news about 'JB'. In fact it reminds me that the last time I had a
conversation with her was on the very level at the ground that I spent
most of my time photographing on Finals' Day. Visiting Hove will never
be quite the same again.
Ecclestone Included In Ashes Squad
England Women announced their squad for the Ashes tour of Australia
today with Lancashire’s left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone named as
part of the 15.
The ICC Women’s World Cup champions depart for Brisbane on October 7,
where they’ll attempt to regain the Ashes across a multi-format series
that takes in three one-day internationals, a Test match and three T20
internationals. In 2015 in England, Australia ran out 10-6 winners
after winning two ODIs, the one-off Test match and one T20I.
The inclusion of Ecclestone is the only change from the squad that
triumphed in front of a sell-out crowd at Lord’s on July 23. It’ll be
the first time that Heather Knight has led her side into an Ashes
series.
Heather Knight (captain, Berkshire)
Tammy Beaumont (Kent)
Katherine Brunt (Yorkshire)
Sophie Ecclestone (Lancashire)
Georgia Elwiss (Sussex)
Jenny Gunn (Warwickshire)
Alex Hartley (Lancashire)
Danielle Hazell (Yorkshire)
Laura Marsh (Kent)
Anya Shrubsole (Somerset)
Nat Sciver (Surrey)
Sarah Taylor (wicketkeeper, Sussex)
Fran Wilson (Middlesex)
Lauren Winfield (Yorkshire)
Danni Wyatt (Sussex)
Coach Mark Robinson said: "It's a hugely exciting tour and one we are
really looking forward to. Australia on their home soil will be a
further test of the progress we have made.
“We said before the World Cup that the final at Lord's was never going
to be our destination, it was just part of the journey, and that
journey continues with this tour.
“Sophie Ecclestone has finished school now and has had a great summer
domestically. Her selection will provide another option to our
attack.”
Captain Heather Knight said: “Ashes tours don’t come around all too
often so it’s always a special opportunity. Australia are going to be
very strong opponents on their home soil so we’ll have to be at our
best, across all three formats.
“Winning the World Cup was a dream come true but it doesn’t get much
bigger than the Ashes. We weren’t able to win in 2015 so I know that
the whole group will be intent on regaining the trophy this time
round.”
October 22 |
1st ODI |
Brisbane - Allan Border Field |
00:15 BST |
2 points |
October 26 |
2nd ODI |
Coffs Harbour |
04:40 BST |
2 points |
October 29 |
3rd ODI |
Coffs Harbour |
00:15 GMT |
2 points |
November 9-12 |
Only Test (d/n) |
Sydney - North Sydney Oval |
03:30 GMT |
4 points |
November 17 |
1st Twenty20 International |
Sydney - North Sydney Oval |
08:10 GMT |
2 points |
November 19 |
2nd Twenty20 International |
Canberra |
03:35 GMT |
2 points |
November 21 |
3rd Twenty20 International |
Canberra |
08:10 GMT |
2 points |
|