The second edition of the ICC Women’s Championship will get underway with the series between the Windies and Sri Lanka in Trinidad from 11 to 15 October.
Sri Lanka Women take flight to the West Indies
The Sri Lanka women’s cricketers, took flight to the West Indies last evening for a tour that will consist of 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is.
With players, administrators and officials all giving credit for a rise in standard of women’s cricket to this eight-team tournament which ensures series against each of the other sides, the championship is likely to come more into focus in this cycle that will culminate in 2020.
The tournament will be played on the same format as the inaugural edition which was held from 2014-16, with all eight sides – Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and the Windies – taking on each other in series of three ODIs on a home or away basis.
World Cup 2021 hosts New Zealand and the three other top teams from this championship will gain direct qualification for women’s pinnacle event while the remaining sides will get a second chance through the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier 2021 (details to be announced in due course).
Member boards will be encouraged to play T20Is during tours but no other ODIs can be scheduled along with Women’s Championship series. Teams will get two points for each win, one point for a tie or no-result and no points for a loss.
The captains of the two sides, who figured in a well fought series last time with the Windies prevailing 2-1 in Colombo in May 2015, exuded confidence ahead of the upcoming series.
Windies captain Stafanie Taylor:
“All of the players that were involved with the last ICC Women’s World Cup have been retained, so we are quite familiar with each other. We more or else know what makes everybody tick, and everyone is keen to get down to business and play. We were shattered by our performance in the ICC WWC in England. We knew we let down our fans, so we want to restore their faith in us by playing to our true potential and ability during the coming series and the remainder of the ICC Women’s Championship.
“It’s always good to be able to play before your own fans. We urge supporters in Trinidad to come out and watch some entertaining ICC Women’s Championship matches. The matches are being played at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy and we hope that playing in a venue named after one of the greatest West Indies players of all time will inspire us all to perform at our best.
Sri Lanka captain Inoka Ranaweera:
“As women’s cricket gains momentum across the globe, I am proud to lead my team off to this exciting series. This tour for us is a combination of a bilateral series and the launch of the ICC Women’s Championship. “
“Our performance as a team has been improving consistently and we look forward to the opportunity to show our prowess. Playing away from home is never an easy task, but we intend to bring our A game as I am sure our Windies counterparts do.”
