Michael Sheather
Women’s cricket in Australia is riding the crest of a wave that have already made it one of the country’s top spectator sports.
Women’s cricket in Australia has come a long way in an incredibly short time. Former Australian One day International and test Captain Belinda Clark clearly recalls watching the Australian women’s team, captained by the great Lyn Larsen, taking on the might of England in the one-day international World Cup final in 1988, played at the MCG and broadcast across the nation on ABC-TV.
“I just thought it was amazing that game was televised,” recalls Belinda, who was still attending high school at the time. “I was at the end of high school at that stage and cricket had well and truly taken over as what I wanted to do with my sporting career.”
However, the crowd that attended that world cup final amounted to just little more than 3000 people. Fast forward to the T20 World Cup Final at the MCG earlier this year when Australia played India and it was a completely different scene, emphasized by a sellout crowd of more than 86,000.
“To see Lyn Larsen’s face at the World Cup Final that day in March sitting in the crowd watching all these people roll in. She was sitting there in absolute disbelief. I went down onto the field at the break with her and it was amazing. Here was someone who had been on the same field, playing in essentially the same fixture with no one in the crowd and then to see 86,000 roll in, quite mind-blowing.”
The Inspired Series. We hope you enjoyed our in-depth conversations with featuring Belinda Clark AO, Rachael Haynes, Jodie Hawkins and host, Melanie Jones OAM.The Inspired Series. We hope you enjoyed our in-depth conversations with featuring Belinda Clark AO, Rachael Haynes, Jodie Hawkins and host, Melanie Jones OAM.
Belinda made her comments during Episode Three of The Inspired Series, Breaking New Ground, a one-hour panel discussion program featuring some of Australia’s greatest cricketing talents from both the men’s and women’s national teams as well as administrators and officials. The Inspired Series is sponsored by HCL Technologies, one of the world’s leading technology companies helping businesses transition to world class, cutting edge technology.
Breaking New Ground can be viewed on the HCL Technologies channel on Youtube, featuring discussions between former Australian player Mel Jones and her guests Belinda Clark, Australian vice women’s vice-captain Rachael Haynes and inspirational administrator Jodie Hawkins, general manager of the Big Bash League franchise, the Sydney Sixers.
Please follow this link to access the full replay of the HCL webinar.
