By Charles Randall
28th January 2012
Truro CC are preparing to host the women's one-day international between England and India in July with the added advantage as an attraction for holiday makers in Cornwall.
Richardson Hotels are strongly involved as sponsors while welcoming visitors to this delightful cathedral city and caring for the match participants at Boscawen Park. Local cricket enthusiasts will have already marked down Sunday, July 8, in their diaries. A men's game between Cornwall and Professional Cricketers' Association XI has been scheduled for the previous Thursday, July 5, to give a festival flavour to the weekend. The PCA can be expected to muster a group of former Test players.
The excitement is already mounting in Truro, where plans for marquee, dinner and grandstand have been laid. Tickets have gone on sale for the opportunity to see England's captain Charlotte Edwards, Sarah Taylor and Lydia Greenway, three of the world's top five batters. India can boast the number one, Mithali Raj, and the world's No 1 bowler, Jhulan Goswami. The town already has a special link, as off-spinner Laura Harper made her England debut in 2000 while a pupil at Truro School.
The ECB should be congratulated for taking this level of cricket to a club where maximum impact can almost be guaranteed. The athleticism and skill in women's top level cricket provides an excellent advertisement for the game, and families enjoying one of the very best holiday counties can expect a memorable day.
Edwards and Claire Connor, ECB's head of England women's cricket, visited Cornwall on January 24 for the official opening for a new pavilion at Penzance CC, a £650,000 project mainly funded by Truro & Penwith College and the ECB. The scheme forms part of the Sport England and ECB strategy to increase the number of people playing the sport, including the development of women's and girls' cricket. Participation is an area where the Club Cricket Conference continues to play an important role.
The main funding came from Truro & Penwith College, situated adjacent to the ground, with £400,000, and the ECB in partnership with Sport England provided £200,000. The Penzance club president Godfrey Adams said: "For many years we have had the ambition to build a new pavilion. In recent years the club has made progress by achieving ECB Clubmark and Focus Club status and this enabled us to make application for the grant through the support of the Cornwall Cricket Board."
Adams added: "In addition, we have been accepted as a Chance to Shine club, and this means that this year we will provide coaching and play opportunities in three local primary schools. Through this coaching programme, which will subsequently include secondary schools, we aim to increase the participation in the playing of the game at the club. We already have over 50 junior members and we particularly want to encourage more boys and girls to play the game."
England women v India women
June 26: Twenty20, Canterbury. June 28: Twenty20, Chelmsford.
NatWest Series:
July 1: Lord's. July 4 Taunton. July 5 Taunton. July 8: Truro. July 11: Wormsley.