Sarah Taylor, Claire Taylor and Caroline Atkins will be among the first England women who will see their names being etched on the board. (AP)The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) has installed a new honours boards which will recognise achievements in one-day internationals (ODIs) and women cricketers. The news addition will witness women featuring in the elite list for the first time in 135 years. Earlier, Lord’s honours board recognised hundreds and five-wicket hauls in Test matches going back to 1884. But the new separate boards will allow women to be ranked alongside the men for the first time.
Sarah Taylor, Claire Taylor and Caroline Atkins will be among the first England women who will see their names being etched on the board after notching up fantastic hundreds.
Anya Shrubsole’s who picked up 6/46 in Englands victory over India in 2017 to win the ICC Women’s World Cup will also get a place.
This move comes as a part of MCC’s refurbishment drive ahead of the 2019 season. What it also means is that players who did not make it on to the Honours Board during their Test Match careers, such as Michael Atherton, Ricky Ponting and Muttiah Muralitharan, will officially immortalised above the doors leading out to the players’ balconies in the famous Lord’s Pavilion.
“This is a landmark moment for Lord’s, with women’s cricket now documented in the dressing rooms for the first time,” said Guy Lavender, the MCC chief executive.
“The Honours Boards are amongst the most popular attractions for the many visitors to the Home of Cricket. There is a huge amount of prestige for players to see their name inscribed in history, so it is appropriate for a new installation of the boards to take place ahead of what will be such a busy year of cricket at Lord’s.”
