Lisa Sthalekar: “A great chance to promote the game at the highest level”
Jhulan Goswami: “We’ve been waiting since 2005 – we want to be number one”
Charlotte Edwards: “We’re in a good position going into the tournament”
Haidee Tiffin: “It’s women’s cricket’s version of The Olympics”
Some of the world’s top women cricketers today looked forward with excitement to next year’s ICC Women’s World Cup in Australia.
The tournament features the top eight sides playing 25 matches at six venues throughout New South Wales over a 16-day period from 7 – 22 March 2009.
Australia is the defending champions after beating India in the 2005 final and its player of the year Lisa Sthalekar said an event of this kind, with at least six matches being televised by the ICC’s Official Broadcaster ESPN STAR Sports, will be the perfect shop window for the game.
“Events like these will enable women’s cricket to promote the game at the highest level,” she said. “The reason for this is that with at least six matches televised it will make the game more accessible to a wider audience.
“Thanks to this exposure it is only a matter of time before cricket will be competing with other high-profile women’s sports.
“Events like the ICC Women’s World Cup and the ICC World Twenty20 2009 (in the UK, with the men’s and women’s tournaments running side by side) are a wonderful opportunity for us to start showing our skills,” added Sthalekar.
India’s Jhulan Goswami, named the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year at the ICC Awards in September 2007 and a losing finalist in South Africa said: “I am looking forward to the ICC Women’s World Cup.
“After 2005 we have been waiting for it, we came in second and we want to be number one.
“Any sports person wants to participate in the World Cup, it is a dream for them, and I think it is the same for me. A World Cup in Australia is a big thing.”
England captain Charlotte Edwards said: “It’s going to be my fourth World Cup and being captain is going to make it even more special.
“It’s any captain’s dream to win a World Cup and the way we have played over the last twelve months puts us in a good position going into this one.
“A lot of the team has been playing together over the last four years or so, so we’re really gelling as a unit and it’s something that’s in the back of our minds as we go into these NatWest Women’s Series against South Africa and India.
“Playing the tournament in Australia makes it even more special, particularly the fact that it’s in Sydney, a city we all love. We honestly can’t wait to get out there and test ourselves against the best in the world.”
Haidee Tiffin, the New Zealand captain, said: “Everybody wants to be world champions and have that title against their names.
“It is an amazing experience to play at the World Cup – it is our version of The Olympics – and it is a great opportunity to showcase the game and show that it is a fantastic spectacle.
“I really expect that the competition will be fierce as everybody wants to do well, but having played at the World Cup before I know it is a chance to meet some wonderful people and play at some wonderful places.
“All the teams will have had to work hard for four years since the last event and there is great excitement ahead of the tournament.”
The Women’s World Cup has been running for longer than the men’s version and was first staged in England in 1973, when it was won by the hosts.
Since then there have been a further seven tournaments with Australia winning five of them (1978, 1982, 1988, 1997 & 2005), England winning once more (in 1993) and New Zealand triumphing in 2000.
The tournament has been staged twice each in England (1973 and 1993), India (1978 and 1997) and New Zealand (1982 and 2000) as well as Australia (1988) and South Africa (2005).
ICC MEDIA RELEASE