Former England captain Myrtle Maclagan was an allrounder with a stunning array of firsts: the first wicket in Test cricket, the first five wicket haul, the first half century and the first century.
Myrtle played in the first ever women’s Test match in 1934/35 and was easily the player of the series. She opened the batting and the bowling, her off-breaks far too deceptive for the Aussies.
Myrtle also captained England as a stand in for Molly Hide in the 1951 Ashes series, making her the third captain of the England team after Betty Archdale and Hide.
Here’s a list of firsts:
- Bowled the first ball in women’s Tests
- Took the first wicket
- Bowled the first maiden
- Took the first five wicket haul – 7-10
- Faced the first delivery for England
- Scored the first fifty in women’s Tests
- Scored the first century
Played 14 Tests for England spanning 1934/35 – 1951. Myrtle scored 1007 runs at 41.95 with two centuries and six fifties. She took 60 wickets at 15.58. Those numbers stack up in any era.
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