Want Runs? Bat the 12th July
On this July 12, runs aplenty. In 1986 on the first day of the third Test between England and India at Worcester, local skipper Carole Hodges must have liked the look of the wicket. She won the toss and elected to bat. 332 runs later, she declared at stumps. After losing Lesley Cooke early, Jan Brittin and Hodges tore the attack apart. Brittin scored 125, while Hodges remained 110 not out. Double trouble for India!
Moving forward a few years, World Cup action between England and New Zealand at Derby in 2017. It was nearly Tammy Beaumont but she fell short of a ton, only 93! The star of the England innings was the versatile Nat Sciver who blasted 129 from just 111 deliveries. England scored 284 and defeated New Zealand by 75 runs. Suffice it to say, Nat Sciver was Player of the match.
Same tournament, same day, over at County Ground Bristol, Australia took on India. It was India’s opener Punam Raut with a well crafted 106 to resist the potent Aussie attack. She had a friend in Mithali Raj (69) but the Indian total of 226/7 proved too little. Surprisingly Punam’s century didn’t get Player of the match.
If you thought July 12 was no day for bowlers, think again! England’s Isa Guha took an incredible 5-14 against West Indies in a ODI fixture on this day in 2008. In a fiery opening spell from the England speedster, she removed West Indies openers Stafanie Taylor and Deandra Dottin, followed that with Juliana Nero and Stacy Ann King. She returned later to dismiss Chedean Nation. West Indies were dismissed for just 41 runs and England won by 10 wickets.
It all happened on this day, July 12.
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