Lives in Cricket No 49 - Enid Bakewell

57 (men). Toronto scored 182 for four declared, Enid going for 37 in four overs, and the women ended up at 160 for nine, of which Enid made 29. Then at the end of August she played twice for North versus South at Blackpool, captaining the North. In the first game she scored 88 not out of 158 for four declared (the WCA Bulletin said Enid Bakewell kept the score moving along throughout the innings in spite of vital wickets falling for few runs) , and the South scored 157 for seven (Rachael Heyhoe Flint 82 not out) giving the North a win by one run in a 45 over match. The next day’s game was played over 60 overs a side and the North scored 106 for seven in that time, Enid being run out for eight. The South, in 44 overs, were all out for 92, with Enid taking three for 26 in her 12 overs. With an overall run rate below two an over, it may not have seemed like bank holiday entertainment. Then it was down to Hove for two games between England Women and The Rest. The first was over 60 overs and The Rest made 251 for six declared (Enid 11 overs, one for 37): England could manage only 177 for eight, Enid making eight of them. The following day saw Enid playing for The Rest in another 60 over game and making 19 out of 198 for eight. This was enough, England making only 187 for nine, with Enid bowling 12 overs and taking one for 28. The England and Young England squads for the World Cup were announced in October 1972. Among the teams gathered was an ‘International XI’ which was originally intended to include four or five South Africans, but that had to be changed; the Times reported on May 5 that Jamaica and Trinidad would both have withdrawn. The arrangement was that the seven teams would all play each other, with the winner decided on points. That could have led to a ‘dead’ final match, especially given the poor weather, but fingers were crossed and it all worked out. Some boundaries were shifting, however slowly. On April 18, in a small but possibly significant move, Middlesex CCC announced that in future women members would be allowed to vote at meetings (even if they were held at Lord’s). Before the tournament the international teams (mostly) played warm-up games and Enid played for the Midlands against Jamaica, the Midlands winning by two wickets and Enid making 24 of their 127 for eight. The Bulletin gives a summarised score but no date. England then played a 22- over a side warm-up game against New Zealand, beating them by nine wickets with Enid 40 not out after NZ had scored 98 for three. On June 21 the Times carried a longish piece by John Hennessey, reporting around the fact that the opening game, New Zealand versus Jamaica, had been rained off completely. Hennessey was actually the sports editor, suggesting that the paper intended to take the competition seriously. But it published summarised scores only until on July 5, for no particular reason, it carried a report (uncredited) on Trinidad’s win against Jamaica. The games were spread widely around the country in an attempt to gain 1973 World Cup