Wisden’s women’s team of the decade
As part of Wisden’s decade in review, Adam Collins, Isabelle Westbury and Raf Nicholson joined Yas Rana to pick out a women’s team of the decade, based on performances across international formats.
Listen to the full debate below:
Here’s the XI the panel settled on, Wisden’s women’s team of the decade:
Suzie Bates
Statistics from the start of 2010:
95 ODIs, 3621 runs, average: 45.26, HS: 151
98 T20Is, 2756 runs, average: 30.96, HS: 124*
Raf Nicholson: The most mouth-watering opening combination in women’s cricket at the moment is New Zealand when they open with Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine.
Bates was the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year in 2013
Charlotte Edwards
5 Tests, 296 runs, average: 37, HS: 114*
61 ODIs, 2163 runs, average: 41.59, HS: 138
76 ODIs, 1986 runs, average: 31.03, HS: 92*
Adam Collins: We’re talking about a player who we still reference constantly in English cricket, for a reason. Her numbers, by any metric, stack up.
Edwards’ international career came to an end in 2016
Meg Lanning
4 Tests, 185 runs, average: 23.13, HS: 57
80 ODIs, 3693 runs, average: 52.75, HS: 152*
94 T20Is, 2580 runs, average: 36.85, HS: 133*
RN: I’ve never seen anything like Meg Lanning at Chelmsford in the Women’s Ashes last summer. It was just incredible and it was from ball one, pretty much, that she faced. I think they had a slow first over and from the second over it was just like ‘Oh my goodness, England have lost this within a few balls’, because of the way she came out and was like, ‘We’re gonna win and that’s it’.
? Women’s innings of the decade, No.5 ?
“This Meg girl doesn’t even seem to be trying.”
✍️ @Phil_Wisden
Presenting Wisden’s Performances of the Decade, brought to you in association with @Perryuniform.https://t.co/xLIR5aA95K
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) December 4, 2019
Stafanie Taylor
102 ODIs, 3993 runs, average: 45.89, HS: 171 | 115 wickets, average: 21.93, BBI: 4-19
91 T20Is, 2639 runs, average 35.66, HS: 90 | 74 wickets, average: 17.47, BBI: 4-12
Isabelle Westbury: West Indies have had a horrendous year – England were annihilating them before England themselves got annihilated by Australia – and Stafanie Taylor is someone who has weathered that storm, has improved her game and is very much a star of global cricket.
Taylor has played 126 ODIs and 100 T20Is for West Indies
Mithali Raj
2 Tests, 91 runs, average: 45.50, HS: 50*
94 ODIs, 3339 runs, average: 54.73, HS: 125*
83 T20Is, 2194 runs, average: 37.18, HS: 97*
AC: She’s been a generational influence on Indian cricket. Not just in the last 10 years, but in the 10 years before that as well, and she’s still making a contribution now.
Raj made her international debut in the previous century
Ellyse Perry
6 Tests, 573 runs, average: 114.60, HS: 213* | 26 wickets, average: 16.73, BBI: 6-32
81 ODIs, 2711 runs, average: 66.12, HS: 112* | 116 wickets, average: 23.62, BBI: 7-22
102 T20Is, 1065 runs, average: 30.42, HS: 60* | 97 wickets, average: 19.31, BBI: 4-12
AC: You look at her profile and look at the innings played – she goes from No.9, all the way through to the end of the 2013 Cricket World Cup, and then she’s at No.6 and that’s when this ridiculous run begins. Whilst in recent times we think of her as a No.4, there’s no reason why she can’t bat six.
“Perry had 5-12, the hosts were 21-6, and the Ashes were all but gone. In terms of pure aesthetic quality and otherworldy unplayability, there hasn’t been a better spell this decade.”@Ben_Wisden on another show of Perry dominance.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) December 5, 2019
Sarah Taylor
6 Tests, 176 runs, average: 19.55, HS: 40 | 11 catches, 1 stumping
77 ODIs, 2531 runs, average: 37.77, HS: 147 | 56 catches, 31 stumpings
AC: Without a doubt, the most skilful keeper I’ve seen.
A few people suggesting that the best ‘keeper on the planet is Sarah Taylor.
Hard to argue against that when she’s done things like this?pic.twitter.com/w2NgRbFv4A
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) October 26, 2018
Dane van Niekerk
1 Test, 22 runs, average: 11.00, HS: 15 | 1 wicket, average: 90.00, BBI: 1-90
93 ODIs, 2039 runs, average: 38.47, HS: 102 | 117 wickets, average: 19.96, BBI: 5-17
70 T20Is, 1685 runs, average: 31.79, HS: 90* | 54 wickets, average: 19.90, BBI: 4-17
IW: She’s grown not just in terms of her bowling but in terms of her stature and all-round game as well. Every time she comes on [to bowl], I think, ‘This could be fun’.
Van Niekerk has taken 187 international wickets for South Africa
Katherine Brunt
6 Tests, 14 wickets, average: 28.71, BBI: 2-25
82 ODIs, 110 wickets, average: 22.55, BBI: 5-18
62 T20Is, 58 wickets, average: 21.39, BBI: 3-17
RN: If you want someone who, on their day, can come in and bowl an over and change the course of the game, Katherine Brunt would be your person to do it. The only thing is you’ve got to get her a bit angry beforehand.
Brunt is England’s leading wicket-taker in ODIs and takes her place in Wisden’s women’s team of the decade
Sana Mir (c)
89 ODIs, 120 wickets, average: 23.70, BBI: 5-32
100 T20Is, 80 wickets, average: 24.91, BBI: 4-13
IW: She comes into the Stafanie Taylor mould of somebody that’s had to really carry their team over a period.
Mir is the only Pakistani woman to have taken over 100 ODI wickets
Jhulan Goswami
2 Tests, 7 wickets, average: 17.85, BBI: 4-48
82 ODIs, 116 wickets, average: 20.37, BBI: 6-31
62 T20Is, 54 wickets, average: 20.51, BBI: 5-11
RN: I was really struck interviewing a number of players during the 2017 World Cup and saying, ‘Who is the most dangerous bowler you’ve ever faced?’ About three or four of them all said Jhulan Goswami. She has had that reputation for a long time of being someone who can come in and turn a game on its head.
Goswami is the leading wicket-taker in women’s ODIs
Wisden’s decade in review series is brought to you in association with Perry, designers of distinctive club blazers made in Yorkshire since 1946. Vote in the decade in review readers’ survey.
