As the England Women compete in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022, over 60 under-13 girls take to Lord’s for the London Youth Games cricket finals.

The event on 26 March comes as the spotlight on women’s cricket grows. 8 teams from boroughs across London get the rare opportunity to play at the prestigious Lord’s ground.

Inviting these girls to play at the Home of Cricket reinforces the message that cricket is a sport for girls, not just young men. Having the competition at Lord’s is even more momentous when you consider that for over 200 years, women weren’t allowed to step foot in Lord’s pavilion.

Craig Westmacrott, Bromley team manager said: “There’s plenty of guys and girls who play cricket for 40 years and never get to play at Lords. The journey and the experience of getting through the final’s day at Lord’s counts for a lot. The girls grow as a team together which is great and the main thing is that they enjoy it.”

Participation in girls’ cricket is rising. With it set to be one of Britain’s fastest growing sports, giving girls chances to grow their confidence in the sport is so important. This finals event aims to inspire girls to create a lifelong love of cricket and a desire to want to keep playing the sport.

Lydia, a participant from Redbridge said: “When I play cricket, it makes me feel a part of something. It feels like a family that you go through the hardships with when you get out and go through your joys when you get your first wicket. The fact that so much has happened at Lord’s and so many remarkable people have been here, it’s feels like you’re a part of that now that I’m playing here at the London Youth Games.”

Darren Trippick, Redbridge team manager said: “The last few months has been all about getting them to Lord’s. Some of these girls couldn’t bat or bowl before and most of the girls don’t play clubs. These girls have come from nothing and they’re so excited to be going home with medals.

We couldn’t do it without the clubs and coaches and we hope they’ll continue to play cricket and join a club. Having this experience at Lord’s will only encourage them to get better.”

Sangy Theivendra, Head of Women & Girls at Harrow Cricket Club and ECB City Programme Executive added: “Participation in girls cricket is rising and is set to be Britain’s fastest growing sport for girls. It’s so important to give girls an inclusive environment and give girls opportunities to get into cricket where they feel welcomed and comfortable. That’s what these London Youth Games events are all about.”