Selection Of Women's Cricket Team Criticised

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30971, 29 January 1966, Page 11

Selection Of Women's Cricket Team Criticised

17AIRLY widespread criticism of the selection of of the New Zealand women’s cricket team to tour England has come from a rather unexpected source. In a letter to the “New Zealand Herald,” the Auckland Women’s Cricket Association criticises several selections and names only four players likely to do well. In particular, the association takes issue with the choice of Miss P. McKelvey , (Wellington) over Miss R. McKenzie (Auckland), who is not even in the team, as captain. Miss McKelvey’s batting average in the recent Hallyburton-Johnstone Shield tournament was 4.5 (and only U. 7 the year before) while Miss McKenzie scored two centuries in her 277 runs aggregate—a record for the tuaroament—and averaged 92 J. The letter also points out that seven players with averages better than 25 are not selected; the team includes only three players who averaged that figure in this season’s tournament. Also, Miss J. Stevens, who

took 26 wickets at the incredibly low cost of 2.88, including nine for 10 in a single innings is not selected.

“The Otago Daily Times” is as equally severe on the selectors, Mesdames J. G. and I. M- Lamason (Wellington) and Miss P. Blackler (Canterbury), and their “amazing selections."

“It is difficult to imagine what present-day credentials are attributed to the choice of P. Blackler,” says the “Otago Daily Times” correspondent of the 46-year-old Canterbury player. “Twenty years ago she was a good player but her ability and agility have dedined considerably since then. Her first tour overseas was in 1938

“Cricket players and supporters throughout the Dominion have worked strenuously for a long time, helping to raise the enormous amount of money required for the forthcoming tour,” continues the article. “It is unfortunate and detrimental for future efforts that a

stronger and more satisfactory selection was not made.”

The Auckland association, in its letter, also notes that “Auckland always had to raise the largest sum of money for these teams, and to have only three players up to the required international standard after winning the shield twice in succession seems unjust”