Photo Credit: ECB
Two England Disability cricketers reflect on a historic day for the sport at Lord’s
On Monday July 22, Lord’s made history by hosting the first ever elite game of disability cricket on the main pitch of the most famous cricket ground in the world.
A T10 Visually Impaired (VI) exhibition game kicked off proceedings – featuring England Men’s and England Women’s Visually Impaired players, as well as special guests Mark Nicholas and Adam Hills.
It was followed by a 40-over game between the MCC and an ECB Chair’s XI, a pan-disability team comprising members of England Men’s Physically Disabled, England Men’s Learning Disabled and England Men’s Hearing Impaired players.
In addition to the on-field action, spectators were able to take part in taster sessions around the ground – with England and Australia superstars Ben Foakes and Nathan Lyon also giving it a go.
The event – hosted by the MCC and the ECB, and supported by Lord’s Taverners – also saw young people given the chance to take part in cricket around the ground.
Two England cricketers who took part in the day, the captain of England Women’s Visually Impaired team Kathryn Jelfs-White and the captain of England Men’s Learning Disability team Chris Edwards, explain what the historic day meant to them and what’s next for disability cricket.
“It was like waiting for Christmas”
Chris Edwards: The whole day was just amazing. There’s no other word for it. It was so surreal to have the opportunity to be one of the first disability players to ever play at Lord’s, and it’s something I’ll always remember.
Whenever you play at a Test venue, you always have some nervousness. But being at Lord’s, and knowing how prestigious the venue is, probably increased the nerves even more.
We’ve known about this day for four or five months, so it’s been in the calendar and we could see it coming. It was like waiting for Christmas. Suddenly it was three weeks away, then it was two weeks away, and before you know it’s arrived and passed.
On the field, we managed to put those nerves to one side and beat the MCC. It was a great performance. Everyone contributed in one way or another, and Ronnie Jackson became one of the first disability players to score 50 at Lord’s.
My own highlight was taking a caught-and-bowled, which I’ll always remember. I got 12 runs too and spent a bit of time at the crease, so there’s lots to look back on. We managed to pace the game really well and got across the line with overs to spare.
Afterwards, we all gathered in the Long Room and a couple of speeches were made. It was fantastic just to have that chance to socialise and celebrate what had been a truly historic day.
Ben Foakes presented all the players with a commemorative cap to mark the occasion, and my parents were there too. They thoroughly enjoyed the experience of being at Lord’s.
For disability cricket, days like Monday are just a massive step forward. For those who might not have known what disability cricket was, they certainly do now. It’s so important for the likes of the MCC to support the ECB in driving disability cricket forward not just in this country, but around the world.
On a personal level, it’s always been a dream to play at Lord’s. The biggest thing for me was walking through the Long Room and out onto the pitch. That was a lad from Wallasey achieving his dream, but everything about the day was brilliant. I was bouncing all day, full of enjoyment, and I don’t think I ever stopped smiling. I just loved the occasion.
Now, though, attention turns to the DPL. It’s just around the corner and I’m really looking forward to it. It’s a format that I always enjoy, and you never know exactly how you’ll do. Games ebb and flow. Hopefully this year we can perform well.
“The whole experience was a huge honour”
Kathryn Jelfs-White: The whole experience was just a huge honour. Everybody there spent the whole day grinning from ear to ear. A couple of the guys were even in tears, it was so emotional. It’s going to take a few days for what we’ve done to sink in.
There was a lot of excitement in the build-up. Then, about 10 minutes before our match, I got told I was opening the batting. Oh my! Thankfully, I didn’t have enough time for the nerves to get the better of me. I just had to hold myself together.
We spent a lot of time walking around Lord’s, and it was such an odd experience to describe. As a venue, it’s got an aura to it. It’s like the Colosseum. So walking out onto the field was incredible. Normally, you get as far as the stand and that’s it. If you go anywhere near the field, you’d get shouted at. But to step out and take your place at the crease, then to get that first run at Lord’s – I’ll dine out on that for the rest of my life.
Unfortunately, that was where it finished for me. A few deliveries later, I was bowled out. I don’t know whether to blame nerves, the extra speed from a male bowler, or the slope from the Nursery End. Anyway, I’ve told Gareth Jones, who got me, that I won’t speak to him ever again.
That was the other great part of the day: everyone knew each other, so there was brilliant camaraderie from the very first moment. Adam Hills was on my team and joined in straight away. I also had a good chat with him on the side-lines and he was asking really pertinent questions. He was genuinely engaged with it all.
I came to cricket late. I was in my thirties before I started playing, so if you’d have told 25-year-old me that one day I’d open the batting at Lord’s, I’d have asked what you’d been taking.
At that stage, I didn’t even know there was an adapted version of cricket for visually impaired (VI) people. It was only when a friend of mine who works for a blind charity introduced me to VI cricket that I got involved. It all snowballed from there.
I’m really hoping Monday is going to act as a huge showcase and springboard for VI cricket. I’m so grateful to the ECB for inviting myself and Laura Brooks to take part in this fixture. We need all the help we can get to drive up exposure and get more people involved. Hopefully this is the first step of an exciting future.
