Personnel | ||
---|---|---|
Captain | Georgia Elwiss | |
Coach | Rob Taylor (2018–2019) Salliann Briggs (2016–2017) | |
Team information | ||
Colours | Purple | |
Founded | 2016 | |
Home ground | Haslegrave Ground, Loughborough | |
Secondary home ground(s) | Trent Bridge, Nottingham | |
History | ||
WCSL wins | 0 | |
Official website | Loughborough Lightning | |
|
Loughborough Lightning were an English women's Twenty20 cricket team based at Loughborough University. They were formed in 2016 to compete in the inaugural season of the Women's Cricket Super League. They primarily played their home matches at the Haslegrave Ground. [1] They were coached by Rob Taylor [2] and were captained by Georgia Elwiss. [3] The team was partnered with Loughborough University. [4] Together with the netball team and the women's rugby union team, the cricket team was one of three women's sports teams based at Loughborough University that used the Loughborough Lightning name. [5] In 2020, following reforms to the structure of women's domestic cricket, some elements of the Loughborough Lightning were retained for a new team, named just Lightning and representing a broader region. [6]
Loughborough Lightning were formed in 2016 to compete in the new Women's Cricket Super League, partnering with Loughborough University and playing across the Midlands. [7] In the first season of the WCSL, the Lightning finished 3rd in the group stage, progressing to the semi-final, where they were beaten by eventual runners-up Western Storm. [8] [9] The following season, 2017, saw Loughborough miss out on Finals Day, finishing 4th with two wins. [10]
2018 was Loughborough Lightning's most successful season, as they topped the group with 7 wins from 10 games, progressing straight to the final. [11] However, they were defeated by Surrey Stars by 66 runs after the Stars' Lizelle Lee hit a century. [12] Lightning bowler Kirstie Gordon was the leading wicket-taker of the tournament, with 17. [13] In 2019, the Lightning again progressed to Finals Day after finishing 2nd in the group with 7 victories, but were beaten in the semi-final by the Southern Vipers. [14] [15] Following this season, women's cricket in England was restructured and Loughborough Lightning were disbanded as part of the reforms; however they survived in spirit for a new team, Lightning, who represented a larger area, but retained some of their players. [16]
Venue | Games hosted by season | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Total | |
Haslegrave Ground | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 12 |
County Ground, Derby | – | 1 | – | – | 1 |
Edgbaston Cricket Ground | – | – | 1 | – | 1 |
Trent Bridge | – | – | – | 1 | 1 |
Final squad, 2019 season [17]
No. | Name | Nationality | Birth date | Batting style | Bowling style | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batters | ||||||
1 | Georgia Adams | England | 4 October 1993 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | |
22 | Mignon du Preez | South Africa | 13 June 1989 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Overseas player |
All-rounders | ||||||
17 | Kathryn Bryce | Scotland | 17 November 1997 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
20 | Alice Monaghan | England | 20 March 2000 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
25 | Jo Gardner | England | 25 March 1997 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | |
24 | Jenny Gunn | England | 9 May 1986 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | England Performance squad |
34 | Georgia Elwiss | England | 31 May 1991 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Club captain; England Performance squad |
50 | Hayley Matthews | West Indies | 19 March 1998 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | Overseas player |
58 | Chamari Atapattu | Sri Lanka | 9 February 1990 | Left-handed | Right-arm medium | Overseas player |
Wicket-keepers | ||||||
27 | Abigail Freeborn | England | 12 November 1996 | Right-handed | — | |
40 | Amy Jones | England | 13 June 1993 | Right-handed | — | England Performance squad |
Bowlers | ||||||
7 | Lucy Higham | England | 17 October 1997 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | |
16 | Sarah Glenn | England | 27 February 1999 | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | |
46 | Tara Norris | England | 4 June 1998 | Left-handed | Left-arm medium | |
48 | Kirstie Gordon | England | 20 October 1997 | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | England Performance squad |
Season | Final standing | League standings | Notes | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
P | W | L | T | NR | BP | Pts | NRR | Pos | |||
2016 | Losing semi-finalists: 3rd | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | +0.170 | 3rd | Lost to Western Storm in the semi-final |
2017 | Group stage | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | +0.664 | 4th | DNQ |
2018 | Runners-up | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 33 | +1.361 | 1st | Lost to Surrey Stars in the final |
2019 | Losing semi-finalists: 3rd | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 32 | +0.792 | 2nd | Lost to Southern Vipers in the semi-final |
Year | Played | Wins | Losses | Tied | NR | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
2017 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 40.00 |
2018 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 63.63 |
2019 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 63.63 |
Total | 33 | 19 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 57.57 |
Opposition | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | NR | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lancashire Thunder | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 73.33 |
Southern Vipers | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 42.85 |
Surrey Stars | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 71.42 |
Western Storm | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 28.57 |
Yorkshire Diamonds | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 66.66 |
Lizelle Lee is a South African cricketer who played for the South Africa women's national cricket team from 2013 to 2022. She has played for Western Storm and Surrey Stars in the Women's Cricket Super League, as well as Melbourne Stars, Melbourne Renegades and Hobart Hurricanes in the Women's Big Bash League. Lee is an opening batter. In January 2022, Lee was named the ICC Women's ODI Cricketer of the Year. In July 2022, Lee announced her retirement from international cricket.
The Women's Cricket Super League (WCSL), known as the Kia Super League (KSL) for sponsorship reasons, was a semi-professional women's Twenty20 cricket competition in England and Wales operated by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). The competition featured six franchise teams, partnered with a variety of county teams and boards and universities, and was envisaged as a means to bridge the gap between amateur domestic cricket and the increasingly professional international game.
The Southern Vipers are a women's cricket team that represent the South of England. The Vipers wear an orange and black kit and play their home matches at the Ageas Bowl and the County Cricket Ground, Hove.
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The 2017 Women's Cricket Super League, or 2017 Kia Super League for sponsorship reasons, was the second season of the Women's Cricket Super League (WCSL), a semi-professional women's cricket competition in England and Wales. The competition, run by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), consisted of six franchise teams playing in a Twenty20 format. The Southern Vipers were the defending champions, but lost in the final to Western Storm.
The 2018 Women's Cricket Super League, or 2018 Kia Super League for sponsorship reasons, was the third season of the Women's Cricket Super League (WCSL), the semi-professional women's cricket competition in England and Wales. The competition, run by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), consisted of six franchise teams playing in a Twenty20 format. Western Storm were the defending champions.
Sophia Ivy Rose Dunkley is an English cricketer who plays for the England women's cricket team, Surrey, South East Stars and Southern Brave. A right-handed batter and right-arm leg break bowler, she made her county debut in 2012 for Middlesex and her England debut in 2018, against Bangladesh at the 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20. In 2020, she left Middlesex to join Surrey. In June 2021, Dunkley was awarded her first central contract with the England women's cricket team. In the same month, she made her Test debut, becoming the first black woman to play Test cricket for England.
Linsey Claire Neale Smith is an English cricketer who plays for Sussex, Southern Vipers and Northern Superchargers. A slow left-arm orthodox bowler, she originally played for Berkshire before moving to Sussex ahead of the 2017 season. In October 2018, she was named in the England women's cricket team squad for the 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20 tournament, and made her Women's Twenty20 International cricket (WT20I) debut in the tournament against Bangladesh.
The 2019 Women's Cricket Super League, or 2019 Kia Super League for sponsorship reasons, was the fourth and final season of the Women's Cricket Super League (WCSL), the semi-professional women's cricket competition in England and Wales. The competition, run by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), consisted of six franchise teams playing in a Twenty20 format. The tournament was scheduled to be replaced by the Women's Hundred and a new regional domestic structure from the next season, although the full implementation of this was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Surrey Stars were the defending champions. Western Storm defeated Southern Vipers by 6 wickets to win the 2019 title.
The Blaze, previously known as Lightning, are a women's cricket team that represent the East Midlands region, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic women's cricket. They play their home matches at various grounds, including Trent Bridge and Grace Road. They are captained by Kathryn Bryce and coached by Chris Guest. The team carries over many elements of the WCSL team Loughborough Lightning. They are partnered with Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Lincolnshire.
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The 2019 season was Loughborough Lightning's fourth and final season, in which they competed in the final edition of the Women's Cricket Super League, a Twenty20 competition. The side finished second in the group stage, winning seven of their ten matches, therefore progressing to the semi-final. However, they lost to Southern Vipers in the semi-final by 5 wickets.
The 2017 season was Southern Vipers' second season, in which they competed in the Women's Cricket Super League, a Twenty20 competition. The side topped the group stage for the second year in a row, therefore progressing to the final. In the final, they faced Western Storm in a repeat of the previous season's final. This time, however, Western Storm were victorious by seven wickets with twelve balls to spare.
The 2019 season was Southern Vipers' fourth season, in which they competed in the final edition of the Women's Cricket Super League, a Twenty20 competition. The side finished third in the initial group stage, winning 4 of their 10 matches, therefore progressing to the semi-final, where they beat Loughborough Lightning by 5 wickets. In the final they played against Western Storm, but lost to them by 7 wickets.
The 2017 season was Surrey Stars' second season, in which they competed in the Women's Cricket Super League, a Twenty20 competition. The side finished second in the group stage, winning four of their five matches, therefore progressing to the semi-final. However, they lost to eventual winners Western Storm in the semi-final by 3 wickets.
The 2018 season was Surrey Stars' third season, in which they competed in the Women's Cricket Super League, a Twenty20 competition. The side finished third in the group stage, winning 5 of their 10 matches, therefore progressing to the semi-final, where they played against Western Storm. They went on to beat Storm by 9 runs to advance to the final, where they faced group winners Loughborough Lightning. A century from Lizelle Lee ensured that the Stars beat Loughborough Lightning by 66 runs to claim their first WCSL title.