Heather Knight Excited For The England-India Test Clash Announced For June

Heather Knight, the England women’s captain, said there is a genuine sense of excitement within her camp regarding June’s much-anticipated Test match encounter with India. Scheduled for June 16 to 19 in Bristol, the Test match will be the first between the two countries’ women’s teams since 2014.

For India, the match will end their longstanding drought of a fixture in the traditional whites. The Indian women’s team haven’t played a Test match since November 2014.

It is understood, limited crowds will be allowed to turn up for the occasion in the stadium for a match which will certainly be the headlining aspect of England women’s summer fixtures.

“There’s just a feeling of excitement,” Knight was quoted as saying by Women’s CricZone. “I love playing Test cricket. We don’t play much of it, but when we do, we really enjoy it and the challenge of doing something we don’t do very often. We don’t play multi-innings cricket growing up.”

Heather Knight Excited For The England-India Test Clash Scheduled For June

Knight cherishes the rare opportunity to play a long-form game outside the traditional Ashes rivalry. She believes there should be more women’s Test cricket played in the calendar as part of multi-format bilateral series. India’s tour of England also includes three ODIs and three T20Is following the historic Test match.

“It’s really important that we keep Test cricket going in the women’s game,” Knight said. “Realistically, T20 is the sport that’s going to grow the women’s game around the world. I think we’ve seen that over the last five years, but I’d love to keep playing Test cricket.”

“I’d love to see the multi-format series that we play for the Ashes as the norm. I’d love to play a Test match in India. It would be a massive challenge.”

Knight still holds her marathon knock of 157 against Australia in a Test in 2013 close to the heart. However, despite proving her technique and temperament by that effort, Knight has featured only in 10 Tests through her career. India legends Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami have been around for longer, nearly two decades, but have also played just 10 Tests apiece, reflecting the scarcity of women’s Test matches.

“I remember it being a real occasion playing against India in a Test Match,” said Knight. “So, I think it’s going to be the same this time. Playing Test cricket feels very special. It’s definitely rated very highly amongst the players.”

“We don’t play India very often, so I think it’s going to be a real occasion for them. I think they’ll be massively excited. Hopefully, we can put on a show and make it really good game,” she added.