England’s Shining Knight

Heather Knight is the worthy winner of this year’s Walter Lawrence Women’s Award, which is won by the batsman who makes the highest individual score in a season. Having led the competition since May 6, when she made an unbeaten 153 in the LV Women’s County Championship, Knight eclipsed that score with a battling innings of 157 for England Women in the Ashes Test match against Australia Women on August 13.

Heather Knight
Photograph by Matt Bright

Playing in only her second Test, opening bat Heather rescued her side from a precarious situation with a marathon knock, scored off 338 balls and including 20 fours, and shared a record England seventh-wicket partnership of 156 with Laura Marsh at Sir Paul Getty’s Ground, Wormsley.

The 22-year-old brought up her century in 263 balls before being run out on 157, the seventh highest score by an Englishwoman in Tests, for which she won the Player of the Match award. Rochdale-born Heather has also played in 39 One-Day Internationals and 11 T20 Internationals for England.

Heather, captain of Berkshire Women, has enjoyed a prolific season scoring 604 runs in the County Championship, averaging 100.66, as well as 225 runs in the T20 County Championship at an average of 56.25. She is the second winner of the Walter Lawrence Women’s Award since it was introduced last year and receives a silver medallion and a cheque for £500, which will be presented at the Walter Lawrence Trophy presentation dinner in The Long Room at Lord’s on October 15.

The quartet of Walter Lawrence Trophy awards, supported by Veuve Clicquot, encompass four distinct areas of the game: the Walter Lawrence Trophy, for the fastest century of the season; the MCC Universities award for the highest score by a batsman from the six MCC Universities against the first-class counties or in the MCCU Championship; The Walter Lawrence Women’s Award for the batsman who makes the highest individual score in a season from the ECB Women’s County Championship, the ECB Women’s County T20 Cup and all England Women’s matches played on home soil, and, finally, the Walter Lawrence Schools Award for the highest score by a school batsman against MCC.