Astounding Adams

Georgia Adams has won this year’s Walter Lawrence Women’s Award with a stunning unbeaten score of 154 for Southern Vipers against Western Storm in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy. The 26-year-old Vipers captain and opener hit 20 fours in her innings off 155 balls at the Ageas Bowl on September 13, setting up a crucial 32-run victory and a place in the competition Final.

Georgia, who is the daughter of former England, Derbyshire and Sussex cricketer and coach, Chris Adams, completed a sensational campaign in The RHF trophy by skippering her side to victory against Northern Diamonds in the Final at Edgbaston. Leading from the front again she scored 80 off 102 balls enabling the Vipers to post a total of 231, which proved 32 runs too many for the opposition. Her outstanding performances in the tournament, in which she accrued 500 runs at an average of 83, saw her win the Most Valuable Player award.

Born in Chesterfield, Georgia is the current captain of Sussex and in May last year she became the youngest player to reach 100 appearances for the county. She has played for England under-19s and in 2016 she represented the England Academy team in matches against Sri Lanka. In July, in a scheme put in place by the ECB to support the women’s game through the Covid-19 pandemic, Georgia was one of 25 elite women’s players across England and Wales who was put on a regional retainer contract.

As well as Southern Vipers, she has also played for Loughborough Lightning in the Kia Super League and has signed for the Oval Invincibles in the forthcoming Hundred competition.

Regarding her Walter Lawrence Trophy-winning, unbeaten innings of 154, Georgia recalls: ‘I was trying to bat and bat and bat. And after I reached 100, every time I tried to hit the ball it just seemed to ping off the middle. Days like that don’t happen very often’. Georgia’s impressive form will not have gone unnoticed by England’s new coach, Lisa Keightley, who brought her into the Academy set up and sent her a congratulatory message after the knock.

Georgia is the ninth winner of the Walter Lawrence Women’s Award joining, amongst others, England trio Heather Knight, Nat Sciver and Tammy Beaumont who have all won it twice.