Women's cricket is a 'dream you can pursue'

Hosting the Women's World Cup will inspire the next generation of players, like it did for her almost ten years ago, according to a Gloucestershire cricketer.

Melissa Story she remembers watching the 2017 world cup in Bristol as a young girl.

Today marks 100 days until the ICC Women's T20 Cricket World Cup gets under way with Bristol as one of the host cities and she hopes this tournament will have a lasting impact on young players.

Six games will be played at the County Ground in June, including the match-up between reigning champions, New Zealand and Scotland.

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Story, 25, from Chippenham started playing the sport in Wiltshire before joining Gloucestershire in 2023.

She said women's cricket has seen "really dramatic growth" since the last time the world cup was hosted in England and that fans should expect "unpredictable, fast and exciting" cricket again this summer.

Former player and now Women's Head Coach at Gloucestershire, Fran Wilson, played in the last home world cup. She to have the whole country behind you is incredible.

"Knowing you've got so much support and the grounds are gonna be full, it's really, really special," added Wilson.

Bristol hosted four Women's Rugby World Cup games at Ashton Gate last year which deputy leader of Bristol City council Heather Mack said was "incredible for the city".

A report commissioned by World Rugby found the tournament generated £47.7m for Bristol's economy.

Mack said: "We are honoured to keep getting these events which champion our women in sport".

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