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The MCC has officially changed the laws of the game to remove the batsman and replace him with the batsman, stating its belief that “the use of gender-neutral terminology helps to strengthen the status of cricket as an inclusive game for all”.
The change was considered but ultimately rejected in the last legal overhaul in 2017, but the MCC has since come to believe that “the shift to” hitter “is a natural progression, aligning with the terms of bowlers and bowlers. defensive players who already sit in the laws “.
However, several gender-related terms remain in common use, including that of young girl, night watchman and third man, but none are now officially sanctioned.
“MCC believes cricket is a game for everyone and this decision recognizes the changing landscape of the game in modern times,” said Jamie Cox, MCC Assistant Secretary. “The use of the term ‘batter’ is a natural development in our common language of cricket and the terminology has already been adopted by many players in the sport.
“Now is the right time for this adjustment to be formally recognized and we are delighted, as Keepers of the Laws, to announce these changes.”
Alex Hartley, 2017 Women’s World Cup winner and Lancashire captain, was among those who welcomed the decision, saying: “Cricket is a sport for everyone and it’s a small but a big movement.”
Chance to Shine cricket charity said: “We welcome this step to make the game more inclusive and welcoming. Cricket is a game for everyone and the language of the sport can define the perceptions of young people from an early age.
But there was also some criticism, with Piers Morgan among those accusing cricket of “passing all PC”. In the Daily Telegraph, Simon Heffer, the historian and columnist, called the move “ultra-awakened demagoguery” and criticized the MCC for “adopting this revolting word where there has long been a perfectly usable and universally understood word” .
“There will be legions of cricketers of both sexes through whose lips the abomination ‘batter’ will never pass as long as we live,” he said.
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While its rise to power has accompanied the modern rise of women’s football, annoying some traditionalists, the newly adopted terminology is not neologism and predates the organization that just adopted it. It was used in Lillywhite’s Illustrated Handbook of Cricket, published in 1844, and in a Guardian report on a match played between Sheffield and Nottingham in 1833.
Sir Peter Burrell, parliamentarian and avid amateur cricketer, has been described as “generally the best hitter” in a widely republished report of a match between Middlesex and the White Conduit Club played in June 1787, the year he played. was heavily involved in the creation of the MCC.
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