DORRIDGE Cricket Club marked the official opening of their new ground with a special match between a chairman’s and president’s XI.
The match was the first to take place on the new pitch at Grange Road with hundreds of people in attendance with a couple of rain showers unable to dampen the celebrations.
The family fun day also featured live music, pop-up food stalls and cricket taster sessions, followed by the game between the chairman’s and president’s XI’s.
Dorridge Cricket Club chair, Phil Smith, said: “The new ground is a great addition to the club that will be used predominately by our women and girls and junior teams from 2025.
“We have seen a tremendous increase in the number of girls and women wanting to play cricket here at Dorridge and we now have six women’s teams across all ages.
“The opening of the new ground is a huge milestone. I would like to personally thank everyone who has made the new ground possible, including the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Sport England and the wonderful support from the Warwickshire Cricket Board.
“Our club members, local businesses and the wider community have been amazing with their support for our fundraising campaigns and requests for help.”
Dorridge’s head of women’s cricket, Anisha Patel, added: “Women’s cricket is thriving at Dorridge. It is tremendously exciting to have such a fantastic new facility for our teams.
“It will help us to accommodate the growing number of girls and women playing at the club, offering a great training area and a first-class ground to play on.
“Last year our women’s first XI reached the final of the ECB’s National Vitality T20 Women’s Club Cup and earlier this year we also became the first women’s recreational team to play at Lords.
“These are fantastic achievements and all down to the hard work we put in and the great support we receive from the club and Warwickshire Cricket Foundation.”
The two teams comprised of players past and present which ended in a narrow victory for the chairman’s XI.
Several special guests also took part including local MP Saqib Bhatti and Ed McCabe, general manager at the Warwickshire Cricket Board.
Warwickshire County Cricket Club’s director of performance, Gavin Larsen, opened the new ground.
The new ground, built to accommodate the growing number of women’s, girls’ and junior teams at Dorridge, is next door to the club’s existing ground.
