MCC Universities undergraduate captains England

Date released: 17 August 2007

New England captain, Nicky Shaw, at Lord's MCC University undergraduate and former MCC Young Cricketer, Nicky Shaw, has been picked to captain England.

Nicky skippered the side yesterday (16th August) for their Twenty20 game and is also captaining the side today for the one-day international against New Zealand at Taunton.

Nicky was an MCC Young Cricketer in 2004 and is currently studying at Loughborough - one of the six MCC-funded University Centres of Cricketing Excellence.

She becomes the first female former Young Cricketer to go on to captain her national team, following in the footsteps of none other than Sir Ian Botham - another YC who, in the early 1980s, captained the England men's side. Nicky is also the first MCC University student to captain a national team.

Also included in the England side are:

• Caroline Atkins - an MCC Young Cricketer in 2005 & 2006 and a graduate from Durham UCCE
• Laura Marsh - also studying, like Nicky, at Loughborough UCCE
• Clare Taylor - an MCC Member and Lord's one-day batting record-holder.

MCC Head of Cricket, John Stephenson, said: “It’s always pleasing to see how MCC's support can help young players with the development of their careers. We’re immensely proud of all our 'graduates', but for Nicky to captain England is a great honour for her. It's also a superb seal of approval for the MCC Universities and MCC Young Cricketers schemes, in which we now invest no less than £850,000 per year.

Rachael Heyhoe Flint “One of the MCC Universities' most famous 'graduates' is Monty Panesar, so young students - male and female - can look to Monty and now Nicky to see how much they can achieve.”

Rachael Heyhoe Flint, an MCC Committee member and ex-England captain, added: “It’s a great feather in the cap for Nicky. We at MCC are very proud that one of our former Young Crickters, now an MCC Universities student, should be leading her country.”