Rachael Heyhoe Flint: 'It's amazing … women are almost on parity with men' | Sport | The Guardian The Observer Rachael Heyhoe Flint: 'It's amazing … women are almost on parity with men' The lifelong campaigner for equality discusses playing alongside men and her joy at England's women having full-time contracts In 2010, Rachael Heyhoe Flint became the first woman to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Photograph: Ritam Banerjee/Getty Images Saturday 10 May 2014 13.27 EDT First published on Saturday 10 May 2014 13.27 EDT Share on Messenger Close If the rumours were to be believed, this week could have been a historic marker for cricket and for the extraordinary polymath that is Rachael Heyhoe Flint, former England captain, ECB director, Wolverhampton Wanderers vice president and a life peer in the House of Lords. According to the whispers, Heyhoe Flint was expected to have been elected the first female president of the MCC on Wednesday. Instead, the outgoing president, Mike Gatting, appointed the former International Cricket Council president, David Morgan. Where did the rumours come from?

Heyhoe Flint laughs riotously. "They've been going ever since I've been at the MCC, since 1998 when the vote to allow women members came through," she says. "I suppose every journalist has got a little red flag that comes up on their screen a month before the AGM. 'Let's find out who's going to be president of that male bastion' – which, of course, it was until 1998, and then: 'Oh, I wonder if one of the women might become president …' "If it happens to me one day – fantastic – if it doesn't I'll just carry on knitting and cooking," she says, mischievously. Domestic chores? One of the greatest female pioneers in sport? Give over. "Well, you've got to make people laugh a bit, haven't you? If people think it is right that I should be appointed to one of the best positions in cricket, if I live long enough, that will be fantastic, but you don't go around lobbying for it." In an election process "as secret a nomination as for the next Pope", not even the MCC general committee knew of Morgan's election until Wednesday afternoon, an appointment Heyhoe Flint fully endorses.

"Excellent choice, wonderful administrator," she says. A tiny woman, with huge energy and presence, the 74-year-old has become renowned for pioneering change. From securing sponsorship for women's cricket in the 1960s, to influencing the corridors of power, those who know her have invented a verb: "to Rachaelise". "Oh yes," she says, giggling, having adjusted the TV set in the Lord's Tavern. "I'm always fiddling, Rachaelising." Over the past 50 years, the Baroness of Wolverhampton has repeatedly broken new ground – from becoming TV's first female sports commentator, for ITV's World of Sport, to being the first woman inducted into the ICC's Hall of Fame, one of the two first women appointed to the board of the ECB, in 2010, and among the first female members admitted to the MCC in 1998. It took nine years to reach a majority vote on the latter, a process that Heyhoe Flint says required diplomacy and wit.

"It was no use going in with a strident attitude saying: 'I'm a woman, I demand the right that after 204 years you have a woman member.' I just chat to people, get them on my side, with a light-hearted sense of humour – even though it's a very serious matter you're dealing with – and eventually you have people like Richie Benaud, Colin Cowdrey and Sir Jack Hayward supporting the concept of women members." As a lifelong advocate of equality, she says that the notion of women playing alongside men at county level, a possibility raised for Sarah Taylor at Sussex last year, is not a new one. "Enid Bakewell, who played in my day for England, she used to practise an enormous amount at Nottinghamshire with their county staff. On ability alone they used to say she could have easily got into their second XI. To be honest, the men might find it a bit more difficult to accept than the women.

They may be a little perturbed at the thought of their place being given to a woman, albeit one who merited playing selection on her ability alone." The habit of using the men's game as a yardstick for women's cricket is seen by some as unhelpful to progressing the sport, but Heyhoe Flint believes the experiment could be a real positive for the game. "If [Taylor] was selected for official matches and she did incredibly well that would be a bonus. So many people think women's cricket is a sort of watered-down version of men's cricket, I would think people would say: 'Blimey'. When one of the England men's wicketkeepers missed a catch last summer, Mike Atherton immediately referred to Sarah Taylor's wonderful catch against the Australian women the week before in commentary." Had it been an option for Heyhoe Flint in her day, she wouldn't have had given a second's thought to joining the male playing staff at the crease. She chuckles. "I used to play for our local newspaper team, the Express and Star. I would change in the fertiliser shed with the lawnmowers.

You'd be batting and you'd get the wicketkeeper chatting you up, asking you out for a drink that night, probably another way of getting a batsman dismissed. But I just treated it as terrific practice for me." Several of the England women play in the men's leagues – Arran Brindle for Louth in Lincolnshire, and Dani Hazell for Durham, and Katherine Brunt and Taylor used to play at Darton. "There are women who can hold their own in the men's game," Heyhoe Flint says. "I wouldn't say to them don't do it, because it's very, very good practice for them. Sarah Potter [fast bowler for England in the 1980s, and Dennis Potter's daughter] played for Ross-on-Wye second XI and it brought her game on leaps and bounds." Taylor, Brindle and Hazell will turn out, under captain and Wisden Cricketer of the Year, Charlotte Edwards, for an MCC XI versus the Rest of the World as part of a series of matches celebrating 200 years of Lord's this month. Heyhoe Flint will manage the home side.

"Well," she says, grinning, "they'd hardly let me play, would they?" The thought is not so far-fetched. Heyhoe Flint is a woman of so many accomplishments you have to wonder, even as a septuagenarian, what she wants to achieve next. Heyhoe Flint smiles. It's already happened, she says beaming. Professional full-time contracts for 18 England women players, the names of whom were announced by the ECB this week. "That's absolutely amazing, it really brings life full circle back to the time when I would walk round the crowds collecting coppers, silver and pound coins to raise money for the team, and then drive home with it sitting in the footwell of my car. It's wonderful that those women are regarded almost on parity with the opportunities offered to men." There is one other sporting reason for her to swoon this year, with the promotion of her beloved Wolves back to the Championship. Having supported the club since she was seven years old, "my brother and I used to stand in the Cowshed", and lived through decades of relegation and promotion across all four divisions, she is delighted to have found stability in the former Millwall manager Kenny Jackett. "He's very level-headed.

No histrionics, no – how can I say this diplomatically? Well, I don't think I could live with a manager like José Mourinho." Let's get this straight: she would rather have Jackett than Mourinho? "Oh yes," she says, seriously. "That Mourinho, some of his outbursts are really not good for the game." She pauses. Then roars with laughter. "That's one I don't think I'd be able to Rachaelise, anyway." Spin coach Mushtaq Ahmed is to leave the England set-up, with former England off-spinner Peter Such set to take his place Published: 10 May 2014 Peter Moores made a winning start to his second spell as England coach in a one-day international reduced to 20 overs a side against Scotland in Aberdeen Published: 9 May 2014 50 most influential women in British sport | Sport | The Guardian 50 most influential women in British sport Jessica Ennis-Hill is at No3.

Photograph: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images Guardian Sport staff Friday 7 March 2014 19.30 EST First published on Friday 7 March 2014 19.30 EST Close 1: Debbie Jevans, CEO, England Rugby 2015 Our leading lady of British sport, Jevans is the first female chief executive to organise a Rugby World Cup, and the first woman to be appointed director of sport for an Olympic Games when she led the double triumph of an Olympic and Paralympic Games at London 2012. There, managing 20,000 staff and a budget in excess of £160m, Jevans cemented a name for herself as an extraordinary individual in sport, having already played a key part in winning the bid for London in 2005. With so few women seated alongside her at sport's top tables, Jevans has been unequivocal in speaking out against gender imbalance in sport - most recently calling for quotas to be considered, despite a lifelong aversion to the concept.

Formerly a professional tennis player – she once beat Judy Murray – Jevans is also a member of the All England Lawn Tennis Club's committee of management and championships committee, as well as a Sport England board member, and sits on the UK Sport major events panel. 2: Liz Nicholl, CEO, UK Sport Responsible for an annual budget of £125m, Nicholl primarily oversees the development of Olympic and Paralympic sports at a performance level. Team GB won 65 Olympic and 120 Paralympic medals at London 2012, and Nicholl is now the driving force behind the attempt to become the first nation to win more medals in the next Olympic and Paralympic cycle after hosting a Games. A former netball international, Nicholl was England Netball's chief executive for 16 years before taking on her role at UK Sport, where she also leads on the bidding for and hosting of major events. Nicholl has been vocal on the lack of women in sports boardrooms, backing a Women's Sport and Fitness Foundation target of 25% by 2017, and suggesting that sanctions may be put in place for governing bodies who fail to make the grade.

3: Jessica Ennis-Hill, Athlete "The face of London 2012" overcame extraordinary levels of pressure to win Olympic gold – her image became synonymous with the Games, appearing everywhere from TV and billboards to a painting of her the size of 15 tennis courts positioned in a field under the Heathrow flight path. As a result, Ennis‑Hill's profile hit stratospheric levels, picking up 1.3m Twitter followers, and her estimated earnings were several million pounds. When news broke before the Games that a senior figure at UK Athletics had described the tightly honed Ennis-Hill as "fat", there was national outrage, prompting a sustained focus on female body image, sexism, eating disorders and bullying in sport and launching Ennis-Hill as a figurehead for a growing female movement in sport. When the 28-year-old announced her pregnancy in January she again made national news. Even in a year when she isn't competing, Ennis-Hill categorically remains Britain's most influential sportswoman.

4: Barbara Slater, Director of sport, BBC Overseeing 450 staff and an output consumed by more than 40% of the UK population, Slater is the most senior woman working in British sports media today. The former Great Britain gymnast, who made history as the first ever female director of sport at the BBC, was a natural choice, having worked within the BBC Sport department since 1984, specialising in outside broadcasts across golf, racing and tennis. A champion of women's sport, Slater famously cut Zoo and Nuts editors from the judging panel for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year shortlist, following the 2011 furore when women were entirely absent from the final 10. 5: Tanni Grey-Thompson, Retired athlete; crossbench peer She was first renowned as Britain's greatest Paralympian for 11 gold medals, four silvers and one bronze across five Games, and Grey-Thompson's influence in sport's corridors of power has grown since she retired from competition.

Appointed to the House of Lords as a crossbench peer in 2010, she is co-chair for the all‑party parliamentary group on women's sport and a prominent figure in political discussions around gender and disability. Internationally her reputation is far-reaching. In 2012 Grey-Thompson was asked by cycling's world governing body, the UCI, to sit on the three-person independent commission investigating the Lance Armstrong doping case. 6: Clare Balding, Broadcaster Dubbed the "Grande Dame of British TV" after the nation fell in love with her inimitable coverage of London 2012 – from that Bert le Clos interview , to her role in inventing the Mobot – she is one of the most popular figures in British sport. An LGBT icon and vocal campaigner on sexism – last year Balding refused to host coverage of the Open golf at Muirfield because the club does not admit women – she is said to have influenced BT Sport's commitment to women's sport as part of her contract negotiations with the broadcaster. She presents a vast array of sport across the major channels.

7: Jennie Price, CEO, Sport England Price manages more than £1bn of Eexchequer and lottery funding across 46 governing bodies and a network of schools and grassroots community facilities, all catering for the 15.5m people who play sport every week in this country. Over the past two years, she has warned governing bodies that funding will be cut if they don't hit their targets as the government has refocused Sport England's strategy to concentrate on reversing a decline in the number of 16- to 25‑year-olds playing sport and narrowing the participation gap between genders. The no-nonsense Price made the final shortlist for the top job at the Lawn Tennis Association last year, having criticised its failure to increase participation. 8: Maria Miller, MP, sec of state for culture, media & sport One of the most senior women in the government, Miller has been vocal on sexism and inequality in sport, and made the lack of women's sports coverage a priority. She is highly critical of the sports media for their perceived male bias and governing bodies for the lack of board representation for ethnic minorities and women.

The minister for women and equalities also boycotted golf's Open last year over Muirfield's bar on female members. 9: Heather Rabbatts, nonexecutive director, the FA The FA's first female board member in its 150-year history, Rabbatts demonstrated the power of diversity in the workplace by criticising Greg Dyke's exclusively white and male FA commission last year. The barrister, a rare example of someone with an ethnic background making it to a senior position in football, also chairs the FA's inclusion advisory board, launched in the wake of the John Terry and Luis Suárez cases. Has held posts from the BBC to the Bank of England. 10: Karren Brady, vice-chair, West Ham Appointed managing director of Birmingham City in 1993, the then 23-year-old was asked for her "vital statistics" at her first press conference but quickly proved herself, rescuing the club from administration. In 2009, City were sold for £82m. Appointed vice-chair at West Ham United in 2010, she won the battle to move the club to the Olympic Stadium.

A strong voice on equality, Brady sits on the culture, media and sport committee inquiry into women and sport. 11: Ellie Simmonds, swimmer One of the most recognisable faces in British Paralympic sport, Simmonds shot to fame as a 13-year-old after her success at the Beijing Games. The youngest person appointed MBE aged 18, the four-times Paralympic champion with 13 world records to her name is also thought to be the most commercially successful British female Paralympian. 12: Alison Kervin, sports editor, Mail on Sunday Made the first female sports editor on a national newspaper last year, Kervin was also the first woman to referee a rugby match at Twickenham. A former Rugby World editor and chief sports feature writer at the Times, Kervin holds coaching qualifications in 10 sports and sits on a number of judging panels, from the Baftas to various sports awards.

13: Sue Campbell, House of Lords crossbencher A key name in sports administration for over 20 years, Campbell chaired UK Sport through its most successful period from 2003-13, as well as serving 11 years as chief executive to the organisation now known as Sportscoach UK. The peer also helped to establish the Youth Sport Trust charity, which seeks to change young peoples' lives through sport. 14: Clare Connor, head of women's cricket, ECB The former England captain has revolutionised women's cricket in this country – from an amateur sport played by fewer than 100 clubs when she took over in 2007, to the recent news that the national team will be full-time professionals, boasting an exemplary setup for other sports to follow. Held in high regard, Connor has been tipped to take the top job at the ECB one day and is a Sport England board member. 15: HRH Princess Royal, British representative to the IOC Famous in sporting terms for winning a European eventing title and becoming the first Royal family member to compete at an Olympic Games, Princess Anne is also one of 110 IOC members with voting powers on host cities (although she abstains where conflicts arise).

Her daughter, Zara Phillips, has won the eventing world title and Olympic silver at London 2012. 16: Judy Murray, Captain, British Federation Cup team Not just a "tennis mum", Murray is so highly thought of in the sport that she was offered the top job at the LTA last year – but turned it down. Murray will still be consulted on the future of British tennis, though, following her success in coaching sons Andy and Jamie in their early years. She is also mentor to Laura Robson and Heather Watson. 17: Gabby Logan, Broadcaster The first woman to host a live football match on terrestrial television, Logan has worked on TV's premier football shows, from Match of the Day to Final Score in a career spanning two decades. Confident across a range of sports, including rugby and athletics, she is also a strong voice on sexism in the football industry. 18: Jan Paterson, CEO, British Olympic Foundation A long-standing member of the Team GB setup having been deputy at London 2012 to the chef de mission, Andy Hunt, Paterson began her career with the team over 20 years ago.

She now takes on the main role with Team England for this year's Glasgow Commonwealth Games, in addition to her work as a British Olympic Association director. 19: Penny Briscoe, director of sport, British P'lympic Assoc Britain's first female chef de mission at a Games in leading the British Paralympic team and one of very few women doing so in the international Paralympic movement. Briscoe is one of the most experienced figures in Paralympic sport, and as performance director one of the key players behind Britain's summer Games success over the past four cycles. 20: Nicola Adams, Boxer Known as "Babyface", Adams proved a game-changer for women's boxing in this country. Not only did she make history as the first woman to win an Olympic boxing title, she also topped the 2012 Pink List of influential British LGBT figures. Her infectiously cheery demeanour has won her and her sport acceptance from the British public.

21 Kelly Holmes, retired athlete; campaigner Famous for her double gold winning performances at Athens 2004 Holmes has focused on charity work since retiring, nurturing young female track athletes and raising awareness on the Female Athlete Triad, a body disorder affecting female distance athletes. She is the president of Commonwealth Games England. 22 Casey Stoney, footballer The England captain and Arsenal defender is the first woman ever to be appointed to the PFA Management Committee. An inspirational figure in women's football, having led the Great Britain team at London 2012, Stoney publicly came out in February and said she would boycott the World Cups in Russia and Qatar in protest of their anti-gay laws. Stoney is also a BBC pundit on women's football and has appeared on Sky doing co-commentary on men's football. 23 Paula Dunn, Paralympic head coach, UK Athletics The first woman to be appointed to a head-coach role in athletics, Dunn is also the first head coach from an ethnic minority in her sport.

A former 100m European bronze and Commonwealth silver medallist, Dunn impressed as No2 during the Paralympics at London 2012 to gain the top role and equalled GB's best ever medal tally of 11 golds at last year's IPC World Championships. Oversees a £250m programme to recruit new Paralympic names for Rio 2016. 24 Helen Grant, minister for sport, tourism & equalities A former judo champion with a background in family law, Grant became the first black female Conservative MP when elected in 2010. A strong voice on women and equality – Grant has said that her legal work in domestic violence has informed her ministerial work – she has campaigned for women's sport to receive greater recognition at the elite end, and for sport to be made more accessible to women and girls at a grassroots level.

25 Christine Ohuruogu athlete Arguably GB's most successful female athlete of all time having won 400m Olympic gold and silver, and two individual world titles, Ohuruogu has also been a critical voice on the issue of Olympic legacy for London.Having grown up in the borough of Newham, just minutes away from the Olympic Stadium, s he has undertaken her own legacy project visiting every school in the borough to inspire the next generation of kids. 26 Kelly Simmons, director of national game and women's football, FA In December 2012 Simmons was appointed director of the national game – which covers children's, grassroots and semi-professional football - and women's football by the FA, and is responsible for the FA's five-year programme for women's football, Game Changer. She has worked at the FA for nearly 25 years, having joined the organisation in 1990. She is a member of the Uefa Grassroots Panel and of Fifa's Women's Committee, and received an MBE in 2002 for services to football.

27 Rebecca Adlington, retired swimmer The first British swimmer in more than a century to win two Olympic gold medals, Adlington retired from the sport last year. Her public meltdown in the Celebrity Jungle in 2013, where she confessed her body image insecurities, gave the issue national focus with a subsequent survey finding that 67% of elite GB sportswomen feared their looks were valued over their sporting achievements. Adlington has also launched SwimStars aimed at schoolchildren. "I want my biggest legacy to be no child in Britain leaving primary school unable to swim 25 metres," she said. 28 Sarah Storey, cyclist Has five Paralympic gold medals in the pool and a further six on the cycling track, and has collected a total of 22 of all colours, bringing her alongside Tanni Grey Thompson as Britain's most renowned modern Paralympian. She had her first child, Louisa, last year but returned to competition in December and plans to compete in Rio in 2016.

29 Nicky Roche, CEO, Tour de France 2014 Was director of sport at the DCMS, before becoming director of operations at the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and sits on the prime minister's advisory panel on Rio 2016. Last year she was appointed chief executive of TdF 2014 Ltd, the organising committee of this year's Tour de France grand départ in Yorkshire, and to the board of British Showjumping. 30 Katherine Grainger, rower Won an emotional gold in the double sculls in 2012 after ending three previous Olympics with silvers. Took off 2013 while she wrote her autobiography and completed a PhD in criminal law, and also helped to launch the charity Scottish Women in Sport, which aims to raise the profile of women's sport. Has yet to commit to the 2016 Games, but will run the London Marathon next month. 31 Laura Trott, cyclist Double Olympic champion, the most high-profile British female cyclist since Victoria Pendleton's retirement.

Unlike Pendleton she has refused to pose for men's magazines - "I want to inspire young girls to get on their bikes," she has said, "I just believe there is a certain way of doing that." Has called for a gradual introduction of a women's Tour de France. 32 Claire Williams, deputy team principal, Williams F1 ne of the most powerful women in motor sport. "There's no reason why women cannot come into Formula One," she says. "I'm at the top, this proves you can do it." 33 Paula Radcliffe, athlete Injury-plagued marathon world record-holder and mother of two who has not competed since a foot operation in 2012 but recently spoke of her desire to run again, perhaps at the 2015 London Marathon. Has campaigned vociferously throughout her career against the use of drugs in sport. Turned 40 last December. 34 Tricia Thompson director of cycling, BSkyB As director of cycling at BSkyB Thompson shares credit for the success enjoyed in recent years by , and also of grassroots efforts such as Sky Ride.

Has supported British Cycling in their campaign to get a million more women cycling by 2020, transforming the sport through creating family-friendly events, promoting guided rides and supporting Olympic and Paralympic heroes. 35 Tessa Jowell, MP Described by Lord Coe as "the political driving force behind our bid to host the London Olympics and Paralympics and an inseparable part of their ultimate success", Jowell first convinced Tony Blair's Labour government to back the London Olympic bid, and later served as Olympics minister, shadow Olympics minister, and deputy mayor of the Olympic village. Jowell will stand down as an MP at the next election. 36 Chrissie Wellington retired triathlete; equality campaigner Wellington retired in 2012 as four-time ironman world champion, having won all 13 professional races she competed in, saying her "passion for new experiences and new challenges is burning the most brightly". Since then Wellington, who before becoming a professional athlete advised the government on environmental and development policy, has campaigned for equality in sport, and specifically for a women's Tour de France.

37 Sophie Goldschmidt, chief commercial officer, RFU Appointed chief commercial officer of the RFU and on to the organisation's board in 2010, having previously worked for the NBA as senior vice president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and before that for the WTA as vice president of marketing and sponsorship. She has said that modern sport is "providing more and more fantastic opportunities for women". 38 Louise Martin, vice-chair, Glasgow 2014 Martin competed in the 100m and 200m backstroke finals at the 1962 Commonwealth Games and has remained associated with the event, having been instrumental in creating the Commonwealth Youth Games and in Glasgow's successful bid to host the 2014 event. She is currently chair of Sportscotland, vice chair of the 2014 Commonwealth Games organising committee and sits on the board of UK Sport. 39 Kirsten Rausing, horse breeder Widely considered the most powerful woman in racing, the fourth richest woman in Britain (Rausing's grandfather founded Tetra Pak) is also a director of the British Bloodstock Agency, a Jockey Club member, and a former director of the National Stud.

Rausing took charge of her grandfather's stud farm in Sweden in 1967, at the age of 15. She has since run farms in Ireland and now in Newmarket, where she has been based since 1980. 40 Margaret Byrne, CEO, Sunderland FC Joined Sunderland's staff in 2007 as company secretary, became their legal director and was promoted to chief executive in 2011, at the age of 31. At the time Niall Quinn described her as "a true driving force at the club". She sits on the FA Council, Premier League Legal Advisory Group, the Football Regulatory Authority and the FA's International Committee. 41 Karen Wilmington, director, Soccer Saturday The most senior woman working in Sky's football department, Wilmington has been with Sky Sports since its inception, having previously spent 12 years at BBC Sport. Head of studio output for Sky Sports News, she has overseen the recruitment and training of directors, production teams and presenters from day one, as well as leading on production for set changes, re-brands, the move to tapeless technology and rebuilding of all SSN facilities.

Wilmington has been directing Soccer Saturday and Soccer Special, "the highlight of her week", for almost 20 years. 42 Beth Tweddle, retired gymnast; entrepreneur Britain's most successful gymnast of all time, Tweddle was a pioneer in the sport – even having a move named after her – in becoming Olympic bronze medallist and three-time world champion. Since retiring from gymnastics after London 2012 Tweddle was elected on to the six-member FIG Athletes' Commission, set up Total Gymnastics, a company that provides gymnastics training in British schools and leisure centres, won Dancing On Ice in 2013, and began campaigning against internet trolls after being on the receiving end of sexist abuse earlier this year – an incident that made headlines. 43 Sian Massey, football referee A Premier League assistant referee since 2010, who has run the line at the Women's Champions League final and the Women's Euro final. Her second top-flight appearance saw her become the subject of sexist remarks made by Sky's Richard Keys and Andy Gray in 2011 which led to both men leaving the station.

44 Caroline McAteer, sports publicist Famous for rebuilding David Beckham's image following his 1998 World Cup red card, McAteer is also credited with masterminding Freddie Ljungberg's Calvin Klein underwear campaign. McAteer, who started out in the music industry and is nicknamed "the Rottweiler" for her no-nonsense approach, went on to found the Sports PR Company catering for a portfolio of sports stars from Theo Walcott and Didier Drogba, to Petr Cech and Chris Froome. 45 Vicky Kloss, chief communications officer, Manchester City Overseeing communications globally for Manchester City, plus newly acquired New York City FC and Melbourne Heart FC, Kloss – a former police detective – has spent 13 years at City, responsible for their PR during arguably the most eventful period in the club's history.

From one of the most talked about takeovers in football, to dealing with the absconding of the former owner Thaksin Shinawatra and the antics of Mario Balotelli, Kloss also highlighted some of the struggles women in football face after she was banned from the tunnel area "for being female" when City played Notts County in the FA Cup three years ago. 46 Rachel Heyhoe-Flint, life peer; ECB board member Former England cricket captain (she also represented her country at hockey) and the first woman inducted into the ICC hall of fame. A former PE teacher and journalist, she set up a sports marketing business in 1971, sat on the board of Wolverhampton Wanderers – where she remains a vice-president – and in 2011 became a life peer. She has sat on the ECB board since 2010 as a representative of the women's game.

47 Kelly Smith, footballer Widely considered the most talented female footballer ever to wear an England shirt, the Arsenal striker and coach – named among Fifa's top five players of the year on four occasions – was capped 115 times by England and recently recalled to the squad at the age of 35. Smith twice played in America's pro leagues (1999-2005, 2009-12), overcoming alcohol addiction and serious injury to help Arsenal to success. 48 Jacqui Oatley, broadcaster Freelance broadcaster and pioneer as the first woman to commentate on Match of the Day in 2007, an event that prompted frenzied national debate over whether women should be allowed to commentate on men's football. Oatley is an FA-qualified coach, and now presents football for the BBC and ITV. She is on the board of Women in Football, an organisation dedicated to challenging discrimination across the industry and mentoring the next generation of women. 49 Charlotte Edwards, cricketer The 34-year-old captain of England's Ashes-winning cricket team, 18 years after her international debut, with a Test average a sliver under 48.

One of the players since signed-up by the ECB on contracts that make them the world's first female cricket professionals – "A day I never thought I'd see in my time as a player," she said. 50 Helena Morrissey, CEO, Newton Investment Management Became CEO of Newton Investment Management in 2001 as a 35-year-old mother of five (she has since had four more children, and is still in post). In 2010 she founded the 30% Club, to encourage companies to appoint that many female directors – the figure in TSE 250 companies has since risen from 8.5% to 15%. Her company was the first to sponsor the women's boat race last year. A campaigner for gender equality, last September she joined the Women and Sport Advisory Board, set up by Maria Miller MP.

Debbie Jevans: The CEO of England Rugby 2015 says there are many talented women in senior positions in British sport but there should be a lot more Published: 7 Mar 2014 Fame and fortune: I got out of Equitable just in time | The Sunday Times Show all Fame and fortune: I got out of Equitable just in time Rachael Heyhoe Flint, the former England women’s cricket captain, plays safe with her money and is proud that she has only had an overdraft once Alexandra Goss Published: 13 November 2011 Print Baroness Heyhoe Flint’s study is full of memories of her record-breaking career (John Scott) Rachael Heyhoe Flint, England’s most famous female cricketer, is trying to beat the effects of low interest rates and inflation by investing in the stock market. Born in Wolverhampton, Baroness Heyhoe Flint, 72, worked as a physical education teacher before she started playing for the England women’s cricket team in 1960. She captained the side between 1966 and 1977, remaining unbeaten in six Test series.

Her crowning glory was leading the team to victory in the 1973 World Cup, and she retired from international cricket in 1983 after a record 51 appearances. In 1999, she was one of the first women admitted to the MCC, based at Lord’s cricket ground, as an honorary life member after a nine-year campaign for the MCC to accept women. In 2004, she became the first woman elected to the full committee of the MCC, and she is also on the board of the England Subscribe now Rachael Heyhoe-Flint: The woman who revolutionised women’s cricket - Cricket Country By Abhishek Mukherjee | Updated : June 11, 2016 1:31 PM IST Rachael Heyhoe-Flint in the commentary box at Wembley, in 1973. She was the first known female television sports commentator © Getty Images Former England captain was born June 11, 1939. An exceptional cricketer in her prime, Heyhoe-Flint went down to become the driving force behind the inaugural Women’s World Cup, and played a pivotal role in helping women’s cricket evolve.

Abhishek Mukherjee looks back at the person who revolutionised women’s cricket. Sometime in the 1940s, there was a group of boys playing cricket somewhere on a street in Wolverhampton. There was a girl among them, matching the boys with the bat, and often rolling her arm over. Now, unlike in several South Asian countries, street cricket is not legal in England. So, when a policeman saw the incident, he hurried to the spot and noted down the names of the miscreants one by one. He did not bother the girl, though. Inquisitive, the girl asked the reason. “Girls don’t play cricket”, came the curt response. The derogatory comment ignited a spark somewhere: apart from being a champion cricketer, Rachael Heyhoe (who later became Heyhoe-Flint after marrying the Warwickshire leg-spinner Derrick Flint ) went on to become the face of English women’s cricket for the decades to come. The achievements Let us do some number-crunching first. - Rachael scored 1,594 runs at 45.54 from 22 Tests with 3 hundreds. She held the record for most runs when she retired).

Her fellow countrywoman Janette Brittin is the only one to have scored more Test runs. - Rachael’s 179 was once the second-highest score in Test cricket, next to only Betty Snowball’s 189. She has also played the second-most number of Tests (after Janette’s 27), and also holds the record for the second-most number of fifty-plus scores (13) after Janette’s 16. - Of the 15 occasions when a captain has scored 200 runs or more in a series, Rachael has featured in 4. She had also scored over 350 runs in a series as captain twice (356 against New Zealand in 1966 at 71.20 and 350 against Australia in 1976 at 87.50, both involving three Tests); the only other person to have scored over 350 runs in a series was Shanta Rangaswamy , but her 381 came from 6 Tests at 42.33.

- Rachael had also scored 643 ODI runs from 23 matches at 58.45, remaining not out on 9 out of the 20 times she had batted. Her average is the highest in history with a 20-innings cut-off. - She was arguably the first great captain of Women’s cricket: not only did she win the first World Cup for England in 1973 — a tournament that was organised two years before the inaugural men’s World Cup, but she also led the English side from 1966 to 1978 — remaining unbeaten for all four series — and never losing a Test in the 12 Tests she has led (she also holds the record for leading England in most Tests – and is next to only Trish McKelvey, who has led New Zealand in 14 Tests). - Oh, and then there are the facts that she has represented England in hockey as a goalkeeper in 1964 and was Director of Wolverhampton Wanderers since 1997. Despite all her achievements it is her contribution towards the development of women’s cricket that Rachael is remembered for.

When she grew up in the 1940s and 1950s women’s cricket was typically scorned at by their male counterparts. The very fact that women’s cricket is recognised at the highest level has a lot to do with Rachael’s untiring efforts. She had helped break many a barrier, and gave women’s cricket the support it needed at the right moments. Early days and captain of England Rachael made her Test debut at Port Elizabeth against South Africa in 1959-60 scoring 14 and 17 on debut. He scored 51 in the second Test at Johannesburg. Three years later, against Australia at The Oval, she scored 36 and 37* in a Test that England won, and hit the first six in women’s cricket (a stroke which she refers to as ‘a hoick to leg’). She was appointed the captain of England in 1966 in only her eighth Test for the home series against New Zealand. She began her career as a captain brilliantly at Scarborough, top-scoring with a brilliant 113 — her maiden Test hundred — in the first innings. She followed it up with a 59 not out in the second innings.

She batted brilliantly in that series, and finished with 356 runs at 71.20. She successfully defended the ‘Ashes’ (England had won it in 1963) in Australia in 1968-69, leading from the front with 269 runs at 44.83, and then shone on the New Zealand tour with 234 runs at 46.80. World Cup, 1973 In the early 1970s, though, women’s cricket in England was generally on the wane — mostly due to lack of interest, and lack of cooperation from MCC. The lack of participation in England led to a general disinterest on the global scenario as well. Sir Jack Hayward (affectionately called The Union Jack for his love for anything English), the illustrious benefactor of the Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club and a local acquaintance of the English captain, came up with an idea that would go on to revolutionise the sport of cricket forever.

With virtually no official funding, Hayward had earlier funded two women’s tours to West Indies in 1969-70 and 1970-71 on Rachael’s requests, and was genuinely impressed by the performances. Hayward then proposed the idea of the inaugural Women’s World Cup to Sylvia Swinburne in 1971, the President of WCA (Women’s Cricket Association). He also contributed £40,000 towards the tournament. Rachael later said “people like Jack Hayward don’t grow on trees”. She worked tirelessly towards organising the tournament successfully. She was awarded an MBE for services to women’s cricket in 1972. When asked why he made the unlikely contribution, Hayward replied “It’s quite simple. I love women, and I love cricket — and what could be better than to have the two rolled together?” With Prudential also contributing £100,000, the tournament got undergoing in England. It was also telecast widely on television. There were seven countries, and the tournament was to be played in a round-robin format without a final.

Other than the main countries, the tournament also had a Young England side and an International XI (which was basically Rest of the World), which had to withdraw the South African cricketers due to the vehement protest of the West Indians. The England squad, as per the media, constituted of ‘four housewives, nine teachers, and one secretary’. Rachael herself was a teacher of PE in the borough of Wolverhampton. She was also a part-time journalist for The Telegraph. Though she got a paid leave, some others weren’t as fortunate. In Rachael’s own words, “There were instances of girls who actually taught PE who were given the option of either going on tour, or losing their job. There were of course enormous sacrifices.” Rachael Heyhoe-Flint batting against International XI in Women’s World Cup 1973 © Getty Images England played in what was the second ever Women’s ODI. They defeated International XI at Hove and Jamaica at Bradford easily, but lost out in a rain-affected match against New Zealand at Exmouth.

Rachael, who had a quiet tournament till then, finally found form with a dominant 114 against Young England at Ilford before England blew apart Trinidad and Tobago at their captain’s home ground in Wolverhampton. In the last match of the tournament at Edgbaston, England won the match by 92 runs and clinched the title, thanks to a 118 by Enid Bakewell and a 64 from Rachael. She bowled the last over herself, and recollected later: “I paced out my run, turned to bowl and found that every one of my England team had placed themselves at least 70 yards out on the boundary edge — including wicketkeeper Shirley Hodges!” Bakewell, the star of the final and the vice-captain, later said about her captain: “Rachael is a real character. She was always busy. ‘It’s not the cricket that wears you out, it’s entertaining the troops’, Rachael used to say. She’d come in at the end of the game, report to The Telegraph, ring home, have a shower and change; then she’d get her ukulele out and entertain us in the evening.

She could make things happen — both on and off the field. She made you believe you could do anything she asked you to do.” Princess Anne, who had turned up on behalf of The Royal Family of England, handed the trophy. With her reason always dominating her emotions, Rachael commented later: “I rather thought she was being rather gracious and diplomatic”. The victorious team was invited to 10 Downing Street by Edward Heath, the British Prime Minister. Megan Lear, a member of the side, recalled “A known keen sailor, Heyhoe-Flint produced much laughter when she presented Heath with a cricket bat signed by all the players and said he might find it useful as a paddle if there was no wind when he was sailing.” Taking a leaf out of the women’s book, the Men’s World Cup started two years later. The 1976 Australians and the Lord’s match Once the World Cup had been organised, efforts were made to arrange a Women’s Test at Lord’s: the headquarters of cricket had always maintained a snobbish attitude towards women, and it took a threat from Rachael to bring the case in front of the Equal Opportunities Commission that made MCC give in.

After England won the World Cup, the MCC President Aidan Crawley finally told Rachael and her team “you have done enough to deserve a game at cricket’s headquarters [Lord’s]“. Things did not materialise for another three years, though — till Australia toured England in 1976. Rachael batted brilliantly in the Tests: she scored 110 at Old Trafford as Australia hung on to a draw; followed it up with 49 at Edgbaston; and then, with England trailing by 255 in the last Test at The Oval, she came in at 66 for two and batted for 521 minutes, scoring 179 (the next-highest was 39) and saving the Test. She finished the series with 350 runs at 87.50. Australia won the first Women’s ODI at Canterbury before the teams headed for the second ODI at Lord’s.

Some of the members had still not accepted the decision: There was “some resentment from the elder gentlemen”, said Daily Mail; Evening News reported “there was some shaking of heads when members learned the ladies were allowed into the male-only pavilion.” Some of the members had really strong opinions. One of them, named Brian Wijerane, complained: “I was quite shocked when I saw the women playing. Cricket is a game where concentration is very important and women are the greatest distraction a man can have around.” Another, Peter Curtis, recollected: “I was praying for rain. I couldn’t believe this would happen in my lifetime.” Unfortunately for Curtis, it did not happen. Aug 4, 1976 was a bright sunny day. Most restrictions were still there, though: other than the players no woman was still allowed in the pavilion. The cricketers, though, had been granted the use of the changing-rooms — and — The Long Room. The facilities in the dressing-room were the same as that for the men — the only exception being the presence of red roses.

The Australians were shot out for 161, and after two quick wickets fell, Rachael walked out herself to join Chris Watmough with the score on 92 for two. She had dropped herself down the batting-order because she wanted to lead her team off the ground on the momentous occasion. The runs were achieved in due time without any further loss of wicket. England clinched the series with an emphatic nine-wicket victory at Trent Bridge. Final days as a player India had agreed to host the next World Cup in 1978. Surprisingly, Rachael, still English captain, in sublime form, and the mastermind behind the entire scenario, was dropped from the squad which was created “with youth in mind for the future”. She was 36 then. Seven members of the squad were in their 30s. Furious at the treatment dished out to Rachael, Hayward withdrew his sponsorship for the India tour. With one wrong move English women’s cricket lost their captain, ace batswoman, most popular face, and biggest sponsor, ruining all that had been built over a long period of time.

Fortunately, sanity was restored in the home series against West Indies in 1979 under Susan Goatman’s leadership. Playing in her last series, Rachael scored 162 runs at 40.50, and England won the series 2-0. She ended her 22-Test career without losing a single match. She earned a late recall, though, at the age of 43 (so much for the youth The Board had in mind for the future) for the World Cup in New Zealand. She batted well in general, scoring 276 runs at 47.83, but after England had been restricted to 151 for five in the Final (Rachael scored 29), Australia won the match by three wickets. It was Rachael’s final international match. Later years Rachael had a brief stint as the England manager, but was once again replaced by the Board in a fashion she was sacked as the captain in 1978. After years of her campaigning, 10 women (she being one of them herself) were allowed as the members of MCC in 1999.

Fittingly, Rachael was one of the first women to be granted admission to MCC, and later, in 2004, she became the first woman to be elected to the MCC full committee – after winning an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Bradford in 2002. She was awarded an OBE in 2007 for her services to cricket (as opposed to her MBE, which was for her services to women’s cricket). Rachael Heyhoe-Flint (left) presenting Player of the Match medal and champagne to Katherine Brunt, 2010 © Getty Images Rachael was appointed to The House of Lords in 2010 as a Conservative Party peer. She responded with the words “I will certainly look forward to the commute from one Lord’s to another Lords.” In 2010 Rachael was the first woman to be inducted into ICC’s Hall of Fame (the other inductees were Ken Barrington, Joel Garner, and Courtney Walsh). ( Abhishek Mukherjee is a cricket historian and Senior Cricket Writer at CricketCountry. He generally looks upon life as a journey involving two components – cricket and literature – though not as disjoint elements.

A passionate follower of the history of the sport with an insatiable appetite for trivia and anecdotes, he has also a steady love affair with the incredible assortment of numbers that cricket has to offer. He also thinks he can bowl decent leg-breaks in street cricket, and blogs at . He can be followed on Twitter at Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes to become a peer | London Evening Standard Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes to become a peer Friday 19 November 2010 12:14 BST Click to follow The Evening Standard Cameron admirer: Fellowes with wife Emma Joy Kitchener Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes is a surprise inclusion on a list of new Tory working peers full of showbiz flavour. The writer of the hit costume drama enters the Upper House alongside television mogul Michael Grade and Labour-backing broadcaster Joan Bakewell. Other celebrity names on the list include Michael Dobbs, the Tory author of the House of Cards trilogy of political intrigue and murder.

The showbusiness names will help to divert attention from more controversial appointments including some of the Labour and Tory donors who were interviewed by police during the "cash for peerages" scandal, including "curry king" Sir Gulam Noon and Tory tycoon Robert Edmiston. David Cameron has taken the opportunity to promote his old friend and Tory co-chairman Andrew Feldman, party treasurer Stanley Fink and former MPs including David Maclean and Richard Spring as well as Ann Jenkin, the wife of Defence rebel Bernard Jenkin. Former Lib Dem MP Susan Kramer gets a peerage from Nick Clegg while Ed Miliband has ennobled another former mayoral hopeful, Oona King. The celebrity divorce lawyer Fiona Shackleton, who has represented Sir Paul McCartney and Prince Andrew, is another new Tory peer. Former Services chief Sir Richard Dannatt enters the House as a crossbench peer, though he has served as an unaligned advisor to Mr Cameron. He was previously considered for a peerage but it was delayed until he spent more time out of uniform. As working peers, today's names are meant to serve as political activists in the House of Lords rather than simply regard their titles as honours.

Mr Cameron appointed 27 peers, Mr Clegg, 15 and Mr Miliband 10. Mr Clegg used his muscle as Deputy Prime Minister to reward long-serving Lib Dem figures, including his election organiser John Sharkey. From the media, Patience Wheatcroft, editor of the Wall Street Journal Europe, joins the red benches on the Tory side. Both Sir Gulam, Labour, and Mr Edmiston, Tory, had nominations blocked during the 18-month "cash for peerages" investigation. It emerged that Tony Blair had sought to ennoble people who had made large loans to Labour, which was unable to afford its 2005 election campaign. Scotland Yard questioned several senior figures including Mr Blair and raided the home of one of the former Prime Minister's aides but there were no charges brought. Personalities from the worlds of sport, business, entertainment and media are ennobled TELEVISION Julian Fellowes Downton Abbey creator, Conservative The man behind the biggest costume drama hit of the year will be at home in ermine.

His wife, Emma Joy Kitchener (great-great-niece of Lord Kitchener, who appeared in the First World War "Your Country Needs You" poster ) is lady-in-waiting to Princess Michael of Kent. A passionate Tory, he is the son of a diplomat, a deputy-lieutenant of Dorset and a lord of the manor in Lincolnshire. But he says he suffered "real prejudice" for years as a jobbing actor because of his politics and class. He has described David Cameron as "charming". His writing hits include the movies Gosford Park and The Young Victoria while acting credits include Monarch of the Glen and Tomorrow Never Dies. SPORT Rachael Heyhoe Flint Cricketer, Conservative Played for England for two decades from 1960 and was captain from 1966 to 1978, enjoying an unbeaten run of six Test series. In 1973 she led the side that won the first Women's Cricket World Cup. Now 71, she has been a journalist and speaker since 1982 and was in 2004 the first woman elected to the full committee of the MCC.

EX-MP Oona King Second black MP, Labour A former school friend of Ed Miliband in Haverstock comp, she was "too cool" to hang around with the future party leader. The 42-year-old's political career was derailed when George Galloway defeated her in Bethnal Green & Bow in 2005. Cast out of Parliament, she was outgunned in a bid to replace Ken Livingstone as Labour's mayoral candidate for 2012. AUTHOR Michael Dobbs Writer of House of Cards, Conservative The creator of fictional prime minister Francis Urquhart learned the darkest arts of politics under Margaret Thatcher. He was an adviser in opposition and an aide at No 10, and as Tory chief of staff in 1986 was known as "the baby-faced hitman". Was his House of Cards trilogy based on real life? You might think that — he couldn't possibly comment. BROADCASTER Joan Bakewell TV and radio broadcaster, Labour Dubbed the Thinking Man's Crumpet, Bakewell made her name in the Sixties as a woman willing to tackle serious issues in the arts, current affairs, religion and ethics.

In 2001 she made waves again with a TV show, called taboo, that studied pornography and four-letter words. Gordon Brown appointed her as his "voice for older people" in 2008. She is 77. TORY Howard Flight MP sacked for indiscreet remarks, Conservative The former banker was a Tory rising star until secretly recorded telling a meeting in 2005 that cuts under the party would be more severe than admitted. Michael Howard fired him and withdrew the whip, but most Tories felt he was unlucky. David Cameron tried to get him a seat for 2010 and his peerage will be viewed as a late apology. DONOR Sir Gulam Noon Food tycoon, Labour The ready-meals giant, dubbed The Curry King, began his career running a sweet stall in Mumbai. A steady donor to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, he has bankrolled Labour to the tune of an estimated £700,000 over a decade. A previous peerage nomination was blocked during the "Lords for Loans" scandal. Noon was questioned by police under caution.

LAWYER Fiona Shackleton Partner, Payne Hicks Beach, Conservative Nicknamed "Steel Magnolia", the divorce solicitor has represented Prince Charles, Prince Andrew and Paul McCartney. In the divorce of Charles and Diana, Diana gained a £17 million settlement, seen as a fair outcome. Shackleton represented the former Beatle in his separation from Heather Mills, who poured a jug of water over her head. DONOR Robert Edmiston Businessman, Conservative The boss of IM, the car importer, made his fortune in the property business. He has given £30 million to Christian Vision, a charity he founded, and helped bankroll Tories with loans and gifts. In 2006 he converted a £2 million loan into a gift. His proposed peerage in 2005 was blocked when police investigated. He was questioned under caution. More about:

Question: Which former cricketer, made a life peer in 2011, was the first woman elected to the full committee of the MCC?
Answer: RACHEL HEYHOE FLINT