Women's Test Cricket: History, Milestones, and the Future

The First Women's Test

The first women's Test match was played in December 1934-January 1935, between England and Australia at the Women's Cricket Association's ground in Brisbane. Australia won the match, and women's Test cricket was established — 57 years after the first men's Test in 1877. The Women's Cricket Association (England) had been formed in 1926; Australia's Women's Cricket Association followed in 1931. The early women's Test series was played with the same five-day format as men's Tests, though women's Tests have always been scheduled as 4-day matches in the post-World War II era.

England and Australia are the most traditional women's Test opponents — the 'Women's Ashes' has been contested since 1934 and is one of the oldest sporting rivalries in women's sport. The Women's Ashes has historically included both Test and limited-overs matches, with a multi-format points system determining the overall Ashes holder (similar in structure to the 2005 men's Ashes multi-format series). South Africa and India joined the women's Test circuit in the 1960s and 1970s respectively.

The Decline and Near-Extinction of Women's Tests

Women's Test cricket virtually disappeared between approximately 1997 and 2014. The rise of women's ODI cricket (particularly the ICC Women's World Cup from 1973) and later women's T20I cricket pushed Test cricket off the schedule — boards found it difficult to justify the 4-day Test format that attracted smaller crowds and smaller broadcast audiences than the one-day game. Between 2005 and 2014, only a handful of women's Tests were played globally — all as part of Ashes series or bilateral tours that included Tests as a traditional element.

The decline was also driven by the financial model: women's cricket boards had small budgets, and 4-day Tests were expensive to schedule (venue costs, player payments, support staff) for matches that produced limited revenue. The T20 revolution from 2005-2010 provided a much more commercially viable format for women's cricket — faster, more exciting, attracting more casual fans and shorter broadcast slots.

The Revival from 2014

The revival of women's Test cricket began with England's decision to include a Test in the 2014 Women's Ashes series — a match that attracted significant media attention and positive fan response, particularly in England. The 2014 Women's Ashes Test at Wormsley Cricket Ground was the first women's Test in England for many years and generated strong interest among cricket fans who had not previously followed women's cricket.

Notable Women's Test Performances

Mithali Raj (India) holds multiple women's Test batting records — including the highest run-scorer in women's international cricket across all formats. Her Test batting average of 51.00 across a 22-year international career (1999-2022) is exceptional by any standard. England's Heather Knight and Nat Sciver-Brunt have been the most consistent women's Test performers in the recent revival era. Australia's Ellyse Perry — who averages over 50 in both batting and has a bowling average under 30 — is considered the women's game's closest equivalent to a true all-rounder at Test level.