Sapphires, previously known as V Team, were an English women's

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

team that competed in the Super Fours. The squad varied from season to season, but was made up of some of the top players in English cricket. They were captained by various

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

players, such as Clare Taylor, Laura Newton and Heather Knight. They won seven Super Fours titles in their history: three 50-over tournaments and four

Twenty20 Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...

tournaments.

History

2002–2005: V Team

The Super Fours was established in

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

as a way of bridging the gap between women's county cricket and international cricket, bringing together the top players in

. V Team was one of the teams established, and was captained by Clare Taylor. They finished 3rd in the first 50 over tournament that took place, winning 3 out of 6 games. After finished 4th in

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, V Team quickly became a strong side in the Super Fours, winning both the 50 over and the newly-established Twenty20 tournament in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

. They won the Twenty20 tournament again a year later in

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, going unbeaten to top the group.

2006–2013: Sapphires

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

the team was renamed Sapphires and continued their form, winning their second 50 over title, with batter Claire Taylor finishing the season as leading run-scorer. They claimed another 50 over title in

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, as well as two more Twenty20 titles, in

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

and

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

. Sapphires therefore ended the Super Fours as the most successful side, with 7 titles.

History

2002–2005: V Team

2006–2013: Sapphires

Seasons

Super Fours

Super Fours Twenty20

References