England’s best female cricketers are set to pit their skills against each other in a series of Twenty20 and 50-over matches at the National Cricket Performance Centre (NCPC) in Loughborough.
The competition, known as the Super 3s, showcases the top players in the country, who have been evenly allocated into three teams by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) women’s selection panel.
The action gets underway this Saturday with a T20 tournament, and will be followed by a round-robin of 50-over matches on May 17, May 31 and June 7.
England Women captain Charlotte Edwards, and vice-captain Jenny Gunn, will lead two of the teams with 2013 Women’s Ashes player of the series, Heather Knight, taking charge of the third side.
All of the players involved will be hoping to catch the eye of the selectors as they bid to secure their place in the England Women’s squad to take on India in a one-off Test and three Royal London one-day internationals in August, and South Africa in a three-match NatWest Twenty20 International series in September.
Commenting about the competition, ECB Head of England Women’s Cricket, Clare Connor, said: “The Super 3s competition bridges the gap between county and international cricket, bringing together the best female cricketers in the country to enable them to stake a claim for a place in the England Women’s squad for the summer internationals.
“The competition has evolved since its inception in 2002 and it is a fantastic opportunity for the players to test their skills in a highly-competitive environment.
"It is also a great way for the England Women’s selectors to judge how the players react under pressure and compare against each other.
“Over the years the competition has been very effective in unearthing fresh new talent, with the likes of Natasha Farrant and Natalie Sciver being the most recent examples of players who have performed well in Super 3s and as a result been called up to the England Women’s team.
“I wish all of the players involved the best of luck for this weekend, and for the remainder of the competition.”