Following the success of the recent virtual ‘London Championship Race’, which saw Middlesex Women take on Surrey, Essex and Kent in a 30 minute combined team challenge in April and early May, the teams will this month once again lock horns, for a shorter format virtual competition, to emulate the T20 format, which will see each of the county Women’s squads competing over a 2k race distance!
The format is simple, each county names a squad of twelve players, who will be joined by either a member of the coaching team or a nominated ‘celebrity’ runner who will compete for their county. Each of the thirteen runs flat-out for 2 kilometres in the fastest time possible, all times are added together, and the squad with the quickest collective time wins the knockout clash – all monitored and recorded on the Strava running app!
Middlesex Women will open up their campaign with the “Virtual London Cup” this coming weekend over Saturday and Sunday, as they take on London rivals Surrey, who they’ll be looking to secure the virtual double over, having already beaten them in the longer ‘Championship’ format of the competition back in late April.
Simultaneously, rivals Essex Women will be taking on Kent Women in the “Battle for the Bridge” in another ‘T20’ knockout clash, with the winners of this tie then going up against the winners of Middlesex and Surrey the following weekend in a virtual London 2K final. The losers of both semi-final knockout ties will also go head to head next weekend to battle it out for third and fourth place respectively.
For the players involved, this will be a perfect opportunity, in the absence of being able to play any competitive cricket, to add an additional level of competitiveness to their ongoing daily exercise and personal training regimes, with the added incentive of getting one over their close rivals.
Be sure to keep an eye on the players’ and the clubs’ social media channels over the weekend to keep track on Middlesex Women’s progress in the #VL2K, and if form is anything to go by, we’ll hopefully be celebrating another Middlesex ‘London Cup’ victory over Surrey come Monday when the results of the opening ties will be announced.
Speaking of the initiative, Danni Warren, Regional Director of Women’s Cricket for the London and East region and former Head of Middlesex Women’s Cricket, commented:
“Over the last couple of months, I have spoken with a lot of players, both those in the Middlesex squads and from other counties in the region. Despite the frustration that the suspension of cricket as we know it brings all players are eager to pull on their county shirt and compete, in any way possible.
“Everyone is therefore really excited to be able to get involved in the next instalment of this virtual regional challenge, especially after the success of the London Championship earlier in lock down.
“I can guarantee a lot of commitment, competitiveness, and even a bit of fun, over the coming two weekends so keep your eyes on our social media channels.”
2020 LONDON 2K CHALLENGE FIXTURES
Sat 13th/Sun 14th June
Sat 20th/Sun 21st June
