WE are intrigued by the story on the sports pages of this newspaper on Wednesday which told of how the decision to make female cricket all-rounder Miss Stephanie Taylor Jamaica’s cricketer of the year had “ruffled feathers” in sections of the cricket fraternity.

No surprise that there would have been objections, since cricket in Jamaica, as in most other places, is male-dominated. Further, local women’s cricket — though seemingly on the rise after a long slump — is hardly noticed.

Of course, the participation of women in cricket is by no means new. Indeed, legend has it that the game evolved from under-arm to over-arm bowling because one lady became frustrated with having her bowling arm repeatedly entangled in the voluminous skirts worn 200 years ago.

In the 1960s and 70s, Jamaica actually boasted a women’s team of considerable strength that would no doubt have rivalled the current aggregation of which Miss Taylor is the best-known name.

A sad aspect of women’s cricket in Jamaica is that for reasons not easily explained, it has not been developed and encouraged in schools. Bear in mind that it is only in very recent decades that women’s football, for example, has taken root in Jamaica. But it is now flourishing in schools.

All that aside though, it is clear that Miss Taylor, who is still only 18, is already among the very best Jamaican female cricketers of all time. We are told that she was “recently catapulted to No 9 on the ICC Women’s rankings batting list and No 5 on the all-rounders’ list”.

Certainly, her success has been central to the rise of the West Indies Women’s team over the past year

or so.

In that regard, this newspaper can’t quarrel with the decision of the adjudicators to make Miss Taylor the cricketer of the year. We say this even while taking into account the fine achievement of Mr Odean Brown, who captured 52 wickets and was the lead performer in Jamaica’s runaway triumph in the four-day regional competition last season.

We suspect the leadership of the Jamaica Cricket Association will recognise the value of Miss Taylor in helping to popularise the game among young Jamaican women and girls.

Hopefully her success will trigger a greater desire among cricket clubs and schools towards women’s cricket.

If that happens, there will inevitably be a positive spinoff for the under-pressure men’s game.

For as is well established, where the women are, the men will follow.