Cricket fans are divided over small but VERY significant change to Adelaide Oval’s classic scoreboard – can you spot what it is?

• Last manually operated scoreboard at a major Australian venue 
• Has stood without major changes being made since 1911 
• Modification has been made to keep up important modern trend

The iconic Adelaide Oval scoreboard has received a subtle change ahead of the cricket season, with eagle-eyed fans able to see it in action in the final of the Women’s Big Bash League. 

The classic fixture of the ground has been in use since 1911 and is the only manual scoreboard still operating in major Australasian venues to this day.

During that time there have been minimal changes made to the scoreboard, preserving it as a slice of cricket history in Australia.

However, the latest alteration is a sign the ground is moving with the times, with the word ‘Batsman’ being replaced with ‘Batting’.

It not only better aligns the column with the ‘Bowling’ section of the scoreboard, but makes the word gender neutral as the women’s game continues to surge in popularity. 

The classic Adelaide Oval scoreboard featured the word ‘Batsmen’, regardless of whether men or women were playing at the venue

The small change to ‘Batting’ on the Adelaide scoreboard was quietly rolled out during the 2023 WBBL season

The Strikers WBBL franchise calls Adelaide Oval home and will now have a gender neutral scoreboard for their matches

While the change has been welcomed by many, others have questioned why it has taken so long for the update to become reality.

The first women’s match at Adelaide Oval was held in 1949, with the Aussies hosting England in a watershed match that attracted a crowd of 17,025 over three days. 

All-rounder Betty Wilson starred for the home side with a century and nine wickets in the match in a dominant win for the Australians.

Wilson earned the nickname ‘The Female Bradman’ as she scored 862 runs at an average of 57.46 and took 68 wickets in her 11 Test matches for Australia.

The first women’s one-day international at the ground was held in 1996 between Australia and New Zealand, while the two nations also contested the first women’s T20 international at the venue in 2011. 

Aussie all-rounder Betty Wilson was dubbed the ‘female Bradman’ and destroyed England with the bat and ball in the first women’s Test match at the Adelaide Oval in 1949

Tahlia McGrath will lead the Strikers in the WBBL final at the famous ground next month

The first edition of the Women’s Big Bash League launched in 2015–16 with the Adelaide Strikers dividing matches between Karen Rolton Oval and Adelaide Oval. 

‘Fair call I’m surprised it took this long tbh,’ one fan posted.

‘To be honest ‘bowling’ and ‘batsman’ side by side always looked a bit weird,’ added another.

However, some cricket fans were outraged by the subtle change and believe it was made as part of a wider social agenda.

‘If women’s cricket is played there too then fair play. If they’re giving into the world going insane and people identifying as whatever they want, then no. I’m not on board,’ one cricket fan posted.

‘So over the wokeness in Australia,’ added another.

One particularly outraged follower posted: ‘The world has gone insane… What a joke’.

‘Stop giving in to the lunacy,’ replied another commenter.

The Adelaide Strikers finished second on the WBBL ladder and will host the final at Adelaide Oval on December 2.

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