…Shafali Verma?

We need answers.

TBF Ged I haven’t heard anyone read out SLA or OS or LS or RMF or LF as “slah” or “oss” or “Les” or “rumph” or “liff” so I’m not sure pronounceability is a KPI for bowling abbreviations. I do think there’s a preference for TLAs (for two possible definitions of “T”) over FLAs though.

SLAWS works well as a single-syllable acronym for slow left arm wrist spin. It avoids the five syllables required to use the letter W in the abbreviation SLW and the un-woke three-syllable nickname for the delivery from centuries gone by.

The traditional SLC isn’t very PC. But SLU works rather well IMO. Definitely prefer SLU to SLW. Hate W in abbreviations/acronyms because it’s usually more long-winded to say double-u than whatever it is that the W was standing for (hence commentators often saying “LB” for “LBW” etc).

What’s the left arm wrist spin abbreviation?

Very much like the idea of a scroll of fame. That’s definitely how these things should be logged.

She holds the record, uniquely, of having both taken the first ever Test five-for and scored the first ever Test hundred.

It spawned a verse that given the form of the men’s team might well be applicable in the next few days, especially if England wrap up the win against India tomorrow:

What matter that we lost, mere nervy men
Since England’s women now play England’s game,
Wherefore Immortal Wisden, take your pen
And write MACLAGAN on the scroll of fame.

More likely when playing against the Aussies a foul-mouthed opponent referred to her as “Tart”.

I can also imagine, in similar mode to a well-known story about Vic Richardson’s response to Douglas Jardine’s complaint about being called a bastard, one of the Aussie women asking: “which one of you tarts called this tart a tart?”.

I imagine when an Australian captain (if she ever played for one) wanted her to bowl, they would do so by asking ‘cherry, Bakewell?’