If the Federal Government had put a republic referendum to the Australian people at the conclusion of the infamous Ashes Test series of 1932–33, it may well have been successful. Marion Stell’s magnificent new book, The Bodyline Fix, transports readers to the aftermath of this controversial series, when relations between the two teams were fraying, and fans and media roiled with fury at the unsportsmanlike conduct on display. Sensible heads proposed a women’s Test cricket series to prove that notions of fair play were deeply imbued in the women’s cricket clubs and associations that dotted Australia at this time. The inaugural national women’s team, selected for this pioneering Test series in 1934–35 against the ‘old foe’ very quickly brought the exceptional skills and talent of Australian women into sharp focus. Indeed, as the media documented at the time, respect for the women grew exponentially over the initial tour, and carried over into the reciprocal tour of 1937.

Garnered from now decades-old interviews, Stell’s profiles of the cricketers and their experiences make this book thoroughly entertaining to read, and she particularly excels in highlighting the huge obstacles that the Depression brought. Indeed, reading about the teenaged spin queen Peggy Antonio’s exceptional bowling figures (she regularly took fifers – that’s a five-wicket haul) blew my mind.

It’s really disappointing to learn that with the outbreak of the Second World War, these Test series were abandoned, and that the achievements of these women to restore and reframe the Australia vs England cricket narrative were largely forgotten. Stell has done a brilliant job of restoring players such as bowlers Peggy Antonio, Mollie ‘the Demon’ Flaherty, Anne Palmer and Nell McLarty, and batters Ruby Monaghan, Hazel Pritchard and Nancy Clements to their rightful place in cricket history. This is a remarkable book, well worth reading!