FOUR players in the South West’s Western Storm Superleague side last summer have been named in the first ever International Cricket Council’s Women’s Team of the Year.

Western Storm are a joint venture between Gloucestershire and Somerset county cricket clubs and the University of Exeter.

The team is made up of the leading global players of 2016 and is captained by Stafanie Taylor, who helped the West Indies to their maiden ICC World Twenty20 and also impressed for the Western Storm in the Kia Superleague.

Three other Storm players feature in the XI. They are England skipper Heather Knight, England vice captain Anya Shrubsole plus New Zealand wicket-keeper Rachel Priest.

The side was selected by a panel consisting of Australia great Mel Jones, former England Captain Clare Connor and former India player Shubhangi Kulkarni, based on performances between 14 September 2015 and 20 September 2016.

Following the announcement of the team Western Storm general manager Lisa Pagett said: “It’s fantastic to see the announcement of the ICC Women’s Team of the Year and find so many of our Storm girls recognised. “We know from the team’s achievements this summer that we have top quality players in Heather, Anya, Stafanie and Rachel and it’s fantastic that they have been identified globally as the world-class cricketers they are.

“All four players are brilliant role models and it’s fantastic for both Western Storm and women’s cricket in the South West that we’ve had these players demonstrating their calibre in the 2016 Kia Superleague season”.