Ian Read to step down as East Midlands regional director of women's cricket

Read is the second senior figure to step away from Lightning since the end of the 2021 season, following the departure of head coach Rob Taylor in October

Ian Read is to step down as East Midlands regional director of women’s cricket.

Read, who was previously the general manager of Loughborough Lightning during the Kia Super League, was appointed regional director in May 2020 when the women’s domestic game adopted an eight-region structure.

He is the second senior figure to step away from the Lightning set-up since the end of the 2021 season, following the departure of head coach Rob Taylor in October.

As one of eight regional directors involved in women’s domestic cricket, Read’s successor will be responsible for overseeing both Lightning’s senior and academy teams as well as delivering the ECB’s strategies and targets for participation and growth in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

Under Read’s directorship, Lightning finished bottom of the North Group in the 2020 Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy before improving to finish fourth out of eight in 2021. Lightning failed to win a single match in the 2021 Charlotte Edwards Cup.