EARLY YEARS
Tell us about your first success in your sport?
I was six years old when I first played cricket, at an after-school club. There was only one other girl, so it was me and her in a group of about 50 boys. But I loved it.
Then when I joined Knowle & Dorridge Cricket Club, I was the only girl. It wasn’t until I was nine years old that I played for a girls’ team, when I joined Warwickshire County Cricket Club. I’ve just always loved all of it, running in and bowling and trying to give it a whack.
GRASSROOTS
What would you say to someone thinking about trying your sport?
Give it a go! Find your local club and get playing. The great thing about cricket is there’s something for everyone. You can bat and whack it, you can bowl and just try and bowl it as fast as you can or spin it, or you can just run around in the field. Cricket is a really inclusive and fun game, all you need is a bat and a ball.
What do you wish you’d known when you first started out?
It’s not something I wish I’d known, but when I first played as a child, cricket wasn’t professional for women. It’s such a better situation now, and I think it does help more girls get into cricket because when the set-up is more professional it’s more attractive to want to get involved.
What initiatives are happening to get people into your sport?
There are so many ways to start playing cricket, All Stars and Dynamos are the big ones, but you can always find your local club and go from there. There’s also Indoor Cricket, and Disability Cricket – including Table Cricket. You can also play Softball Cricket if you don’t want to use a hard ball. There’s lots of options.
HEROES
Which sportspeople do you admire now, and why?
There are loads of sports people I admire, but I’m a huge fan of Liverpool FC so I’m going to have to say either Virgil van Dijk or Jurgen Klopp. I get to Anfield as often as I can, and they’ve both brought me a lot of joy. I think when you’re at the very top of your game and you continue to give everything to get better, that says a lot about the type of athlete you are. I respect that a lot.
TRAINING
How often do you train?
It depends on which part of the season we’re in. We train less when the season is in full flow, and we have games to prepare for, but generally speaking it’s about three to four times a week.
Describe a typical training session
There’s lots of different things to do. We may start in the gym, or with a mobility session or something specific to our strength and conditioning. We may have a meeting. For example, if we’re playing games we’ll have meetings about how the opposition play and what we need to be prepared for. Then – when you think about it – there’s batting, bowling and fielding to think about. I do all three, so we may have net practice – which just means batters v bowlers in a controlled environment. You may just want volume, i.e. to hit lots of balls, or you may be looking for specific technical work with a coach.
What is your favourite training session/exercise/drill?
I like to try and practice my yorkers. I like when it’s competitive.
Best piece of advice from your coach?
Don’t be the best, be the only.
Which part of your body suffers the most in your sport?
It depends how you perform your skill. Batters and bowlers tend to wear themselves down in different places. For a fast bowler like me, areas like the back, the side, the knee and the ankle tend to be the areas we have to think about protecting the most.
What’s the toughest thing about being an athlete?
Accepting that it isn’t always your day.
What’s the hardest part/skill in your sport to master?
Yorkers.
