A Day With: Southern Stars' Ellyse Perry

Denzil Pinto 11:13 07/07/2016
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  • Super-woman: Ellyse Perry.

    Since making her international debut in 2007 as a 16-year-old, the youngest Australian to play senior cricket, there’s been no looking back for Ellyse Perry.

    Nine years on from that ODI in Darwin, the all-rounder boasts an impressive CV, winning four World Cups (one 50-over crown and three World Twenty20 titles) with Australia as well as four five-wicket hauls.

    Possessing great bowling pace and a vision to score crucial runs as well, she is now a considered an important player for club and country.

    The 25-year-old caught up with Sport360 during Sydney Sixers’ preseason tour to the UAE and spoke of her career with Australia so far, how she’s looking forward to playing in the Women’s Super League in England later this month and her targets before she eventually retires.

    The inaugural Women’s Super League in England gets under way later this month. You’re set to line up for Loughborough Lightning on Saturday, July 30. How are you looking forward to testing yourself against some of England’s best players and what can you learn from this stint?

    It really is another fantastic step for the game in terms of developing women’s cricket. To have more professional tournaments around the world is fantastic as it helps you learn the conditions of different wickets. It also helps us to play against people who we wouldn’t usually play against in the international arena. I’m really looking forward to this opportunity and want to play my part in making it a successful tournament.

    That isn’t the only women’s professional league. The Big Bash League was launched last year by Cricket Australia. What do you think the advantages are of this tournament?

    It can only be good news. It’s created an incredible platform for us, not just for us women cricketers but for the growth of the sport. It’s given the girls a visible pathway of how to progress in cricket. Hopefully, this competition means that more girls can get hooked on the game and take up the sport.

    Also it provides us with countless opportunities to develop our skills and knowledge because we are playing against the best players around the world including international players.

    Australia’s standout Southern Star Harmanpreet Bhullar has become the first Indian cricketer that will play in the Women’s Big Bash League this season. There’s been a lot of talk that more Indian players will join her. Can you see more of them playing in the Big Bash League?

    Yes, absolutely. I think the more cricketers that play, the better it is. The Indians are a strong team with fantastic players. It’s wonderful that the BCCI have made them available and I’m sure a lot of the players will be picked up. It will be a great opportunity for them to play in a very exciting and strong tournament away from India.

    You have been part of the Sydney Sixers squad for their inaugural pre-season tour to the UAE. From a player’s perspective, is it important to begin these preparations early?

    Any opportunity to go away and spend some time together is really valuable. It gives us a few months to plan for the season ahead when the Women’s Big Bash League begins in December, and improve any techniques that we need to work on.

    What do you think makes Sydney Sixers stand out from the other sides you’ve played in?

    Basic Info:

    • Born: 3 November 1990
    • Football caps: 18 (3 goals)
    • Cricket caps: 142 (all formats)
    • 1x Cricket World Cup win, 3x World T20

    I think we’ve been really lucky in terms of developing a fun and enjoyable culture within the group. The big part of what we really want to do is to play really attractive and aggressive cricket and make it enjoyable for our fans. Every single person in this squad is committed to that and I think we have to play a big role in attracting more girls to play the sport.

    You’ve had quite a memorable international career, despite being just 25-years-old. How do you look back at your time with Australia?

    I have thoroughly enjoyed my time so far and certainly feel very fortunate to be given a chance to play a sport that I love. Playing World Cups and winning four of them has been really special. I think now more than ever, it is a really exciting time to be involved because we are now full-time cricketers.

    That is a great initiative by Cricket Australia and it will send out a message to the other girls out there, that you can be rewarded if you play at the highest level.

    Overall, to play for Australia for the last nine years has been remarkable. What would you say your career highlight has been so far?

    I’ve been fortunate to represent my country many times and that is certainly a big highlight. But winning World Cups and the Ashes series – those are the kind of successes that you share as a team. It’s those memories that are really great and something you usually don’t ever forget. As well as playing cricket, you’ve also represented the Australian football team at the 2011 FIFA World Cup.

    How do you find the time to combine both sports in your schedule?

    I’ve been doing this for a number of years so now I’m just used to it. These are just two sports that I love playing and I’ve had the easy job of training and playing.

    To have the support of both associations is really nice. I think the way the sports are progressing and becoming more professional, means that the players need to be more committed. I don’t know whether I’ll play football again but I’ve had a really awesome ride so far so I’ll just see where it goes.

    What targets do you want to achieve before you retire?

    As long as I retire having enjoyed my time and feeling satisfied that’s all that matters. I don’t have any specific target but obviously achieving success is important and hopefully I can become a big cricketing figure in the women’s game for a number of years.

    Which ex-cricketer would you have liked to play against and why?

    I never got the chance to play against Cathryn Fitzpatrick and she used to be a former coach of the Australia national team. It would have been quite nice to have faced her in the nets and matches because I learnt a lot from her.

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