Alana King
King playing for WA in September 2022
King playing for Western Australia in 2022
Personal information
Full name
Alana Maria King
Born (1995-11-22) 22 November 1995 (age 28)
Clarinda, Victoria, Australia
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm leg break
RoleAll-rounder
International information
National side
Test debut (cap 181)27 January 2022 v England
Last Test21 December 2023 v England
ODI debut (cap 147)3 February 2022 v England
Last ODI7 February 2024 v South Africa
T20I debut (cap 57)20 January 2022 v England
Last T20I18 February 2023 v South Africa
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2015/16–2020/21Melbourne Stars
2016/17–2019/20Victoria
2020/21–presentWestern Australia
2021/22–presentPerth Scorchers
2022Supernovas
2022–presentTrent Rockets
Career statistics
Competition WLA WT20
Matches 29 68
Runs scored 250 280
Batting average 17.85 12.17
100s/50s 0/0 0/0
Top score 32 27
Balls bowled 1,107 1,153
Wickets 35 54
Bowling average 23.48 25.33
5 wickets in innings 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 0
Best bowling 4/20 4/11
Catches/stumpings 15/– 22/–
Medal record
Women's cricket
Representing  Australia
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2022 Birmingham
World Cup
Winner 2022 New Zealand
T20 World Cup
Winner 2023 South Africa
Source: CricketArchive, 22 June 2023

Alana Maria King (born 22 November 1995) is an Australian international cricketer. She also plays domestic cricket for Western Australia in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) and the Perth Scorchers in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL).[1][2] An all-rounder, she bowls right-arm leg spin and bats right-handed.[3] She previously played for Victoria and Melbourne Stars.[4][5]

Early life

King was born in Clarinda, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria. She is of Anglo-Indian descent, her parents both having emigrated from Chennai (the capital of Tamil Nadu, India) to Melbourne.[6][7][8] King followed her brother's footsteps by pursuing an interest in cricket after trying out different sports such as tennis, softball and baseball. Tennis was her first sport of choice as she took up the tennis racquet at the age of five and competed in the Tennis Victoria Pennant which was the largest tennis inter-club representative competition in Australia.[9] She also served as a ball kid during the women's singles final of the 2011 Australian Open.[10] She also had a brief stint with her school softball team and also turned up for Monash University Baseball Club.[9]

Domestic career

King bowling for Victoria in September 2018
King bowling for Victoria in 2018

King was handed her first rookie contract at the age of 16 in 2012 with VicSpirit in the Women's National Cricket League and three years later down the line, she bagged a surprise call-up to Melbourne Stars for the inaugural edition of the WBBL in 2015–2016 season. She leapfrogged into the senior Victoria squad in 2016.[9]

She also had a successful 2021–22 Women's Big Bash League season by emerging as the joint fifth highest wicket-taker in the season with 16 scalps.[11][12]

In April 2022, King was bought by the Trent Rockets for the 2022 season of The Hundred in England.[13] On 13 August 2022, during a group stage match between Trent Rockets and Manchester Originals, she claimed a hat-trick against Manchester Originals and became the first woman to take a hat-trick in The Hundred.[14][15][16][17]

In the same month, during a group stage match between Oval Invincibles and Trent Rockets at the 2022 Hundred edition, King achieved a unique feat by delivering 10 consecutive dot balls to become the first player to achieve the milestone in the history of The Hundred.[18]

International career

In April 2019, Cricket Australia awarded her with a contract with the National Performance Squad ahead of the 2019–20 season.[19][20]

In January 2022, King was named in Australia's squad for their series against England to contest the Women's Ashes.[21] She was included in Ashes squad as replacement to injured Georgia Wareham and Sophie Molineux but she was picked up in the squad over Amanda-Jade Wellington as a surprise package with selectors opted to leave out Amanda-Jade Wellington in order to allow her play for Australia A team.[22][23] She made her Women's Twenty20 International (WT20I) debut on 20 January 2022, for Australia against England.[24] Later the same month, she was named in Australia's team for the 2022 Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.[25][26]

She made her Women's Test match debut on 27 January 2022, for Australia against England in the one-off Women's Ashes Test.[27] She made her Women's One Day International (WODI) debut on 3 February 2022, also for Australia against England in the Women's Ashes.[28] Therefore, she earned her first cap in all three formats of international cricket in the space of fourteen days.[29] In April 2022, she received her first contract with Cricket Australia after her splendid performances with the ball throughout the cricket summer.[30]

She was the second highest wicket-taker for Australia during the successful 2022 World Cup campaign for the Aussies as she picked up 12 wickets in the tournament at 24.50 in nine matches including a spell of 3 for 64 against England in the all important final.[31][32] She was also the fourth joint highest wicket-taker during the tournament in what is considered to be a career defining performance for her which would later make her first-choice player in the Australian team.[33]

In May 2022, King was named in Australia's team for the cricket tournament at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.[34]

In January 2023, King was named in the Australian team for the 2023 Women's T20 World cup.[35]

References

  1. ^ "Western Australia". WACA. Cricket Network. Archived from the original on 25 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  2. ^ "Players". Perth Scorchers. Cricket Network. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Alana King". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  4. ^ Amy, Paul (4 May 2016). "Come in spinner: Prahran's Alana King snares Victorian contract". Stonnington Leader. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  5. ^ "Meet our ambassador, Alana King". Maddie Riewolt's Vision website. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  6. ^ Burnett, Adam (5 June 2019). "King of the world: Ace leggie dreams big". cricket.com.au. Cricket Australia. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  7. ^ "Get to know Australian spin queen Alana King". ICC Cricket. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  8. ^ Nagi, Priya (23 May 2022). "King of the world: Indian-origin leg-spinner Alana returns to roots to play Women's T20 Challenge". India Today. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  9. ^ a b c "Alana King is on the fast track to becoming an idol". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Alana, the Queen of Kings". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  11. ^ "Women's Big Bash League, 2021/22 Cricket Team Records & Stats". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  12. ^ "Alana King's move west pays dividends with gains on and off the field". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  13. ^ "The Hundred 2022: latest squads as Draft picks revealed". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  14. ^ "Hat-trick hero Alana King banishes Birmingham agony in Manchester". The Indian Express. 14 August 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  15. ^ "The Hundred: Alana King becomes first woman to take hat-trick in competition as Trent Rockets beat Manchester Originals". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 September 2022.[permanent dead link]
  16. ^ "Alana King takes first ever hat-trick in women's Hundred!". SkySports. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  17. ^ "Alana King hat-trick sees Trent Rockets past Manchester Originals in low-scorer". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  18. ^ "Alana King spins her way to history at The Hundred". ABC News. 17 August 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  19. ^ "Georgia Wareham handed first full Cricket Australia contract". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  20. ^ "Georgia Wareham included in Australia's 2019-20 contracts list". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  21. ^ "Alana King beats Amanda-Jade Wellington to place in Australia's Ashes squad". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  22. ^ "Australia name uncapped Alana King in women's Ashes squad". The Guardian. Australian Associated Press. 11 January 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  23. ^ Ballal, Juili (12 January 2022). "Why was Alana King picked over Amanda Jade Wellington for Ashes 2021-22?". Female Cricket. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  24. ^ "1st T20I (N), Adelaide, Jan 20 2022, Women's Ashes". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  25. ^ "Wellington, Harris return in Australia's World Cup squad". Cricket Australia. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  26. ^ "Australia's spin queen Alana King: 'I want to do something different'. Megan Maurice". The Guardian. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  27. ^ "Only Test, Canberra, Jan 27 - 30 2022, Women's Ashes". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  28. ^ "1st ODI, Canberra, Feb 3 2022, Women's Ashes". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  29. ^ "Has anyone won their first caps in all three formats quicker than Alana King?". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  30. ^ "Alana King awarded Cricket Australia contract, Sophie Molineux misses out". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  31. ^ "Full Scorecard of AUS Women vs ENG Women Final 2021/22 - Score Report". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  32. ^ "Five first-timers who impressed at the World Cup". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  33. ^ "ICC Women's World Cup, 2021/22 Cricket Team Records & Stats". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  34. ^ "Aussies unchanged in quest for Comm Games gold". Cricket Australia. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  35. ^ "Australia drop selection bombshell for T20 World Cup". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 29 March 2023.

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