KAPUNDA cricketing export Darcie Brown has made history after becoming the youngest player – male or female – to sign a contract with Big Bash Twenty20 cricket team the Adelaide Strikers this past week.
The 16-year-old fast bowler, whose deliveries have been clocked at 116 km/h – making her one of the quickest young tearaways in South Australia – has signed a three-year deal, completing the squad for the upcoming Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) season.
Brown, should she debut for the side during the competition – now in its fifth year – will line-up alongside international stars such as New Zealand duo Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates, and Australian talent Megan Schutt.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for Darcie to join our group – she’s just an exceptionally exciting young talent and just for her to mix with the calibre of players we’ve got both from an overseas point of view and our locals, will be great for her development,” Strikers head coach Luke Williams said.
“Raw pace is obviously Darcie’s main attribute and she is certainly learning more and more around the tactics of the game and using different variations.
“Her key strength is to bowl fast, so we would be encouraging her whenever she gets the opportunity to play to do just that.
“That’s going to be her point of difference in the competition.”
Currently in year 11, Brown moved from Kapunda to Adelaide to complete her education at Henley High earlier this year, with the school offering highly-regarded sports programs.
Earlier in 2019, she was selected for the Australian under 19 side at just 15 years of age, travelling to New Zealand to play a series against the Kiwis’ development squad.
The Strikers begin their WBBL campaign at Karen Rolton Oval on October 19 and 20.