On radio during an England women’s cricket match some time back, Alex Hartley’s co-commentator told her that one of her records was going to be broken. “Normally I am in the record books for things like the most expensive bowling figures,” she said. The commentators’ box broke into hearty laughter.
Hartley has indeed made her presence felt on the BBC’s iconic Test Match Special. The former World Cup-winning left-arm spinner also entertains listeners with her popular podcast ‘No Balls’, which she presents alongside her former teammate Kate Cross.
Hartley is, of course, in the headlines these days more for her coaching. She is the spin coach of Multan Sultans in the Pakistan Super League. The franchise’s fast bowling coach is also a woman — Cath Dalton from Ireland; as is the general manager — Hijab Zahid.
The strong female presence in the support staff seems to be working for the Sultans. They qualified for the knockout stage with three games to spare.
Not surprisingly, that was one of the topics Hartley talked about in the latest edition of ‘No Balls’, which went on air just a few days before the International Women’s Day. “It is such a relief actually,” she said. “There was a little bit of criticism around us going into the competition; we got rid of six of our key players and had a revamp in the staff, no Andy Flower. We have the first two female coaches in Pakistan as well as the first female general manager.”
Though she retired as a cricketer last year, at the age of 29, Hartley remains very much part of the game in her different avatars. Excerpts from an interview with The Hindu:
You retired rather young. You played a key role in England’s World Cup win in 2017, but do you think you could have done more?
No, I don’t have any regrets. You know, I tried my hardest for as long as I could. And I feel nice when I look at who has taken my place in the England team.
Sophie Ecclestone, the world’s No. 1 bowler.
She became the world’s best bowler at the age of 20. I did everything I could for that England team, and to get there into that team. And I am very proud of it.
How do you look back at your international career? You made your debut against Pakistan...
My debut was rubbish. I didn’t bowl very well. I have blocked it out of my memory. I didn’t think I would ever play for England again.
But a year later, you were England’s second-highest wicket-taker at the 2017 World Cup. Winning that World Cup must be the high point of your career.
Without a doubt. There isn’t a day that would even come close to that.
And you took India’s most important wicket. It was Harmanpreet Kaur’s first game after her sensational innings in the semifinal against Australia. She was batting on 51 and India was looking pretty good at that time.
But we knew it might rain, so we were trying to stay ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern System. And we were ahead. And I guess, I was very naive in that situation. I just came on to bowl and she hit me for two sixes. The ball I got her out to was probably the worst of the lot. She went for a slog sweep and hit it straight to Tammy Beaumont and that changed the game. India was still ahead of the game, though. You know, India should have won that World Cup.
How did you enjoy commentating on the men’s World Cup in India for the listeners back home and in Australia?
Very much. It was great travelling all over India.
Was radio commentary something you were planning to do?
No. I fell into it, to be honest. It was never something that I thought I would do. I just tried it one day for the Lancashire versus Worcestershire game and then became part of the BBC commentary team. I love it, though I am still not sure whether I will get to do it for the next match.
Your podcast is doing well.
Yes it is doing great. We have been doing it since 2019, I think.
How did the idea take shape?
Somebody literally tweeted me and Kate Cross saying, you should do a podcast. And we thought: Let’s do that, yeah. I had just lost my England contract, so it was, you know, a bit of fun for me to be able to do that. And, yeah, we are still doing it to this day.
How is women’s cricket doing back home in England? The Hundred has done some good to it, hasn’t it?
The women’s game is thriving. You know, it is getting better and better. It is getting bigger and bigger. Yes, The Hundred has really helped. It has been amazing. We have sold-out grounds, having 18,000 or 20,000 people coming to watch the games; among them are so many women and girls. And selling out the Women’s Ashes was unbelievable.
Talking of the Ashes, why do you think the Australian women’s team is so good? They now have one of the all-time great teams in sport.
They are so good because they have been professional for longer than everybody else. You know, their domestic set-up has been pro for a lot longer than ours has. They are the best team in the world and others have to catch up.
Looking back at your own career, who are the cricketers that you enjoyed playing against?
You know, for me, it was always about playing with my friends and against my friends. I am really good friends with Harmanpreet. So, I loved playing against her. I loved being on the same team as her as well. I have also enjoyed playing against Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine.
Devine, like you, has a terrific sense of humour.
Yes, she has. I also like watching Smriti Mandhana. She is unreal, isn’t she? She has got great technique. And Shafali Verma is another Indian cricketer I enjoy watching. A male Indian cricketer I like to watch is Yuzvendra Chahal. He is a lovely bowler. I am a massive RCB fan. He was there for a while before going to Rajasthan.
How do you look at the future of women’s cricket across the globe?
It looks great, with competitions like the WPL, though I believe India should have started it long ago. There were talks about the WPL during the 2017 World Cup. And I would like women’s cricket getting better in countries outside Australia, England and India, the top three. That can be achieved with more money.
