The suitcases have finally been packed away, the passport shoved into a drawer.
At the end of a year in which she has travelled so far, both literally and professionally, Kathryn Bryce is relishing a chance to finally relax and switch off from sport. To an extent at least.
“I’ve still been watching lots of cricket on TV,” admits the Scotland captain, not quite able to completely turn her back on the game even when recharging the batteries.
Heading back home for Christmas has allowed Bryce the chance to reflect on a monumental 12 months that peaked when Scotland were chosen as Team of the Year at the recent Scottish Sports Awards ahead of the Glasgow Warriors rugby squad and Celtic women’s football team.
That was recognition for their history-making achievement in becoming the first Scotland women’s cricket squad to qualify for a major tournament when they earned their place at the T20 World Cup, something many of the senior players – including Bryce and her sister Sarah – had been striving for for years. To then have that success recognised by an audience wider than just traditional cricket circles was quite special.
“It was amazing to get that award and it just topped off the year really,” said Bryce, who was also nominated in the Female Athlete of the Year category, won by triathlete Beth Potter. “It was a good opportunity to reflect on what we have achieved as a team.
“Making it through the qualifier at the start of the summer led us to the year that we’ve had and it was nice to get that recognised from outside of cricket at the awards night.
“Getting to the World Cup was an incredible achievement and it’s good to look back on it again now that we’ve got a bit of time. It took a number of years to finally realise that goal that many of us had been chasing for a long time. We had to play really well at the qualifier to get there – it wasn’t just luck or a formality that we would definitely make it. So it’s definitely worth taking the time to look back and appreciate just how special that moment was.”
The World Cup itself in October was a tough experience, the Scots losing all four group matches against full-member nations. There is lingering frustration there for Bryce but with it a recognition of the jump in standards needed when up against the elite of the game.
The next edition of the T20 World Cup in 2026 will expand from 10 to 12 countries and Bryce hopes Scotland can make it through next year’s qualifier to have another crack.
“It probably wasn’t necessarily our best cricket at times,” concedes the 27-year-old from Edinburgh. “It just shows you what the level is like at the next step up. You have to be fully on it all times if you’re to compete. You don’t get away with any little things. We would have loved to have got one win over the line but a lot of learnings were taken from it.
“We’ve got another qualifier next year for the expanded World Cup in 2026 so we’ve got a real chance of getting back there.”
The first challenge of 2025 will be the tougher prospect of trying to qualify for the 50-over World Cup while there are also plans in place to host a series on home soil at some point later in the year.
Head coach Craig Wallace believes to help grow the game it is vital that his team play in front of their own supporters and Bryce wholeheartedly agrees.
“Any opportunity to play at home would be really exciting,” she adds. “It’s important to let girls who play cricket in Scotland, who maybe watched us on TV at the World Cup, to also come and see us play live. That would be pretty cool.”
Away from Scotland, Bryce has also been busy playing all around the world in franchise cricket. She turned out for the Gujarat Giants in the Women’s Premier League in India, featured for the Hobart Hurricanes in the Women’s Big Bash League in Australia and helped the Blaze win England’s Charlotte Edwards Cup.
The latter also helped her gain recognition as the first non-English winner of the PCA [Professional Cricketers’ Association] Player of the Year award, voted by her colleagues.
“It’s been a fantastic year personally,” she adds. “It’s been pretty non-stop since around March and there’s been a lot going on so it’s nice to have a bit of a breather now to reflect on everything. It’s probably been one of the best years of my career. It will be pretty hard to top this one! And to get the PCA award from my peers was pretty special.”
It is little surprise that she is grateful for a break after everything she has crammed into the last 12 months although cricket is never far from her mind. “I can imagine me and Sarah out in the garden having a hit on Christmas Day, trying to teach the next generation,” she adds with a laugh.
