Sophia Dunkley

Sophia Ivy Rose Dunkley (born 16 July 1998) is an English cricketer who plays for Surrey, South East Stars, Welsh Fire, Gujarat Giants, Melbourne Stars and England.[1] A right-handed batter and right-arm leg break bowler, she made her county debut in 2012 for Middlesex and her England debut in 2018, against Bangladesh at the 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20.[2][3][4] In 2020, she left Middlesex to join Surrey.[5] In June 2021, Dunkley was awarded her first central contract with the England women's cricket team.[6] In the same month, she made her Test debut, becoming the first black woman to play Test cricket for England.[7]

Sophia Dunkley
Dunkley at Wankhede Stadium in 2023
Dunkley at Wankhede Stadium in 2023
Personal information
Full name
Sophia Ivy Rose Dunkley
Born (1998-07-16) 16 July 1998
Lambeth, London, England
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm leg break
RoleAll-rounder
International information
National side
Test debut (cap 161)16 June 2021 v India
Last Test22 June 2023 v Australia
ODI debut (cap 135)27 June 2021 v India
Last ODI18 July 2023 v Australia
T20I debut (cap 45)12 November 2018 v Bangladesh
Last T20I8 July 2023 v Australia
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2012–2019Middlesex
2016–2018Surrey Stars
2019Lancashire Thunder
2020–presentSurrey
2020–presentSouth East Stars
2021–2022Southern Brave
2022Trailblazers
2023–presentGujarat Giants
2023–presentWelsh Fire
2023/24–presentMelbourne Stars
Career statistics
Competition WTest WODI WT20I WLA
Matches 4 31 47 79
Runs scored 177 769 740 2,020
Batting average 35.40 28.48 24.66 33.11
100s/50s 0/1 1/5 0/3 5/12
Top score 74* 107 61* 138
Balls bowled 18 3 24 1,869
Wickets 0 1 1 55
Bowling average – 1.00 13.00 19.41
5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 0 0 0
Best bowling – 1/1 1/6 4/7
Catches/stumpings 0/– 3/– 11/– 30/–
Source: CricketArchive, 19 July 2023

Early life and education

Dunkley was born on 16 July 1998 in Lambeth, Greater London.[1] She was raised in north London.[8] As she explained to The Guardian in 2018, she was introduced to cricket by a neighbour:[8]

"He was one of my best friends growing up. We used to live in a cul-de-sac so we were able to play outside. We both joined a club together, a boys' club, and it just stemmed from there."

Initially, she played at Finchley Cricket Club, where she made her way through the youth pathways. Then she joined Middlesex. She attended Mill Hill School, which awarded her with a sports scholarship.[8] At Mill Hill, she played for the first XI with the boys,[8] and was the first girl ever to do so.[9] After leaving school, she studied sports science at Loughborough University.[8][10]

Domestic career

Dunkley made her debut for Middlesex in 2012 in a Twenty20 Cup match against Sussex, making two runs and bowling two overs for no wicket.[11] She played regularly for Middlesex over the following seasons, as well as taking part in various England Development Programmes.[12] Over time, Dunkley became one of Middlesex's strongest performers, winning the club's Player of the Year award in 2017 and 2019.[5] She hit two centuries in the 2019 Women's County Championship, and ended the season as the tournament's leading run-scorer, with 451 runs.[13] In February 2020, it was announced that she was leaving Middlesex to join Surrey.[5]

Dunkley also played in every season of the Women's Cricket Super League, from 2016 to 2018 for Surrey Stars and in 2019 for Lancashire Thunder.[1] Dunkley's best season for the Stars came in 2018, as she took 6 wickets at an average of 24.00 and scored 98 runs, including scoring 66 against Southern Vipers.[14][15] Dunkley also took one wicket in the tournament final against Loughborough Lightning, as Surrey Stars claimed their first title.[16]

Dunkley joined Lancashire Thunder for the 2019 season, but made little impact as the side finished bottom of the points table.[17] In 2020, Dunkley played two games for the South East Stars in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, and scored a "hard-hitting" 97 in her second match against Sunrisers to set up her side's first victory of the competition.[18]

In 2021, she was drafted by Southern Brave for the inaugural season of The Hundred.[19] In April 2022, she was bought by the Southern Brave for the 2022 season of The Hundred.[20]

International career

In October 2018, Dunkley was named in England's squad for their upcoming 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20 campaign.[3] She made her international debut in England's second game of the tournament, against Bangladesh, but did not bat or bowl.[4] Dunkley played the rest of England's games in the tournament, as they progressed all the way to the final before losing to Australia.[21] She top scored with 35 in England's loss to the West Indies, but otherwise had little opportunity to contribute with either bat or ball.[22][21]

In February 2019, Dunkley was named as part of the squad for England's tours of India and Sri Lanka.[23] She picked up her first international wicket in the 2nd Twenty20 against Sri Lanka, and overall played five matches on the tour.[24][21]

After being omitted from England squads for the rest of 2019 and early 2020, on 18 June 2020 Dunkley was named in a squad of 24 players to begin training ahead of international women's fixtures starting in England following the COVID-19 pandemic.[25][26] She subsequently played two T20Is against the West Indies, and was at the crease in the final T20 as England secured their 5-0 victory.[27][21]

In February 2021, Dunkley was named in England's squad for their tour of New Zealand.[28] She played all three T20Is on the tour, and scored 26 to help England reach a competitive total in the final match of the series.[29][30] In June 2021, Dunkley was named in England's Test squad for their one-off match against India.[31][32] Dunkley made her Test debut on 16 June 2021, for England against India.[33] Later the same month, Dunkley was also named in England's Women's One Day International (WODI) squad, also for their series against India.[34] Dunkley made her WODI debut for England, against India, on 27 June 2021.[35] In the following match, she scored her first half-century in WODIs.[36]

In December 2021, Dunkley was named in England's squad for their tour to Australia to contest the Women's Ashes.[37] In February 2022, she was named in England's team for the 2022 Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.[38] In July 2022, in the second match against South Africa, Dunkley scored her first century in a WODI match, with 107 runs.[39] Later the same month, she was named in England's team for the cricket tournament at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.[40]

References
  1. "Sophia Dunkley". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  2. "Sophia Dunkley List of T20 Matches". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  3. "England name Women's World T20 squad". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
  4. "7th Match, Group A (D/N), ICC Women's World T20 at Gros Islet, Nov 12 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  5. "SOPHIA DUNKLEY LEAVES MIDDLESEX AFTER A DECADE". Middlesex Cricket. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  6. "Sophia Dunkley replaces Kirstie Gordon in England Women's central contracts list". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  7. Sportstar, Team (16 June 2021). "Sophia Dunkley first black woman to play Test cricket for England". Sportstar. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  8. Nicholson, Raf (20 July 2018). "Sophia Dunkley: ready to use Women's Super League to claim England spot". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  9. Staff writer (1 July 2014). "Cricketing History Made at Mill Hill". Mill Hill School. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  10. "Students and alumnae named in Women's World Twenty20 squad". Loughborough University. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  11. "Middlesex Women v Sussex Women, 30 July 2012". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  12. "Sophia Dunkley Profile". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  13. "Batting and Fielding in Royal London Women's One-Day Cup 2019 (Ordered by Runs)". CricketArchive. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  14. "Surrey Stars Bowling Kia Super League 2018". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  15. "Southern Vipers v Surrey Stars, 1st Match, Kia Super League 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  16. "Loughborough Lightning v Surrey Stars, Final, Kia Super League 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  17. "Kia Super League 2019/Points Table". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  18. "Sophia Dunkley 97 sees South East Stars to maiden victory". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  19. "The Hundred 2021 - full squad lists". BBC Sport. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  20. "The Hundred 2022: latest squads as Draft picks revealed". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  21. "Sophia Dunkley List of T20I Matches". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  22. "19th Match, Group A (D/N), ICC Women's World T20 at Gros Islet, Nov 18 2018". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  23. "England Women name squads for India and Sri Lanka". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  24. "2nd T20I, England Women in Sri Lanka 2018/19 at Colombo, Mar 26 2019". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  25. "England Women confirm back to training plans". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  26. "England Women return to training with September tri-series on the cards". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  27. "5th T20I, West Indies Women tour of England 2020 at Derby, Sep 30 2020". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  28. "England Women squad named for New Zealand tour". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  29. "Records/England Women in New Zealand T20I Series 2020/21". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
  30. "England complete 3-0 sweep as New Zealand crumble for 96". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
  31. "Emily Arlott earns call-up to England Women Test squad". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  32. "Emily Arlott earns maiden call-up as England announce squad for India Test". Women's CricZone. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  33. "Only Test, Bristol, Jun 16 - 19 2021, India Women tour of England". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  34. "England Women announce ODI squad to face India". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  35. "1st ODI, Bristol, Jun 27 2021, India Women tour of England". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  36. "Sophia Dunkley hits maiden ODI fifty as England avoid scare to win second ODI against India". Sky Sports. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  37. "Heather Knight vows to 'fight fire with fire' during Women's Ashes". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  38. "Charlie Dean, Emma Lamb in England's ODI World Cup squad". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  39. "England v South Africa: Sophia Dunkley ton leads hosts to convincing win in second ODI". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  40. "Alice Capsey named in England's Commonwealth Games squad, Tammy Beaumont omitted". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 15 July 2022.

Further reading

Media related to Sophia Dunkley at Wikimedia Commons

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