Ashleigh Gardner has many traits on the cricket subject worthy of admiration. She is considered one of the premier all-rounders in the ladies’s sport, and tends to step up for Australia on the large events. She is a menacing middle-order batter able to taking the sport away from the opposition along with her shot-making. She can also be an off-spinner of reputation, all the time having a wicket or two up her sleeve.
In the third version of the Women’s Premier League (WPL), the 27-year-old from Sydney can also be the captain of Gujarat Giants and entrusted with the activity of reviving the team after it completed backside in 2023 and 2024. She is main from the entrance on this pursuit, her tally of 213 runs in six matches, together with three fifties, coming at a blistering strike fee of 165.11. In an interview with The Hindu on Tuesday, Gardner spoke about main the franchise, her kind and why New Zealand’s triumph in final yr’s T20 World Cup is sweet for the ladies’s sport. Excerpts:
You have been a part of all three WPL seasons. Has the consolation issue with taking part in in India elevated? And additionally, how have you ever seen WPL’s progress over these three years?
Yeah, taking part in in India is clearly going to be very completely different to what most internationals are used to. But happily for me, taking part in in my third version of the WPL, but additionally touring right here loads for Australia, I’ve obtained used to the circumstances. Obviously, in T20 cricket, they’re going to be fairly conducive for batting.
But on this version of the WPL, there’s been somewhat bit in it for the bowlers as properly, which has been thrilling as a result of usually it’s all the time one-sided. So it retains everybody . I feel the method that the WPL has been this yr, it’s most likely been the most even it’s been in all of the editions which have occurred. So yeah, it’s been actually thrilling to be concerned in it.
In phrases of the enhancements going ahead, do you see something that may change?
Yeah, I feel the league is clearly actually good. There’s loads of nice home expertise. I feel that’s most likely the space that’s going to maintain bettering. We’re seeing gamers from every team create a reputation for themselves. It’s thrilling to see these younger gamers actually shine on the largest stage.
Once the growth of these home gamers retains bettering, we’ll see it’s considered one of the greatest franchise leagues in the world. Not being biased, but I feel Australia is type of main the method nonetheless simply due to the home set-up that we’ve obtained.
Gujarat Giants received just one out of the first 4 video games. Having completed backside in the final two seasons, was there a sense of, oh no, right here we go once more? With two straight wins, the team is now second in the desk…
The first two WPL seasons most likely didn’t go the method we might have deliberate. I feel we had some improbable gamers inside the set-up. But I feel taking a look at the gamers that we’ve this time round, it simply has a distinct really feel about it. Whether that comes again from the workers that we’ve obtained right here and simply the setting that we’ve tried to create.
Everyone appears to be actually having fun with themselves. And I feel in the end when folks are having fun with themselves and having enjoyable, that does convey success. Being in a position to reset earlier than every sport, I feel that’s additionally held us in fairly good stead, realizing that every opponent might be crushed. I feel, yeah, we’ve obtained clearly two fairly difficult video games coming as much as hopefully make the remaining. But we’re actually entering into an upwards course, which is thrilling.
For a very long time, you’ve been considered as a possible future captain for Australia as properly. Is that one thing you are eager on? And how can this expertise enable you to, possibly, in case you do get that likelihood in the future?
Yeah, I feel captaining any team, it’s all the time going to assist your management over time. But yeah, I used to be actually not aspiring to develop into captain whereas beginning my profession.
If that chance ever got here up, in fact, I’d go together with it and know that it’s a improbable problem. But for me, it’s having the ability to be the greatest participant that I might be after which in the end creating success for the team. And whether or not that’s main a team or not, I really feel like I’m all the time going to be a pacesetter ultimately, whether or not it’s with the batters or with the bowlers, simply having the ability to use my voice once I can.
You have performed beneath completely different captains for Australia like Meg Lanning and Alyssa Healy. Have you drawn from them in any method?
I really feel like captaincy goes a protracted method to (is an extension of) your persona. Everyone’s obtained completely different strategies to the method they wish to captain and I hope that I’m type of taking my very own method on it. Yeah, you’ll be able to actually take issues from these two. But hopefully, I’m simply leaning into what my strengths are as an individual and having the ability to actually relish in that as properly.
In phrases of your performances with the bat, you’re having an excellent WPL season. Probably final season didn’t go the method you’d have appreciated. Did you make any modifications coming into this version?
Last yr, clearly, there’s no hiding behind the proven fact that I didn’t carry out for my team, which at occasions can get actually irritating. Especially being an abroad participant, there’s all the time that expectation that you simply are going to carry out. And I actually wasn’t as much as normal final yr. But I’m now taking part in with confidence, which is usually all that issues. I used to be in a position to come off a reasonably good Ashes marketing campaign with bat and ball and simply take the confidence out of that going into this event. I’m hopefully in a position to carry out for my team once I can.
Australia accomplished a clear sweep in the current multi-format Ashes sequence in opposition to England. How pleasing was that on the complete? You additionally scored your first century for Australia throughout the sequence…
Team success is all the time one thing that drives me the most. Personal accolades are nice, but like I’ve mentioned many occasions earlier than, if I can put my team in a profitable place, whether or not it’s with bat and ball or in the subject, that’s what drives me. And I suppose what retains me going is to make it possible for I’m performing for my team and hopefully profitable video games for Australia.
So to win that sequence 16-0 was one thing that we by no means thought we had been most likely going to have the ability to do at the begin. But to play the greatest cricket that we had for a really very long time was actually pleasing to see.
Ashleigh Gardner celebrates after taking the wicket of Smriti Mandhana throughout the Women’s Premier League match between Gujarat Giants and Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
| Photo Credit:
AFP
You are considered one of the greatest all-rounders in the world. How a lot of a problem is it to make sure each abilities are all the time as much as scratch?
Being an all-rounder might be difficult at occasions. But I suppose the one luxurious that we’ve is usually once you don’t bat that properly, you can also make up for it with the ball. So, I can all the time have an effect on the sport in all three sides. Making positive that I’m additionally placing sufficient time into each abilities has all the time been essential to me. But extra so most likely over the previous couple of years, ensuring that I’m spending sufficient time on each. I additionally attempt to be the greatest fielder I might be.
The ODI World Cup is in India later this yr. How do you view Australia’s possibilities of retaining the title?
Our possibilities are actually good. I nonetheless suppose we’re the greatest team in the world, there’s most likely no denying that. But we’re going to be challenged all through that World Cup, taking part in in several circumstances. We’ve clearly performed a lot cricket right here in India, so we do have the expertise. I feel considered one of our strengths is that we are able to adapt to all circumstances, so we’ve to ensure we do that basically rapidly.
New Zealand received the T20 World Cup only a few months in the past. You would clearly like Australia to win each time, but how useful is it for the ladies’s sport that there are completely different winners and extra competitors?
Yeah, it’s actually pleasing for various nations to do properly in these large tournaments. For New Zealand to have the ability to win a World Cup, it’s big for them. I’m positive that it’s going to develop the sport in New Zealand as properly. Ultimately what we wish to do as cricketers is to develop the sport globally and make it possible for we’re actually inspiring different nations round the world to hopefully have extra assets and extra accessibility.
You’ve had the alternative of taking a look at plenty of expertise in India. Anyone who’s impressed you this season?
There are loads of gamers. You simply need to look inside our facet. Someone like Kashvee (Gautam), who was injured final yr and didn’t get the likelihood to play. But each likelihood that she’s obtained to carry out, she has. She’s bowled brilliantly for us. There are folks like Priya (Mishra) as properly. It’s superior to see these younger gamers having the ability to carry out on the largest stage.
Published – March 04, 2025 11:44 pm IST
