Where do we even start with Sydney Sixers’ all-rounder Ellyse Perry? Well, let’s begin with what her fans think of her…
“A true champion!”
“The very best sportsperson this country has ever produced…”
“I knew I named my daughter after you for a good reason…”
Perry upon scoring her double-century in the Women’s Ashes in November.
What you may already know about 24-year-old Perry is that she made her international sports debut for not one, but two sports (cricket and soccer) when she was just 16 years old.
Perhaps you also didn’t know that in 2017 alone, she made history with her record-breaking double-century in last year’s Women’s Ashes Test again England and was named the International Cricket Council’s Rachael Cricketer of the Year.
Not only that, but she was also dubbed Australia’s most marketable athlete – a testament to her multiple ambassadorships with brands including Priceline and adidas.
But scrape the surface of this boundary-beating WBBL star and you’ll see that Perry is the kind of role model young Australian girls need now more than ever.
And she’s not just a run-smashing bats(wo)man; Perry is also right-arm, medium-fast wicket-taker, too.
And the proof is in her words of sporting wisdom in encouraging the next generation of female sportstars to dream, believe and achiever their goals.
“There’s no better time than now to be involved in sport as a female, whether that’s as a player or as an official or an administrator,” she tells us.
“It’s just about making that first initial step and once you’re involved, it’s really easy to go from there. Don’t be afraid to sign up; I think a lot of people want to see girls and women achieve wonderful things in sport.”
Here’s what else you may not know about Perry…
She is quite possibly the most chill/humble elite athlete out there
You know how sometimes in this (sometimes-male-chauvinistic) society we live in, women pursuing success are pitted against each other (looking at you, Lisa Wilkinson and Carrie Bickmore)? Perry is having none of it; she is the first to acknowledge the success of her team(s) over her own accomplishments.
“You’re all working towards a common goal – to be successful – and it’s nice to be able to share all the different experiences, whether they’re highs or lows, with your teammates,” she says.
“I think that’s one of the great virtues of team sports.”
Perry, with Meg Lanning, is all about team work.
She moon(well, day)lights as a coffee critic – and has the Instagram account to prove it
Perry, along with her husband, rugby union player Matt Toomua, spill the beans on what the get up to when they’re both not training and, y’know, just casually dominating the Australian sporting scene.
“I don’t shy away from coffee shops, that’s for sure!”
You’ll catch Perry and Toomua food-gramming their caffeine-loaded adventures at @bean.there on Instagram.
She’s a latte-glass-full kind of woman in sport
Yes, Cricket Australia have enabled female cricketers’ dreams to come true in paying their sh-elite athletes full-time salaries so they can develop and improve their skills, however, the sporting world still has a long way to go…
“There are so many more improvements we can make for women in sport, and a lot of that revolves around making women’s cricket bigger and better,” Perry says.
“More broadcasted matches. Bigger crowds. More interest in the game. There’s a long way to go and a lot more scope for improvement, which is really… exciting!”
Want to catch Ellyse smashing sixer and taking wickets? Catch a WBBL game by visiting www.cricket.com.au for match details.
