{"id":36713,"date":"2024-10-01T04:02:48","date_gmt":"2024-10-01T08:02:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/sport\/sophie-ecclestone-england-spinner-and-worlds-no-1-bowler-on-her-eccy-alter-ego-her-love-of-pink-and-cricketing-ambitions-cricket-news\/01\/10\/2024\/"},"modified":"2024-10-01T04:02:48","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T08:02:48","slug":"sophie-ecclestone-england-spinner-and-worlds-no-1-bowler-on-her-eccy-alter-ego-her-love-of-pink-and-cricketing-ambitions-cricket-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/sport\/sophie-ecclestone-england-spinner-and-worlds-no-1-bowler-on-her-eccy-alter-ego-her-love-of-pink-and-cricketing-ambitions-cricket-news\/01\/10\/2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Sophie Ecclestone: England spinner and world\u2019s No 1 bowler on her ‘Eccy’ alter ego, her love of pink and cricketing ambitions | Cricket News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Sophie Ecclestone is the world’s No 1 bowler across the both women’s white-ball formats – but, ahead of the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup, what else do we know about the England spinner affectionally nicknamed ‘Eccy’?<\/p>\n

In an exclusive interview as part of the Sky Sports Editions<\/em> series, Ecclestone – a massive Everton fan – reveals it was former England defender and bluenose Phil Jagielka who provided her with her alter ego.<\/p>\n

“At first I hated it, so everyone started calling me it because I hated it,” Ecclestone said.<\/p>\n

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“Eccy is someone enjoys life, loves a bit of shopping, loves her shoes.”<\/p>\n

And pink. ‘Eccy’ – as her Sky Sports Editions<\/em> can attest to – loves the colour pink.<\/p>\n

“If I walk out the hotel and I haven’t got pink on, the girls are always like ‘are you alright?’ she said.<\/p>\n

“I’m not sure where it comes from. When I was younger I was such a tomboy – never get me a dress, I would never have my hair down, would never go near make up or anything like that – but I feel like I just grew up a little bit.”<\/p>\n

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The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 starts this October which you can see on Sky Sports Cricket<\/span>
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Ecclestone’s tomboy roots meant that she was far from fazed when the only girl playing junior cricket at her local club, Alvanley Cricket Club in Helsby, Cheshire.<\/p>\n

Showing her prodigious potential from a young age, Ecclestone was then fast-tracked into the England set up as a teenager, making her international debut in 2016 when only 17.<\/p>\n

“It happened very fast for me,” she admitted. “When I was 16, I used to play cricket to enjoy myself, for a bit of a laugh.”<\/p>\n

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Tammy Beaumont looks ahead to the Women’s T20 World Cup where we may see many upsets!<\/span>
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And, despite now operating at the elite level of the sport, that’s something the now 25-year-old has caried into her England career.<\/p>\n

“I like to enjoy myself,” she said. “It’s best to get a balance. We work hard, so we play hard.<\/p>\n

“When you’re in the limelight, there’s a lot of pressure situations, so the girls and I like to get out as much as we can.”<\/p>\n

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Ecclestone became England’s leading T20 international wicket-taker with her 115th as she dismissed Pakistan’s Muneeba Ali<\/span>
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Striking the right balance, Ecclestone is England’s all-time leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket, her 126 across her 86 caps coming at an average of just 14.65 apiece.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Ecclestone also broke the record for the fastest woman to 100 ODI wickets, the left-arm spinner equalling Australian great Cathryn Fitzpatrick’s 64 matches to the mark but bettering her in terms of number of innings bowled (63).<\/p>\n

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Ecclestone made history when she broke Cathryn Fitzpatrick’s record to become the fastest woman to reach 100 ODI wickets<\/span>
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For all her dominance on the international stage, a trophy with England has so far eluded Eccy, with England’s 50-over World Cup in 2017 coming before she was fully embedded within the team.<\/p>\n

Since, Ecclestone and England have been twice-beaten semi-finalists in the Women’s T20 World Cup and have also finished as runners-up in that tournament (2018) and in the 50-over format when defending their title (2022).<\/p>\n

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Highlights from the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup semi-final as South Africa edged England by six runs to make their first ever final<\/span>
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“We’ve had a few losses in World Cup semi-finals [and finals], and I’ve given myself 24 hours to dwell on it, mope about and be sad about it,” she said.<\/p>\n

“But cricket moves on so fast, you’ve got to move on.”<\/p>\n

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James Cole runs through all the talking points and key players ahead of the ICC Women\u2019s T20 World Cup in United Arab Emirates. Watch live on Sky Sports from Thursday<\/span>
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The first chance to move on comes in the form of another tilt at the T20 World Cup title in the United Arab Emirates this month – with every match live on Sky Sports<\/em><\/strong> – and the ambitious Ecclestone is certainly conscious of the legacy she ultimately leaves in the game.<\/p>\n

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“Playing cricket, I have one of the best jobs in the world – I get to travel and play my sport,” she said.<\/p>\n

“I want to be remembered as someone who had fun, who enjoys it but who also ends up number one in the world when they finish.”<\/p>\n

Eccy is well on her way.<\/p>\n

Sky Sports Editions is a new social-first series that tells the must-know stories of elite sportswomen in a way that is unique to them, as they are given the chance to style and direct their very own cover shoot. Watch on the Sky Sports YouTube channel.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Watch every match of the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup live on Sky Sports<\/em>, starting with the tournament opener between Bangladesh and Scotland on Thursday October 3 in Sharjah and concluding with the final in Dubai on Sunday October 20. Also stream with NOW<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sophie Ecclestone is the world’s No 1 bowler across the both women’s white-ball formats – but, ahead of the 2024 Women’s T20