Michaela Kirk

Michaela Louise Kirk (born 30 June 1999) is a South African cricketer who currently plays for Nottinghamshire and The Blaze. She plays as a right-handed batter, right-arm off break bowler and occasional wicket-keeper. Having played for Northerns in South Africa between 2012/13 and 2019/20, in 2021 she moved to England to play cricket there, with ambitions to qualify for the national side.[1][2][3]

Michaela Kirk
Personal information
Full name
Michaela Louise Kirk
Born (1999-06-30) 30 June 1999
Johannesburg, South Africa
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm off break
RoleAll-rounder; occasional wicket-keeper
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2012/13–2019/20Northerns
2021–presentNottinghamshire
2021–presentThe Blaze
2021Trent Rockets
Career statistics
Competition WLA WT20
Matches 59 46
Runs scored 928 601
Batting average 17.84 23.11
100s/50s 0/3 0/1
Top score 58 61*
Balls bowled 1,046 318
Wickets 27 11
Bowling average 22.66 22.36
5 wickets in innings 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 0
Best bowling 4/0 2/5
Catches/stumpings 25/4 17/1
Source: CricketArchive, 17 October 2023

Early life

Kirk was born on 30 June 1999 in Johannesburg.[2] Her grandparents are from Edinburgh, which contributed to her family's decision to move back to England in 2021.[3]

Domestic career

South Africa

Kirk made her debut for Northerns in 2012, against Easterns.[4] In her second season with the side, 2013/14, she took 6 wickets at an average of 7.00 in the Provincial T20 Competition.[5] In 2015/16, she was her side's second-leading run-scorer and second-leading wicket-taker, with 146 runs and 9 wickets (including a best bowling of 4/29).[6][7] In the 2016/17 season, Kirk made her maiden half-century, scoring 52* against Easterns.[8] The following season she achieved her List A best bowling figures, taking 4 wickets for 0 runs in 1.3 overs against Easterns.[9] In 2019/20 she was her side's leading run scorer in both the Provincial League and the Provincial T20, with 140 runs and 127 runs, respectively.[10][11] She has also appeared in the Women's T20 Super League for Duchesses.[2]

England

In 2021, Kirk moved to England, moving in with her grandparents and aiming to qualify to play for the national side.[3] For the 2021 season, she signed to play for Nottinghamshire in the Twenty20 Cup, Lightning in the regional competitions and Trent Rockets in The Hundred.[3]

For Nottinghamshire, she helped them win the East Midlands Group of the Twenty20 Cup and scored 122 runs at an average of 61.00, including hitting 61* on debut against Northamptonshire.[12][13] She made her debut for Lightning on 29 May, against Southern Vipers in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.[14] She went on to play four matches in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, scoring one half-century, 57 made against Sunrisers.[15][16] She also played three matches for the side in the Charlotte Edwards Cup, and three matches for Trent Rockets in The Hundred.[17][18] During The Hundred in 2021, Kirk injured her anterior cruciate ligament, meaning that she missed the rest of the season, and most of the following season.[19] In 2022, therefore, she only appeared in two matches for Lightning, both in September in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.[20]

In 2023, she played one match for Nottinghamshire in the Women's Twenty20 Cup, scoring 49.[21] She played seven matches for The Blaze (the new name for Lightning) that season, with a top score of 40.[22][23]

References
  1. "Player Profile: Michaela Kirk". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  2. "Player Profile: Michaela Kirk". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  3. "Meet Michaela Kirk: The South African starlet hoping to light up the East Midlands". the Cricketer. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  4. "Easterns Women v Northerns Women, 13 October 2012". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  5. "Bowling for Northerns Women/CSA Women's Provincial T20 Competition 2013/14". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  6. "Batting and Fielding for Northerns Women/CSA Women's Provincial League 2015/16". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  7. "Bowling for Northerns Women/CSA Women's Provincial League 2015/16". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  8. "Easterns Women v Northerns Women, 22 October 2016". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  9. "Easterns Women v Northerns Women, 4 April 2018". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  10. "Batting and Fielding for Northerns Women/CSA Women's Provincial League 2019/20". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  11. "Batting and Fielding for Northerns Women/CSA Women's Provincial T20 Competition 2019/20". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  12. "Batting and Fielding for Nottinghamshire Women/ECB Women's Twenty20 Cup 2021". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  13. "Nottinghamshire Women v Northamptonshire Women, 25 April 2021 @ 10:30". CricketArchive. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  14. "Southern Vipers v Lightning, Southampton, May 29 2021, Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  15. "Records/Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 2021 - Lightning/Batting and Bowling Averages". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  16. "Michaela Kirk, Teresa Graves guide Lightning to keep Sunrisers winless". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  17. "Records/Charlotte Edwards Cup, 2021 - Lightning/Batting and Bowling Averages". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  18. "Records/The Hundred Women's Competition, 2021 - Trent Rockets (Women)/Batting and Bowling Averages". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  19. "Courageous Kirk Gunning for Belated Blaze of Career Defining Glory". Trent Bridge. 15 December 2022. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  20. "Records/Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 2022 - Lightning/Batting and Bowling Averages". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  21. "Batting and Fielding for Nottinghamshire Women/Vitality Women's County T20 2023". CricketArchive. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  22. "Records/Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 2023 - The Blaze/Batting and Bowling Averages". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  23. "Records/Charlotte Edwards Cup, 2023 - The Blaze/Batting and Bowling Averages". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.