Eliza Doddridge confirmed as the Adelaide Strikers’ 15th and final signing for new season of WBBL

Eliza Doddridge continues her rise up South Australian cricket ranks as the teenager is announced as the 15th and final squad member for the Adelaide Strikers’ squad.

Allrounder Eliza Doddridge loves photographs. So much so that she has hundreds of them — from shots of her school days and her friends, to family and cricket — adorning her bedroom walls.

And now she’s found herself in a frame of a different kind: as a pivotal part of South Australian women’s cricket.

Today, the 19-year-old, will be announced as the 15th and final signing for the Adelaide Strikers’ squad for the fourth season of the Women’s Big Bash League, which starts in Melbourne this weekend.

“It’s a bit overwhelming and I didn’t expect it but obviously I’m excited to see how it all goes and to be involved in it,” she said.

Doddridge, a top-order batter and medium-pace bowler, will add further depth to the Strikers already solid line-up.

Adelaide Strikers new recruit Eliza Doddridge at Adelaide Oval. Picture Sarah Reed

She said this season’s squad had shaped up well with a good mix of local players — including Talia McGrath and Amanda-Jade Wellington — sitting alongside the big-name internationals of Kiwis Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine, England’s Dani Hazell and Australian bowler Megan Schutt — fresh from her T20 World Cup win in the Caribbean.

“I’m just so excited to be involved and can’t wait to learn from all that experience,” she said.

Doddridge, who made her debut for the Scorpions in the WNCL in September and made her maiden half-century in November, said she was convinced head coach Andrea McCauley was playing a joke on her when she was offered a spot with the Strikers.

“I thought Max (McCauley) was joking when she called me to offer me a contract, I just couldn’t believe it,” she said.

The Kensington Browns player has been playing cricket since the age of 10, when her leg spin brother’s private cricket tutor encouraged her to join in.

“I then went out for the state Under 13s team and it took off from there and I’ve really enjoyed myself,” she said.

“I see myself as a batting all-rounder and this season I’ve been working super hard on broadening my shot selection and getting opportunities and seeing what I can do.”

The full squad now is: Suzie Bates (c), Sophie Devine, Megan Schutt, Tahlia McGrath, Alex Price, Sarah Coyte, Ellie Falconer, Amanda-Jade Wellington, Tegan McPharlin (wk), Katelyn Pope, Sam Betts, Dani Hazell, Bridget Patterson, Tabatha Saville and Eliza Doddridge.

The Adelaide Strikers will open their WBBL 04 campaign against the Brisbane Heat at Melbourne’s CitiPower Centre on Sunday, December 2 at 10.10am.

Originally published as Eliza Doddridge confirmed as the Adelaide Strikers’ 15th and final signing for new season of WBBL