Bulletin’s Big Q&A with Gold Coast Dolphins and Southern Stars fast bowler Delissa Kimmince
SHE has been given the chance to help the Southern Stars retain the Women’s Ashes on this month’s tour of England. And after 11 years on the international scene, Gold Coast Dolphins star Delissa Kimmince knows it could be her last.
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SHE has been given the chance to help the Southern Stars retain the Women’s Ashes on this month’s tour of England.
And after 11 years on the international scene, Gold Coast Dolphins star Delissa Kimmince knows it could be her last.
Q. Tell us a little bit about how your cricket journey started out?
A. I grew up out in Warwick so that’s where all my junior cricket started. I’d always played Have A Go Cricket, which is In2Cricket now, but the moments that stick out for me are that my older brother played junior cricket and they were often short of players so I would often fill in and field for his team. We were really lucky back home that we had a guy that started up junior girls’ training on a Saturday morning. From there I wanted more and I started playing with the under-12 and under-14 boys and it just went from there. I always wanted to be better than the boys.
Q. How does the pathway for girls’ cricket now compare to back then?
A. I was getting picked in junior boys’ teams but wasn’t really able to go anywhere purely because there was no female manager or coach. I was lucky there was a guy (in Toowoomba) who gave my name to Queensland Cricket. I got invited down and I’ve just been in the system ever since.
Q. Having come through that period, what’s it like to see where female cricket is at now?
A. I think it’s great for the game and I’m in a very fortunate position that whilst it might be in the back end of my career, I’ve had an opportunity to be a professional cricketer and growing up that’s what you dreamt about doing. It’s great for these young girls coming through that there’s something they can look up to and a program that, if they’re good enough, they can be part of full-time and live out those childhood dreams that they no doubt would’ve had growing up.
Q. So you had those dreams of playing for Australia as a girl as well?
A. Back in 2005, Karen Rolton scored a hundred in the World Cup final and as a kid I had this little whiteboard and had written on it that one day I’ll play cricket for Australia and score a one-day century just like Rolly did. I had dated it and signed off on it. You always dream of those things but you never think you’ll get there. I’ve been very, very lucky to be able to do what I do.
Q. So how does a girl from Warwick end up playing club cricket for the Gold Coast Dolphins?
A. I used to play for Beenleigh-Logan when they had a women’s side but then their men’s side folded, which basically meant they didn’t have a club so we had to move on. Our group of girls went to Ipswich for a year but didn’t really like what they provided I guess. We’d heard good things about the Gold Coast and the good things Garry (Lovett, coach) was doing there with the group of girls he had so then as a group we all just decided we would go to the Gold Coast and we’ve been there ever since. We’ve been there (since the 2013-14 season) and it’s definitely not a decision any of us have regretted. Gaz has done a great job with the girls and it’s been good to just be able to turn up to club cricket and not have to chase players. It takes a lot of stress off us and I know there’s a lot of girls in club cricket that have to help the club in that capacity but we are very lucky with Garry with how much he does.
Q. Is club cricket for you now as much about guiding the young players as personal success?
A. You always want to go back to club cricket and do well – it’s a perfect training facility for us – but I guess the bigger picture is that club cricket isn’t really about us anymore. It’s about developing those younger girls and helping them out. I know they’re inspired by what we do so if we can give back to them (I will). We’re only there in small doses these days with how much we’re away but for me I never second guess (playing). If I’m here on a weekend, I’m always there and available.
Q. Who are the players you really enjoy lining up with, either on the Coast or otherwise?
A. Sammy-Jo (Johnson) is one of my good mates in the (Dolphins and Heat) team, so is Jemma Barsby, Laura Harris, Grace Harris (at the Heat). I get along with everyone but (those four) are my little go-to girls in the group and people I relax with. There’s something special with Sammy, we’ve got that Coast connection and similar career stories.
Q. What was it like to win the Women’s Big Bash League with that group last season?
A. Even now, when anyone brings it up, it’s hard to wipe the smile off my face. We were lucky to fall into some momentum at such a crucial point in time in that tournament. That last round against the Sydney Thunder, chasing 170, that was a massive boost for that team. T20 is a momentum game and we hit momentum that round and that really helped when we got into the semi final. I said to Scotty Prestwidge, ‘I reckon if we win the semi we will win the final’. I just had that vibe around the group that we’d found some belief somewhere along the line that we were actually good enough and we could actually do it. To finally win something, and I know we have choked a number of times when it comes to the WNCL, (was special). I know a lot of people didn’t rate us to get our hands on that trophy but to fight the way we did and come away with the win was unbelievable.
Q. Where does that WBBL success rank among your career highlights?
A. I’ve had this question a few times. Obviously winning the World Cup only a couple of months before in the West Indies is pretty hard to beat. There’s worse places to celebrate a tournament like that. The different thing with the Big Bash is we did it with the group of girls we train day in, day out with. They see the good times and the bad times, they’re with you for all of the hard running sessions that you think you can’t get through. I think that’s what made it more special, that it was with those girls you train with every day.
Q. Where do you feel like you’re at with your cricket now? Is it the peak of your powers?
A. I definitely think in terms of Aussie stuff this is probably my last real crack at it. It’s my third time so third time lucky hopefully. I’m a realist and know that the older you get, you have to be right on top of your game if you want to stay in it. I don’t look too far ahead. I just go out there now and just try to enjoy playing, not putting too much pressure on myself. I think in my younger years that was my downfall – every time I made it into that arena, there was a lot of pressure I put on myself and I didn’t really enjoy it. So I’ve found being that little bit older and more experienced, if I go out there and be relaxed and have fun I’m likely to play better.
Q. You’ve never played a Test. Is that something you’re still hopeful of achieving?
A. Obviously to play in an Ashes Test would be amazing but I think realistically for me at the moment that’s probably not the format I would get picked for. I know that I need to be good in the formats that I’m playing, which is the shorter formats, so there’d have to be a lot of things go wrong for me to get a call up (for a Test) but you never know. Stranger things have happened. I think whenever you get to walk out onto the field in those colours, regardless of whether it’s in a Baggy Green or not, it’s still such an awesome experience and an honour to go and do that.
Q. You also had a one-season AFLW stint with the Brisbane Lions in 2017. How was that?
A. It’s funny to be a part of two different sports. To be part of both (the Lions and Brisbane Heat) in their first year of competitions was a pretty cool experience. Footy was the break that I needed to freshen up. I could feel myself sort of drifting with cricket a little bit and I’ve already had a love-hate relationship with cricket earlier in my career. I could feel myself drifting off on that same path. I just knew I had to go and do something else to take my mind off it and refresh and I was very fortunate that the Lions gave me that opportunity. While I only played one game, I love the physical side of AFL and I’m very lucky they gave me the opportunity and I could be a part of it.
Q. Could you see yourself going back to play amateur footy when cricket is finished?
A. I’d love to say yes but I’ve seen too many people do their ACLs (anterior cruciate ligaments) and I think I’m at that point in my life where I don’t need to do my ACL. When I’m mid-30s I don’t need 12 months’ rehab. I don’t know what I’ll do, to be honest. I’ll do something but I don’t think I’ll go back to footy. I love the thought of it but then that sort of scares me a little bit. I think I’ll just play something more social, something I don’t have to commit a lot of time to. I often think now I’ve never really had Saturdays and Sundays, it’s very rare that we get both days off.
DELISSA KIMMINCE FACT FILE
Age: 30
Born: Warwick
Lives: Ipswich
Role: fast bowler, lower-order batter
Club: Gold Coast Dolphins
Major teams: Brisbane Heat, Queensland Fire, Southern Stars
Career highlights:
■ One-Day International debut vs New Zealand, March 2008
■ T20 International debut vs India, October 2008
■ Won 2018-19 WBBL with Brisbane
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