How musical theatre helped produce Australian cricket’s brightest young star

Long before she walked out to bat at Lord’s, the SCG, or Adelaide Oval, Phoebe Litchfield strutted the stage of the Orange Civic Theatre in NSW.

In her brief international career thus far, Litchfield has caught the eye as much for her performer’s energy as for a rare batting talent, most recently when she let out an excited cry of “Yay!”, captured on her Seven microphone, after leaping for a vital catch against New Zealand in Brisbane.

Phoebe Litchfield in the family tennis court, aged seven.

In the nets, Litchfield is also known to commentate on her own shots, much to the amusement of national and franchise teammates. From Saturday she promises to play a very watchable part in Australia’s quest for a fourth consecutive T20 world cup title.

The stage presence was sculpted early on. While her cricket-loving father, Andrew, and brother Charles ensured Litchfield’s childhood was replete with miniature Test matches on the backyard tennis court, she gained almost as much out of her mother Catherine’s love of musical theatre.

“I don’t know what it is about the stage, but it was so much fun,” Litchfield said ahead of Australia’s first Twenty20 World Cup game in the UAE. “It was kind of like the thrill you get walking out to bat. I loved doing heaps of extracurricular stuff during school.

“I did all my musicals in primary school and high school just growing up each year, but the other half of my family, my mum and my sister, were into musicals. So I did the musicals in school and then after school I did the cricket. So I was in Oliver, West Side Story, High School Musical ...”

For an admiring Meg Lanning, who captained Litchfield in her first international appearances, the 21-year-old’s sense for the dramatic performance element of top-level sport can only help her to flourish in the public eye.

“I look at Phoebe and she’s just someone who looks like she’s got the goods,” Lanning said. “As a batter or more generally in cricket, you are in the spotlight when you’re performing your skill.

“If you think about it like that, it can be a little bit overwhelming, but if you’re just going out there to enjoy yourself and express yourself then you sort of forget that’s what’s happening. It seems like she’s naturally made to do it and looks very comfortable. I enjoy watching her play; she’s a breath of fresh air.”

When Litchfield debuted for Australia in late 2022, she looked as though she had already been playing international cricket for years. In a way this was true – the battles with Charles were as fierce as any among the myriad backyard tales that have led to the baggy green.

“Sometimes me and my brother would play little Test matches. He was six years older than me, so he’d flog me and I’d be bowling all day, and then probably bat for five balls and he’d get me out,” Litchfield said.

“I played literally every sport on that tennis court. Our dad put a cricket pitch in the corner, so we played cricket for hours on that pitch. I was definitely so lucky to have that, because I reckon my skills were just fast-tracked by the amount of cricket I played there.

“We’d watch the Test in the morning then come out for the lunch break and try to bat like Ricky Ponting or Michael Clarke.”

Fun, of course, will not be ever present over a professional career. Litchfield has had her share of struggles this year, notably after fetching a $182,000 auction fee for the women’s IPL, where she played for Gujarat Giants but finished a long way behind Lanning and Ellyse Perry in the tournament aggregates.

Litchfield notched an ODI century in India in January.Credit: AP

At the World Cup, provided she shakes off a groin niggle, Litchfield will play a pivotal middle order role for the Australians, either capitalising on a strong start or repairing a poor one. Those reverses in India will provide helpful lessons in terms of both technique and mentality.

“It was challenging,” Litchfield said. “At the back of a long season and I probably hadn’t scored as many runs as I wanted in the Australian summer, then heading over there with the price tag on you, you feel a bit of external pressure, and to not score runs in that tournament as well, it was a bit difficult at times.

“I asked Pez the other day, ‘Do you still enjoy training?’, because she’s been training for so long and she’s one of the hardest workers, and she still loves it. And I go like, ‘OK, even though you play this game all year round and the schedule has got so crazy, it’s the love of the game that gets you through.’

“I always just think I could be working a nine-to-five job and I go wow I’m so lucky to travel the world and play cricket. Even though it is so jam packed these days, it’s kind of the life I dreamed of, so I can’t be complaining.”

Litchfield had her eye on the ball from an early age.

Lanning knows a thing or two about finding the right balance in the game, having been thrust into leadership positions when she was Litchfield’s age. She has counselled against pushing too hard, too soon.

“Just trying to not overload yourself early is important,” Lanning said. “Make sure you’re ready to play in the big games and tournaments, and just try to keep enjoying the game as much as you can and not try to take it too seriously too early.

“It looked at times like she was putting a lot of pressure on herself to perform well all the time and have really high expectations. Keeping that perspective is important.

“The one thing I’ve always thought about Pheebs is that she’s respectful but she’s also got confidence. She came into the team not like she already knew everything and wanted to take over, but at the same time she didn’t seem daunted, and I really like that about her.”

To that end, Litchfield has one eye outside the game, studying media production and setting herself the goal of getting into sports documentaries one day. That, by the way, is another element of her Orange days: sitting at home between high school classes and watching season one of The Test.

“The Test documentary was awesome, I loved the way they portrayed that – I was at school still and watching it on the TV at home,” she said. “Drive to Survive and The Last Dance are probably my other favourite ones. Love watching those and the Tillies as well. I’m kinda a fan of all sports really.”

This, too, is a marker of Litchfield’s youth. In the eyes of young fans at the boundary’s edge, she can still see something from the not so distant past – the high schooler at the Orange Civic Theatre with dreams of bigger stages.

“Even signing autographs after the game, I’m like ‘Oh my God, I was literally you not too long ago’,” she said. “A bit of a pinch me moment.”

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