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Lyn Larsen will never forget the moment she was asked to captain the Australian women's cricket team — although she thinks it may have cost New South Wales a national title.
Key points:
- Former Australian captain Lyn Larsen will be formally inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame today
- Larsen says she feels "sheepish" about the accolade, attributing her success to a great team
- The presentation will happen at the Gabba today during the first day of the men's Test against the West Indies
It was 1986 and Larsen was batting for the NSW team and on track to chase down a target Victoria had set.
The fateful invitation came during a quiet conversation with the president of the Australian Women's Cricket Council in the tea break.
"I was just gobsmacked," Larsen said.
"Of course when I went back out to bat, having done really well [before the break], I think I got out first or second ball."
It was the middle of a successful decade for the Australian women's team, following wins in India and other international competitions.
Larsen, an all-rounder, went on to lead the team to victory in the 1988 World Cup and the first women's five-day Test against England in 1992, among others.
But that day in 1986 was particularly memorable.
"A lot of things aren't clear in my mind, but that moment is very, very clear," Larsen said.
After a public announcement in December, she will today be formally presented with her induction into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame during a presentation at the first day of the men's Test at the Gabba.
Test debut in front of 30,000
Raised near Lismore, northern New South Wales, Larsen managed to have an international cricket career without ever moving away from the family farm.
"Growing up in Lismore for me was always about sport. My dad, my grandparents, we played sport all the time," she said.
After joining the local women's competition in high school, Larsen worked her way through the country championships and state teams.
She went on to play her first match for the Under 23 Australian side against New Zealand.
But the match that stands out was her first Test, played in India.
"That was the greatest experience of my life. I turned 21 in India but there was a young group of us who just embraced all that India had to offer," Larsen said.
"I made my Test debut there in front of probably 30,000 people in Delhi."
She laughed that it was "a world apart from playing in front of nobody here in Australia".
"I think in every tour that we played in, even though it may have been the same group of girls over a few years, it was just that sense of excitement, expectation and pride in knowing we were there to represent our country and hopefully get the wins that we were after," Larsen said.
A changing game
Women's cricket was still very much an "amateur sport" for Larsen and her teammates, who were sometimes billeted when they travelled overseas to compete.
"It's funny when people say you're a pioneer. We didn't think we were pioneers at the time," she said.
"The people who played before us were the pioneers. We thought we were the privileged group who got to play international cricket every year."
At the time, Larsen never dreamt that cricket would progress to the point where women could now make a lucrative income as an elite international player.
"I think we all look at that and say how fantastic that is, but I don't think any of us would probably say we'd want to change what we did, because cricket was something that we loved," she said.
"It wasn't our job and I think there's a difference."
'It doesn't happen without teammates'
After being advised she was to be welcomed into the Hall of Fame, Larsen said she felt a bit "sheepish" about accepting a personal accolade for a team effort.
"This is the icing on the cake. This is the pinnacle as an Australian cricketer, male or female, to be recognised in this way," she said.
"But it doesn't happen without Marie Lee starting the Lismore women's cricket comp … it doesn't happen without my teammates and the success we had."
Looking at the current state of a sport that had given her some of her favourite memories, Larsen said she took her hat off to the work done to elevate the women's game alongside the men's.
"I know there's a whole heap of little girls out there who are watching the telly and wanting to be Beth Mooney or Alyssa Healy or Ellyse Perry," she said.
"In the past girls who had to do that have faced a lot of difficulty having to play with the boys' comp, and it's not always easy to be the only girl in a team and to face some of the comments that were made at the time.
"I think that's easing a lot because there is an acceptance now that it's a game for boys and girls, men and women, and our girls play it very, very well."