Izzy Patel: The Product of a Successful Girls Cricket Set Up

Izzy Patel is Gloucestershire through and through. A proud product of Frenchay Cricket Club, Bristol, Patel in now honing her craft in Tier Two while also remaining part of Somerset’s Academy programme.

Photo Credit: Gloucestershire CCC

Patel’s cricket origins stem back to Frenchay, just off the M32 in North Bristol. It was Jim Donaldson who played a significant part in her early days, even helping her to become a mascot in the 2015 Ashes for Charlotte Edwards’ England. It seems that both Jim and Frenchay remain incredibly important to 20-year-old Izzy.

“I was really lucky, especially at Frenchay. The girls set up was probably one of the bigger ones growing up and they definitely expanded,” she explained.

“It was so supportive and especially with the boys, I was really lucky to play with some really good friends of mine who I'm still friends with. The standard was alright, but we ended up playing boys leagues and we were the first girls team to win boys leagues.”

“It really gave me the kick start and I think that's a big thing that decides whether the girls keep going or not. The men around us, they were brilliant and they were really inclusive. They still support me now, they still follow all my games.”

While many girls drop out of sport during their early teens, Patel was thriving at both club and county level. After being put forward for county trials aged eight, the all-rounder worked her way through the Gloucestershire pathway, reaching the Western Storm Academy (the then RTC for the Southwest and Wales).

“It was really cool when you have Dani Gibson training next to you and I'm bowling at her in the nets. I was really fortunate that once I got into the Academy, I got exposed to the senior group quite early on being alongside all of them,” Patel said.

“I had Lauren Filer bowling pace [at me], I think it really chucked me in the deep end but I learned a lot of things quite quick. I also made a lot of mistakes at the start but that's how you learn quick, I guess. It pushed me to levels I hadn't been exposed to before.”

In September 2023, Izzy made her senior debut for Western Storm at Old Trafford. In the same month, she began her degree at Exeter University, studying Sports and Medical Sciences. Training at a hub, based on her university campus, Patel was able to balance her first year of university with training.

However, in came Project Darwin at the start of her second year and threw a spanner in the works. “I think for me, if I got the chance, I always wanted to get back to my roots, to go back to Gloucestershire,” Patel explained. Being left in the dark across the season and with three counties from the region bidding for a Tier 1 side, a return to Gloucestershire was by no means guaranteed. Ultimately, Patel’s home county secured Tier Two status, enabling her to gain valuable game time experience while also being involved in Somerset’s Academy to develop further.

Logistics-wise, however, it hasn’t been as ideal. “Both counties support me so well, whatever I can make they cater for and especially because I'm down in Exeter for university, Somerset’s the closer commute and technically it's the high level so they kind of have more say over where I go and what I do,” Izzy said.

“If I was in Bristol, [Gloucestershire] they're happy for me to be at that training too, but predominantly I was training at Somerset over the winter.”

Izzy’s commitment to the game cannot be questioned, revealing that she captains her university team too. “There's been a lot of matches, last week playing for three different teams. I was in Yorkshire, Birmingham, Watford and then Bristol and Exeter within five days and I had an exam Friday morning after all of that as well. That one was too much!,” she laughed.

“It's been hard and especially with uni I love my team and I'm so committed to it. It's something that I hold highly and it's something where I want to be there for the girls and for myself because I love it so much.”

Max Waller coaches the Exeter University Women’s Cricket Team, the side consecutive Indoor Champions and BUCS National Championship Finalists 2024 where they had the opportunity to play at Lord’s.

“It was insane. Unfortunately, we didn't show up on the day, really. We are such a better team than what we showed last year but it was insane and we had such a great day out.”

“The standard is so varied. A lot of us are at different levels of cricket, some teams can have two or three amazing players and then some people that haven't necessarily been exposed to a lot of cricket before.”

“We’re coming across teams like that and then in the semis and finals are playing Durham and Loughborough who are stacked with players, it's a bit of a shock for us and then it's harder to switch on and perform.”

“I guess a lot of people that are at that level, at our age might just be full time pros or just rookies trying to make it full time. They don't necessarily go to university so it's definitely very varied, but our team's brilliant and we have a really good setup.”

BUCS semi-finals are on the horizon, a minor fixture to fit into Izzy’s packed summer. While Gloucestershire’s season has got off to a slow start, there are plenty of opportunities this season for Patel to stand out as she dons a number of different shirts.