To the casual observer, cricket may seem to be merely a gentleman’s game, but it has still witnessed the presence of the top female players at different times. Numerous female cricketers have left the sport and its long and glorious history their indelible marks.
In this article, we are going to explore the Best 10 women cricketers of all time.
1. Rachael Heyhoe Flint – England
Rachael was a key figure in the international cricket scene as she was the responsible one for changing the game both on and off the pitch. She captained the England women’s team for almost 11 years – from 1966 to 1977.
One day, under her guidance, England won the very first Women’s World Cup in 1973, long before the Men’s one took place. Rachael retired from the international circuit in 1982 and enjoyed a cricketing career of over 20 years.
Read Also:- Women’s Cricket World Cup Winners List 1973 to 2025
2. Charlotte Edwards – England
Rachael had immediately Edwards also be the captain of the England team almost for a decade from 2006 until 2016. She made her international debut at just 16 years old, facing New Zealand in 1996.
Edwards had the career every batter dreams of with a total of 5992 runs in 191 ODIs, 2605 runs in 95 matches, and 1676 runs in 23 Tests. In this process, she also scored 13 international centuries – nine in ODI and four in Tests.
3. Mithali Raj – India
Mithali Raj takes the crown of the best woman cricketer India has ever had in its pack. Over a 23-year-long career, she created multiple records in the international arena.
Mithali was the captain during the two World Cups final matches that India was a part of, which made her the only captain in Indian cricket history, male or female, to do so. She is the only female player who has scored more than 10,000 runs in international cricket.
Mithali concluded her incredible career with 7805 runs in ODIs from 232 matches, 2364 in T20s from 89 matches, and 699 runs in 10 Tests with eight centuries – seven in ODIs and one in Tests.
4. Ellyse Perry – Australia
Ellyse Perry undoubtedly is one among the best all-rounders the cricket world has ever seen. In the beginning, she was playing cricket and football simultaneously and on top of that became the first woman ever to represent Australia in two different World Cups – the Cricket World Cup and the Football World Cup.
Perry is one of the rare female cricketers who have achieved the double of scoring 1000 runs and taking 100 wickets in the ODI. Since the time when she played her first match, she has been Australia’s ODI World Cup winning team member thrice, T20I World Cup winning team six times, and also won the gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2022.
5. Meg Lanning – Australia
Meg Lanning is one of the best women’s captains without a doubt who has made it possible for Australia to lift the Women’s ODI World Cup trophy in 2022 and four Women’s T20I World Cup titles.
Lanning’s great captaincy apart, her batting has been nothing short of a hallmark. She scored more than 8352 runs in all formats combined and has a total of 17 international centuries to her credit.
6. Jhulan Goswami – India
Jhulan Goswami, the quickest of all time among women bowlers, has been a lot of times award winner while still being one of the best. She played a major role in the changing of the image of women’s cricket in India and also inspired a lot of little girls to play the sport.
During her two-decade-long career, she amassed 255 wickets in ODIs, 56 in T20Is, and 44 in Test matches. In 2022, Goswami retired from international cricket as the leading wicket-taker in women’s cricket with a total of 355 wickets to her name.
7. Cathryn Fitzpatrick – Australia
For more than 16 years, Cathryn Fitzpatrick was the nightmare of women’s batters, thanks to her mesmerizing pace. She bowled so well that her run-giving rate was just 1.91 in Tests and 3.01 in ODIs which were not easily achievable by the others.
Fitzpatrick in 2005 became the pioneer of the female cricketers’ world to bowl and take the match-winning wickers of 150 in ODI format. She finally retired with a total of 240 international wickets – 180 in ODIs and 60 in T20Is.
8. Sarah Taylor – England
On the other hand, Sarah Taylor was not only the best wicketkeeper but also the most discussed one due to her amazing skills behind the stumps. Her wicketkeeping was equally proportionate to her batting, and she was the undisputed star for England in limited-overs cricket.
Taylor is one of the three female wicketkeepers who have crossed the milestone of 2000 runs and 100 stumpings combined in their playing careers. At the retirement of her cricket playing days she was a holder of 6533 runs in her 13-year career.
9. Debbie Hockley – New Zealand
Not only did Debbie Hockley become the first woman cricketer to score 4000 runs in ODIs and play 100 ODIs, but she also had an incredible 21-year career that showcased her longevity with a final tally of 5365 runs and eight centuries.
Hockley was part of the New Zealand women’s team that celebrated their first-ever ODI World Cup championship in 2000.
10. Belinda Clark – Australia
Under the able leadership of Belinda Clark, Australia’s former captain brought fame to her country with lots of trophies. She led her team to the World Cup victories of 1997 and 2005.
Belinda’s batting skills were the mainstay of her team and she scored a total of 5767 runs in her career. She was the holder of the record for the maximum individual scorer (229*) in ODIs for nearly 20 years until it was broken by Amelia Kerr, who scored 232* in 2018.
