Charlotte Marie Edwards (born 17 December 1979) is an English former

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er and current cricket coach and commentator. She played primarily as a right-handed batter. She appeared in 23 Test matches, 191

One Day Internationals A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World Cu ...

and 95

Twenty20 Internationals A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces a maximum of twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are the ...

for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

between 1996 and 2016. She played domestic cricket in England for

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

and

Southern Vipers The Southern Vipers are a women's cricket team that represent the South of England. The Vipers wear an orange and black kit and play their home matches at the Ageas Bowl and the County Cricket Ground, Hove. They are currently coached by former ...

, as well as overseas for

Northern Districts The Northern Districts men's cricket team are one of six New Zealand first-class cricket teams that make up New Zealand Cricket. They are based in the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand (excluding Auckland). They compete in the ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Perth Scorchers The Perth Scorchers is an Australian domestic Twenty20 franchise cricket team representing the Western Australian city of Perth in the Big Bash League (BBL). The Scorchers are the current BBL Champions, having defeated the Sydney Sixers in the ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

and

Adelaide Strikers The Adelaide Strikers are an Australian professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team based in Adelaide, South Australia that compete in the Big Bash League (BBL).Cricket Australia (n.d), Teams and Players, Cricket Australia, accessed 1 Decembe ...

. Edwards is considered one of the most significant figures in women's cricket. At the time of her international debut in 1996, in a Test match against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, she was the youngest woman to play for England. In 1997, the day before her 18th birthday, she scored what remains the highest score for an English player in a Women's One Day International (WODI), scoring 173 * against

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. She has the second most appearances in Women's Test matches, and the most appearances for England in WODIs. She is also England's second-leading run-scorer in Women's Test matches, and all-time leading run-scorer in both WODIs and Women's Twenty20 Internationals (WT20Is). She was named

ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year The International Cricket Council (ICC) Women's Cricketer of the Year (known as the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Award since 2017 in memory of pioneering women's cricket player and administrator Rachael Heyhoe Flint) is an award given annually as part ...

in 2008, and PCA Women's Player of the Year and a

Wisden Cricketer of the Year The ''Wisden'' Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season". The award began in 1889 with the naming ...

in 2014. She was awarded an

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

in 2009 and a CBE in 2014. In 2022, she was inducted into the

ICC Cricket Hall of Fame The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame recognises "the achievements of the legends of the game from cricket's long and illustrious history". It was launched by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in Dubai on 2 January 2009, in association with the Fed ...

. Edwards first captained England in 2005, and was appointed as captain of the national side permanently in 2006, following the retirement of

Clare Connor Clare Joanne Connor (born 1 September 1976) is an English former cricketer who batted right-handed and bowled slow left arm spin. She held the presidency of Marylebone Cricket Club from 2021 until 2022. She made her England One Day Internati ...

. England went on to win the

2009 Women's Cricket World Cup The 2009 Women's Cricket World Cup was the ninth edition of the Women's Cricket World Cup, held in Australia from 7 to 22 March 2009. England won the tournament, beating New Zealand in the final to claim their third World Cup title. England batte ...

, the

2009 ICC Women's World Twenty20 The 2009 ICC Women's World Twenty20 was the inaugural ICC Women's World Twenty20 competition, taking place in England from 11 to 21 June 2009. All group stage matches were played at the County Ground in Taunton, with the semi-finals held at Tre ...

and three outright Ashes series under her leadership. She remained captain of the side until the side's exit from the

2016 ICC Women's World Twenty20 The 2016 ICC Women's World Twenty20 was the fifth edition of the ICC Women's World Twenty20, the world championship of women's Twenty20 International cricket. India hosted the event for the first time, with matches played from 15 March to 3 Ap ...

, after which she was told she was not part of the side's future plans: she subsequently retired from international cricket. She continued playing domestic cricket for Hampshire and Southern Vipers before announcing her retirement from all cricket in September 2017, playing her final match in June 2018 for Hampshire. Following her playing career, she became Director of Women's Cricket at Hampshire in 2018. She became Head Coach of her former team Southern Vipers in 2020, and led them to the first two Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy titles. She also coaches

Southern Brave Southern Brave is a franchise 100-ball cricket side based in the city of Southampton. The team represents the historic counties of Hampshire and Sussex in the newly founded The Hundred competition, which took place for the first time during ...

in The Hundred and

Sydney Sixers The Sydney Sixers are an Australian professional franchise men's cricket team, competing in Australia's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition, the Big Bash League (BBL). Along with the Sydney Thunder, the Sixers are the successors of the New ...

in the

Women's Big Bash League The Women's Big Bash League (known as the WBBL and, for sponsorship reasons, the Weber WBBL) is the Australian women's domestic Twenty20 cricket competition. The WBBL replaced the Australian Women's Twenty20 Cup, which ran from the 2007–08 ...

. In 2021, the new English domestic women's Twenty20 competition, the

Charlotte Edwards Cup The Charlotte Edwards Cup, initially named the Women's Regional T20, is an English women's cricket Twenty20 domestic competition organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board. The first edition of the tournament took place in 2021. The tourn ...

, was named after her in recognition of her contribution to English cricket, with Southern Vipers first winning the trophy named after their coach in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

. She also regularly appears as a commentator on cricket for

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

, and was appointed president of the

Professional Cricketers' Association The Professional Cricketers' Association is the representative body of past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales, founded in 1967 by former England fast bowler Fred Rumsey (when it was known as the Cricketers' Association). In t ...

in 2021.

Early life

Edwards was born on 17 December 1979 in

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

, and grew up on a farm near Pidley. Her father, Clive Edwards, played for

Huntingdonshire County Cricket Club Huntingdonshire County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the minor counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Huntingdonshire. The club does not currently compete in either the ...

(as did her uncle Hugh and later her brother Daniel). She played her first club cricket at Ramsey Cricket Club in Huntingdonshire, and later captained one of the youth sides. She attended Ramsey Abbey School, a comprehensive school.

Domestic career

County cricket

Edwards played her first county cricket match in 1994, for

against

East Midlands Women cricket team The East Midlands Women's cricket team was the women's representative cricket team for the East Midlands. They competed in the Women's Area Championship from 1980 to 1996 and in the Women's County Championship from 1997 to 1999, after which th ...

in the

Women's Area Championship The Women's Area Championship was a women's cricket competition organised by the Women's Cricket Association that ran from 1980 until 1996. It operated as a 55-over limited overs cricket competition, with teams organised into a number of groups, ...

, in which she took 2/34 from 11 overs and scored 25 runs. She was the side's leading run-scorer that season, with 186 runs including 77 * made against Surrey Second XI. Edwards played for East Anglia until the end of the 1999 season, including in the first three seasons of the

Women's County Championship The Women's County Championship, known since 2014 as the Royal London Women’s One-Day Cup, She made her maiden

List A List A cricket is a classification of the limited-overs (one-day) form of the sport of cricket, with games lasting up to eight hours. List A cricket includes One Day International (ODI) matches and various domestic competitions in which the numbe ...

century in 1996, scoring 113 against East Midlands. She was the leading run-scorer in the

1998 Women's County Championship The 1998 Women's County One-Day Championship was the 2nd cricket Women's County Championship season. It took place in July and saw 10 county teams, 3 county Second XIs and 5 regional teams compete in a series of divisions. Yorkshire Women won th ...

, with 394 runs including three centuries. Edwards joined

ahead of the 2000 season. She captained the side once in her first season, before becoming the regular captain of the side in 2002 until she departed the club at the end of the 2016 season. During her time with Kent, the side would win the Women's County Championship in

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, 2007,

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, and the

Women's Twenty20 Cup The Women's Twenty20 Cup, known for sponsorship reasons as the Vitality Women's County T20, is a women's Twenty20 cricket competition organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board. Until the end of the 2019 season, teams were organised in tie ...

(which began in 2009) in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

and

. She was the leading run-scorer in the Women's County Championship in

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, 2011 and 2014. She was also the leading wicket-taker in the Women's County Championship in 2006, and the leading run-scorer in the Women's Twenty20 Cup in

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

. Her highest score in county cricket came in 2002, scoring 151 * for Kent against

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

. She also scored 151, dismissed, against

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

in 2014. After winning the County Championship and Twenty20 Cup double with Kent in 2016, Edwards announced that she was leaving the club. A week later, it was announced that she was joining

, a side she would represent for two seasons, in 2017 and 2018 (including as captain in 2018). During her time with the club, they were promoted from Division 2 of the Women's County Championship in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

before winning Division 1 a season later, in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. Having retired from international cricket in 2016, Edwards announced her retirement from all cricket in September 2017. She played her final county cricket match, and final match in all cricket, on 17 June 2018 against

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

in the

Twenty20 Cup The T20 Blast, currently named the Vitality Blast for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket competition for English and Welsh first-class counties. The competition was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (E ...

, where she did not bat or bowl.

Women's Cricket Super League

In 2016, Edwards was named as captain of

in the inaugural

Women's Cricket Super League The Women's Cricket Super League (WCSL), known as the Kia Super League (KSL) for sponsorship reasons, was a semi-professional women's Twenty20 cricket competition in England and Wales operated by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). The comp ...

. The Vipers went on to win the competition, with Edwards batting four times in five appearances, with a top score of 30 against

Western Storm Western Storm are a women's cricket team representing South West England and Wales, one of eight regional hubs in English domestic cricket. They play their home matches at the County Ground, Taunton, the County Ground, Bristol and Sophia Gardens ...

. She captained the side again in

, her final season playing in the competition, with the Vipers once again reaching the final but this time losing to Western Storm.

Overseas cricket

Edwards played for

in New Zealand's domestic 50-over competition in 2000–01 and 2002–03. She was the side's leading run-scorer in both seasons she played, as well as scoring a century in both seasons. In 2014–15, Edwards played for

in the

Women's National Cricket League The Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) is the national domestic 50-over competition for women's cricket in Australia. Featuring seven teams—one from every state, plus the Australian Capital Territory—each season's winner is awarded the ...

and the

Australian Women's Twenty20 Cup The Australian Women's Twenty20 Cup (WT20) was the premier domestic women's Twenty20 cricket competition in Australia. Beginning in 2007 as a series of exhibition matches, the first official tournament took place during the summer of 2009–10. ...

. She was the side's leading run-scorer in both competitions. Edwards also captained the side, and at the end of the season was named the side's player of the year in both competitions, and awarded the Zoe Goss Medal, for being the outstanding female cricketer in Western Australia. The following season, she played in the inaugural season of the

for

. She was her side's leading run-scorer, and the second-highest across the whole competition, with 462 runs including four half-centuries. In 2016–17, Edwards played for

in the

and their equivalent team

in the

. She was South Australia's leading run-scorer in the Women's National Cricket League, with 312 runs including two centuries. She scored 141 runs at an average of 20.14 in eight matches in the Women's Big Bash League.

Other cricket

Edwards also played in the

Super Fours The Super Fours was a women's limited overs cricket competition which was played annually in England between 2002 and 2013, with a break in 2009 and 2010. Designed to bring together the leading 48 players in English women's cricket, it originall ...

, for

Diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, b ...

between 2002 and 2012 and for

Sapphires Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, chromium, vanadium, or magnesium. The name sapphire is derived via the Latin "sapphir ...

in 2013. In the opening match of the 2006 Super Fours, Edwards scored her

high score, scoring 199 * from 151 balls against Sapphires. She also took her only career

five-wicket haul In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer") occurs when a bowler takes five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded by critics as a notable achievement, equivalent to a century from a batsman. Takin ...

in the Super Fours, in

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

, taking 5/31 against V Team (the previous name of Sapphires).

International career

Age-group international cricket

Edwards began playing for junior

sides in 1992, and played for the side at Under-20, Under-21 and Under-23 level. She played for Junior England against

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in a warm-up match for the 1993 Women's Cricket World Cup, and for England Under-21s at the 1997–98 Caltrate Inter-Provincial Tournament, South Africa's domestic 50-over tournament, which England Under-21s won.

Early years

Edwards made her international debut on 12 July 1996, for

against

in a

Test match Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (association football) ...

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

. She scored 34 in the first innings and 31 in the second innings, opening the batting both times. At the time of her international debut, she was 16 years old, making her the youngest woman to have played for England at the time. The record was later broken when

Holly Colvin Holly Louise Colvin (born 7 September 1989) is an English former cricketer who played as a slow left-arm orthodox bowler and right-handed batter. She appeared in five Test matches, 72 One Day Internationals and 50 Twenty20 Internationals for ...

made her debut aged 15 in 2005. She next played for England against South Africa in 1997, making her

Women's One Day International Women's One Day International (WODI) is the limited overs form of women's cricket. Matches are scheduled for 50 overs, equivalent to the men's game. The first women's ODIs were played in 1973, as part of the first Women's World Cup which was ...

(WODI) debut in the first match of the series on 15 August. In the second match of the series, Edwards scored her maiden international century, scoring 102 from 118 deliveries at the

County Ground, Taunton The County Ground, known for sponsorship reasons as Cooper Associates County Ground, and nicknamed Ciderabad, is a cricket ground in Taunton, Somerset. It is the home of Somerset County Cricket Club, who have played there since 1882. The ground ...

. At the time, she was the youngest player to score a WODI century, with the record subsequently being broken by

Mithali Raj Mithali Dorai Raj (born 3 December 1982) is an Indian cricketer and a former captain of the India women's national cricket team from 2004 to 2022. Mithali is the highest run-scorer in women's international cricket and is considered one of the ...

in 1997. She next played in the 1997 Women's Cricket World Cup in India and, in England's third match of the tournament and a day short of her 18th birthday, scored a then-record WODI score of 173 * against

. In 1998, Edwards played against Australia, and scored three half-centuries in the three Test series, with a high score of 87. She next played against India in 1999, and scored her maiden Test century in the only Test match, with 108 from 249 deliveries. She was, and remains, the second youngest player to hit a Women's Test match century, at 19 years and 210 days. Edwards toured Australia and New Zealand with England in early 2000, scoring two half-centuries in the WODI series against Australia. In the summer of 2000, South Africa toured England for five WODIs, with Edwards scoring two half-centuries including 96 * in the fourth match. At the 2000 Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand, Edwards made her third WODI century, scoring 139 * against the Netherlands.

Injury and beyond

In 2001, Edwards obtained a

cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and the atlanto-axial joint. In a fashion similar to the cords in a toy Jacob's la ...

injury to her right knee, requiring surgery, which meant that she missed the whole season. She returned to play for England for the

2002 Women's Tri-Series The 2002 Women's Tri-Series was a Women's One Day International (WODI) cricket tournament that was held in England in July 2002. It was a tri-nation series between England, India and New Zealand. It was part of India's tour of England and Ireland ...

. After appearing for England throughout 2003, in the World Series of Women's Cricket, against Australia and against South Africa, Edwards scored her first international century since 2000 in 2004, scoring 102 in a WODI against South Africa at

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

. During England's next series, against New Zealand, Edwards was the leading run-scorer in the WODI series, and scored 117 in the only Test match. On the same tour, Edwards made her

Women's Twenty20 International Women's Twenty20 International (WT20I) is the shortest form of women's international cricket. A women's Twenty20 International is a 20 overs-per-side cricket match between two of the International Cricket Council (ICC) members. The first Twent ...

(WT20I) debut, as she played in the first-ever international

Twenty20 Twenty20 (T20) is a shortened game format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single innin ...

match for either gender. Edwards was the leading run-scorer at the

2005 Women's Cricket World Cup The 2005 Women's Cricket World Cup was the eighth Women's Cricket World Cup, held in South Africa from 22 March to 10 April 2005. It was the first edition of the tournament to be hosted by South Africa. The World Cup was the final tournament org ...

, with 280 runs including a high score of 99 against South Africa. She helped England win the

Women's Ashes The Women's Ashes is the perpetual trophy in women's international cricket series between England and Australia. The name derives from the historic precedent of the Ashes in male cricket and, until 2013, was similarly decided exclusively on the ...

, including top-scoring with 69 in the first innings of the first Test match.

International captaincy

Ahead of England's 2005–06 tour of Sri Lanka and India, Edwards was made captain of the side, with regular captain

out with a foot injury. She captained her side to a 2–0 WODI victory over

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

in her first series as captain. The Test match with India was drawn, with the WODI series lost 4–1, although Edwards hit two half-centuries in the WODI series. Clare Connor retired from international cricket in March 2006, with Edwards named as her permanent replacement. Her first series in permanent charge of the side came against India in England. She scored a century in the second innings of the 2nd Test match, with 105 as her side followed-on. In 2007, Edwards led the side to third place in the 2006–07 ICC Women's Quadrangular Series, scored her maiden WT20I half-century in a one-off match against South Africa, and led the side in a victorious WT20I series and WODI series loss against New Zealand, scoring a half-century in each series. In early 2008, Edwards led the side in a Women's Ashes series for the first time, on England's tour of Australia and New Zealand. The side won the one-off Test match to defend the Ashes, with Edwards scoring 94 in the first innings and hitting the winning runs in the second. She was also the side's leading run-scorer in the drawn WODI series. She played her 100th WODI in the 4th match of the series, in which she hit 70 * to help her side to a 7-wicket victory. England won their WODI series against New Zealand 3–1, with Edwards scoring two half-centuries as well as being the leading wicket-taker in the series, with 10 wickets. In the summer of 2008, Edwards was the leading run-scorer in England's T20I series against South Africa, top-scoring in all three of England's innings, as well as scoring a half-century apiece in England's WODI series against the West Indies and in their WODI series against South Africa. Her 76 * in the third T20I against South Africa was at the time the highest score in WT20Is for England. At the end of the 2008 season, she was awarded the ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year Award at the ICC Awards in

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

2009 World Cup double and Ashes retention

In March 2009, Edwards led England at a

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

for the first time. Edwards' best performance came against

in the Super Six round, where she scored her only half-century of the tournament, with 57, as well as taking 4/37 with the ball. The side reached the final at

North Sydney Oval North Sydney Oval is a multi-use sporting facility in North Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, owned and operated by North Sydney Council. First used as a cricket ground in 1867, it is also used for Australian rules football, rugby league, rug ...

against New Zealand, with England emerging victorious by 4 wickets to win their third World Cup title. Edwards was named as captain of the team of the tournament at the end of the World Cup. The following summer, she led England at the inaugural ICC Women's World Twenty20, held in England. She scored 61 * in England's opening match of the tournament, helping her side to a 10-wicket victory over

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Two days later, it was announced that Edwards had received an

for her services to cricket. She was named Player of the Match in England's group stage victory over Pakistan, scoring 43 and taking 2/7, before leading England to the final of the tournament. Edwards scored just 9 in the final at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...

, against New Zealand, but England were victorious by 6 wickets with three overs to spare. She was the third-highest run-scorer in the tournament. Edwards and England topped off a victorious year by retaining

the Women's Ashes The Women's Ashes is the perpetual trophy in women's international cricket series between England and Australia. The name derives from the historic precedent of the Ashes in male cricket and, until 2013, was similarly decided exclusively on the ...

, drawing the one-off Test match with Australia, with Edwards scoring 53 * in the second innings to help secure the draw. Edwards was absent for part of the WODI series, but scored a half-century in the fourth match of the series. After the Ashes, she was awarded an

. Over the 2009–10 winter, Edwards led England on tours of

the West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater ...

and

WODI appearance record, Ashes century, and World Cups

In 2010, Edwards led England in their disappointing

2010 ICC Women's World Twenty20 The 2010 ICC Women's World Twenty20 was the second ICC Women's World Twenty20 competition, which was held in the West Indies from 5 to 16 May 2010. The group stage matches were played at the Warner Park Sporting Complex on Saint Kitts. It was ...

campaign, as they exited in the group stage. She scored one half-century against the touring New Zealand side later that summer, scoring 70 in England's 1-wicket victory in the first WODI. She also scored 72 in a one-off ODI against Ireland. In November 2010, England toured Sri Lanka, and in the 2nd WODI Edwards became the most-capped WODI player, with 142 caps, breaking the record of

Karen Rolton Karen Louise Rolton (born 21 November 1974) is an Australian former cricketer and captain of the national women's team. A left-handed batter, she has scored the most runs for her country in women's Test cricket. International cricket After m ...

. At the time,

, then the

England and Wales Cricket Board The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is the Sports governing body, national governing body of cricket in England and Wales. It was formed on 1 January 1997 as a single governing body to combine the roles formerly fulfilled by the Test and ...

's Head of Women's Cricket, called her a "a credit to women's cricket globally, a superb role model for girls who aspire to play for their country". The record was later broken by

. She also took her WODI best bowling figures in the match, with 4/30 from her 8 overs. In England's series against Australia later that winter, Edwards made her first Test century in the Ashes, scoring 114 *. She was also the leading run-scorer in the WODI series, scoring two half-centuries. In the summer of 2011, Edwards was England's leading run-scorer at the 2011 NatWest Women's T20 Quadrangular Series. Edwards led England on an unbeaten international winter in 2011–12, against

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and

, and scored a century in both WODI series: 138 in the 2nd ODI against South Africa and 137 * in the 2nd ODI against New Zealand. In May 2012, Edwards was appointed to the world cricket committee of the

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

, becoming the first woman to be appointed to the body. Edwards began the playing summer of 2012 by scoring 72 * in a one-off WT20I against Ireland. Subsequently, she led England to series victories over

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

in the lead-up to the

2012 ICC Women's World Twenty20 The 2012 ICC Women's World Twenty20 was the third ICC Women's World Twenty20 competition, held in Sri Lanka from 26 September to 7 October 2012. The group stage matches were played at the Galle International Stadium in Galle and semi-finals and ...

. England reached the final of the 2012 World Twenty20 before losing to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Edwards top-scored in both the semi-final and final for England, and scoring 50 * in England's group stage victory over

. Edwards ended the tournament as the leading run-scorer across the competition, with 172 runs, and was named Player of the Tournament. The World Twenty20 was followed by the

2013 Women's Cricket World Cup The 2013 Women's Cricket World Cup was the tenth Women's Cricket World Cup, hosted by India for the third time, and held from 31 January to 17 February 2013. India previously hosted the World Cup in 1978 and 1997. Australia won the tournament for ...

, with England finishing third. Edwards scored two centuries in the tournament, 109 against India in the Group Stage and 106 * in the 3rd Place Play-off against

. She ended the tournament as the third-highest run-scorer across the competition, with 292 runs.

Two Ashes victories and Cricketer of the Year

At the start of the 2013 summer, Edwards was the leading run-scorer in England's WODI series victory against Pakistan. She then led England into the 2013 Women's Ashes series against Australia. England won the series, which was decided on a points-based system for the first time, with Edwards scoring two half-centuries in the WODI series. After the series, she described reclaiming the Ashes as the "proudest moment" of her career. After a tour of the West Indies in October and November 2013, England again contested the Ashes, this time in Australia. Edwards scored a half-century in the only Test match, and made her WT20I career high score in the first WT20I, with 92 * in an England 9-wicket victory. England also won the series, becoming the third England Women's side to do so in Australia. England next played in the

2014 ICC Women's World Twenty20 The 2014 ICC Women's World Twenty20 was the fourth ICC Women's World Twenty20 competition, taking place in Bangladesh from 23 March to 6 April 2014. The tournament was played in the cities of Sylhet and Dhaka – Cox's Bazar was originally inten ...

, again losing to Australia in the final. Edwards was the fourth-highest run-scorer across the competition, with a high score of 80 in England's victory over

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. In April 2014, in recognition of her achievements in 2013, Edwards was named one of the five

Wisden Cricketers of the Year The ''Wisden'' Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season". The award began in 1889 with the naming ...

, becoming the second woman to be so honoured after

Claire Taylor Samantha Claire Taylor (born 25 September 1975) is a former cricketer who represented England more than 150 times between 1998 and 2011. A top order batter,In women's cricket, "batsman" is commonly used, alongside "batter". Taylor was the f ...

in 2009. She was also named the ECB Cricketer of the Year for 2013–14.

Professional contract

In May 2014, Edwards received one of the first 18 ECB central contracts, becoming one of the first English professional woman cricketers. In the summer of 2014, Edwards was the leading run-scorer in England's WODI series against India and in their WT20I series against South Africa. She scored 108 * in the 2nd WODI against India, and half-centuries in two of the WT20Is against South Africa. In June 2014, Edwards was awarded a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

for service to cricket. At the end of the season, she was named the first PCA Women's Player of the Summer. In the 2014–15 winter, Edwards scored one half-century in England's WODI series victory against New Zealand. In May 2015, she was named the ECB Cricketer of the Year for 2014–15. In the summer of 2015, she captained England in the Ashes against Australia, with Australia regaining the Ashes. Edwards passed fifty once in the series, in the second WODI.

2016 World Twenty20 and international retirement

In February 2016, England played against South Africa, winning both the WODI and WT20I series. Following this, England played in the

in India, where they went out in the semi-finals against

. Edwards was the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament, with 202 runs including half-centuries against

and

. England's failure at the tournament, with another knockout stages defeat to Australia, was seen as a "line-in-the-sand" moment, with things needing to change in the system. After the 2016 World Twenty20, England Head Coach Mark Robinson informed Edwards that she would not be selected for England's upcoming tours, intending instead to bring in younger players under new leadership. Following this decision, Edwards announced her retirement from international cricket. She was replaced as England captain by Heather Knight. Edwards ended her international career with 309 appearances for England across all formats: 23 in Tests, 191 in ODIs and 95 in T20Is. She captained England on 220 occasions. At the end of her career, she had the second most appearances overall in Women's Test matches, and the most for England in WODIs. She was also England's second-leading run-scorer in Women's Test matches, and all-time leading run-scorer in both WODIs and WT20Is. She was also the first player to score 2,000 runs in WT20Is. In November 2022, in recognition of her playing achievements, she was inducted into the

Post-playing career

Coaching

In October 2017, it was announced that Edwards was returning to her previous playing side

in the

as an Assistant Coach. She remained in the role for five seasons. In April 2018, Edwards was appointed as Director of Women's Cricket at

, with responsibility for the management of both Hampshire Women and

. In July 2020, following reforms to the structure of domestic women's cricket in England, Edwards became Head Coach of Southern Vipers. She led the side to winning the inaugural 2020 Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy in her first season with the side, and won the title again in 2021 Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, 2021. In June 2021, it was announced that the new regional Women's Twenty20, Twenty20 competition would be named the

, in honour of Edwards. Southern Vipers won their first Charlotte Edwards Cup in

. Edwards also became coach of

's women's side ahead of the inaugural season of The Hundred in 2021. The side reached the final of the first two editions of the tournament, but lost in the final both times. In May 2022, Edwards was named as the Head Coach of

in the Women's Big Bash League from the 2022–23 Women's Big Bash League season, 2022–23 season onwards, moving from her Assistant Coach role at Adelaide Strikers. The side won a record eleven matches in the group stage of the competition during Edwards' first season in charge, but lost in the final to Adelaide Strikers. After the departure of Lisa Keightley from the Head Coach role of England women's cricket team, England Women in the summer of 2022, Edwards initially expressed interest in taking on the role, but later ruled herself out.

Other pursuits

Edwards regularly works as a commentator on cricket for

. In February 2021, she became the first female president of the

, with her term lasting for two years.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Charlotte 1979 births People from Huntingdon Living people England women Test cricketers England women One Day International cricketers England women Twenty20 International cricketers East Anglia women cricketers Kent women cricketers Northern Districts women cricketers Western Australia women cricketers Perth Scorchers (WBBL) cricketers Southern Vipers cricketers South Australian Scorpions cricketers Adelaide Strikers (WBBL) cricketers Hampshire women cricketers Wisden Cricketers of the Year Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Female cricket coaches English cricket commentators Women cricket commentators International Cricket Council Cricketer of the Year