Rene Farrell
Rene Farrell is an Australian cricketer. A fast-medium pace bowler, she has been a current member of the Australian team. On 1 December 2019, Farrell announced her retirement from Women's Big Bash League.
Although Farrell was successful in age-group interstate cricket, she did not make her senior debut for New South Wales until late in the 2006-07 season a month before turning 20. Her state made the finals series, and in the first match she took 3/27 and was unbeaten on one as they took a one-wicket victory—the closest possible result in a winning run-chase. New South Wales went on to claim the title, and Farrell was then selected for the national team to play New Zealand in the Rose Bowl series after only five matches—half a season of senior domestic cricket. Making her debut in the fourth of five matches, Farrell took 3/36 to help Australia seal the series. However, her rapid rise came to a halt during the 2007-08 season. She took only eight wickets in the WNCL season and was dropped from the national team, missing three bilateral series for Australia before the start of the following summer. Farrell transferred to Western Australia and while taking nine wickets, she also made 172 runs at a batting average of 34.40, a figure comparable to those of specialist batsmen, earning herself a recall to the Australian team. She took 3/26 against New Zealand in her first match back and played in six of Australia's seven matches at the 2009 World Cup, totalling seven wickets. After taking five wickets in three Twenty20 matches against New Zealand before departing for the 2009 Twenty20 in England, Farrell played in all of Australia's four matches despite taking only one wicket at an economy rate of 8.92, and was sometimes used as a pinch-hitter to score quick runs.
During the bilateral series that followed against the hosts, Farrell made her Test debut, taking a total of 3/36, but she managed only one wicket in five ODIs. Afterwards, she stayed in England for a stint with Nottinghamshire and hit two centuries to end with 413 runs at 59.00. Returning to Australia for the 2009-10, she had her most prolific WNCL campaign, scoring 171 runs and taking 18 wickets, including her first five-wicket haul. Farrell played in the Rose Bowl series afterwards, and after taking one wicket in each of the five ODIs in Australia, was dropped for three fixtures in New Zealand.
Early career
In March 2002, Farrell was selected for New South Wales to play in the Under-17 interstate championships. She scored 26 runs at a batting average of 26.00 and took six wickets at a bowling average of 16.66. New South Wales won every match up until the final, where they collapsed for 60 to lose to Queensland. In January 2003, Farrell was selected for the Under-19 team and played in five matches. Her best performance was to score 49 and take 4/14 in a 123-run win over Tasmania. She took only one more wicket to end with five at 19.00 and scored 103 runs at 25.75. Farrell returned the following year and took 4/1 from three overs in the first match as New South Wales defeated Tasmania by ten wickets after dismissing them for 24. She then took 4/19 against Western Australia and ended with 11 wickets at 9.54 and scored 62 runs at 31.00 in two matches.Domestic debut
Despite the strong performances in her final year in age group state cricket, Farrell was unable to break into senior ranks until late in the 2006-07 season. She made her debut for New South Wales in a closely contested match against Western Australia, the sixth of eight qualifying matches in the Women's National Cricket League. After taking 1/19 from her six overs, she came to the crease in the closing stages of the match as New South Wales' tail struggled to reach the target of 134. Farrell was run out for two, but her state held their nerve to scrape home by two wickets. She was omitted for the penultimate match of the season before taking 0/13 from four overs in an eight-wicket win over South Australia. New South Wales, the defending champions placed second and qualified for the finals series hosted by Victoria. Farrell retained her position in the team and was a key player in the first match, taking 3/27 from her ten overs as the hosts were dismissed for 136. New South Wales struggled and Farrell came to the crease and scored one not out and was present when the winning runs were scored, sealing a one-wicket win. The rest of the series was not so dramatic. Farrell took one wicket in each of the two remaining matches; Victoria won the first by eight wickets and New South Wales won the deciding game by three wickets to retain their title. Farrell was not required to bat in this last match and ended the season with 3 runs at 1.50 and six wickets at 21.16.Farrell was rewarded at the end of the season with selection in the Australia Youth team to play against New Zealand A. She took a wicket in each of her two matches and ended with two wickets at 31.00 and 36 runs at 18.00.
International debut
During July in the Australian winter of 2007, a Rose Bowl series was held against New Zealand in the tropical northern city of Darwin. Farrell was selected for the senior national squad after only five senior domestic matches, as cover for the injured pair of Lisa Sthalekar and Clea Smith.After Australia had taken a 2-1 lead in the five-match series, Farrell was given her debut in the fourth match. She took 3/36 from nine overs, taking three middle-order wickets. She also completed a catch to help restrict the tourists to 9/196. Australia found the target difficult and won by three wickets and seal the series, sparing Farrell the need to bat on her debut. In the final match, Farrell batted for the first time, scoring three not out. She took 1/23 from five overs as New Zealand won by four wickets.
Farrell had her first full WNCL season in 2007-08, playing in all eight of New South Wales' matches. After taking only one wicket in the first four matches, she took six wickets in the last four round-robin matches, with best figures of 2/9 against Queensland. New South Wales won all but their final match to qualify first and host the final against South Australia. Persistent rain forced the abandonment of the match and New South Wales retained their title on account of placing first in the round-robin phase. Farrell took eight wickets at 19.25 at the high economy rate of 4.52 and scored 16 runs at 8.00. In two Twenty20 matches, she took three wickets at 8.66 at and economy rate of 5.20 and was not required to bat as New South Wales won both games.
Farrell was dropped from the Australian team after these performances in the WNCL and missed the home series against England and the Rose Bowl in New Zealand at the end of the season. Instead, she played for Australia's Under-21 team in three matches against England and the senior Australian team ahead of their international series. Farrell took five wickets at 17.00 at an economy rate of 4.20 and scored 33 runs at 33.00. In the first match against England, she took 3/22 in a 52-run win, and in the second match she scored an unbeaten 30 as the Australian Under-21s were dismissed for 174 to cede a 75-run loss.
At the start of the 2008-09 season, Farrell was also left out of the home series against India. For the new WNCL season Farrell moved to Western Australia, and her batting improved markedly after her transfer. In her first match for her new state, Farrell hit an unbeaten 29 to steer them to a four-wicket win over South Australia. In the penultimate match of the season, she hit an unbeaten 59 in a tied match against Queensland. Farrell ended the season with 172 runs at 34.40 from eight matches, an average superior to many specialist batsmen. Her bowling remained steady, never taking more than two wickets in a match. She ended the WNCL with nine wickets at 27.33 at an economy rate of 3.48. Western Australia won only two of their eight matches and did not make the final. In two T20 matches, Farrell scored 21 in her only innings and took one wicket at 40.00 at an economy rate of 8.00.
2009 World Cup and World Twenty20
Farrell was recalled to the Australian team for the Rose Bowl series in New Zealand in February and the 2009 World Cup held in New South Wales and Canberra the following month. Farrell played in the first and third matches against New Zealand, taking 3/26 in the first match as the hosts scraped home by two wickets. She was expensive in the next match, taking 1/35 from five overs in a heavy defeat, ending the series with 20 runs at 20.00 and four wickets at 15.25 and an economy rate of 4.69.In two warm-up matches ahead of the World Cup, Farrell had mixed results. She made 15 not out but was hit for 37 runs in six wicketless overs against England. In the next match against Sri Lanka, she scored 23 and took 1/12 in a comfortable 230-run win.
Farrell was retained for the opening match against New Zealand, taking 1/20. She did not bat as Australia failed in their run-chase. In the next match against South Africa, she took 2/30 from 6.3 overs as Australia won by 61 runs, and omitted for the last group match against the West Indies, a 47-run win as the hosts reached the next round. In the first Super Six match, Farrell took 1/30 from 10 overs and made 20 not out, attempting to engineer the end of the run-chase as Australia fell 16 runs short of India's 5/234. She then took 2/23 against Pakistan in a 107-run win. By this time, Australia's two losses had already made it impossible to make the final. Farrell took 1/15 from six overs in the final super Six match against England, which Australia won, and they met India in the third-place playoff. Farrell was bowled by Jhulan Goswami for nine and took 0/17 from four wickets at the hosts lost by three wickets to finish fourth. She ended with seven wickets at 19.42.
Farrell was selected for Australia's team for the inaugural Women's World Twenty20 held in England in 2009. The Australians hosted New Zealand for a three-match series in tropical Darwin at the beginning of June before the World Cup, and Farrell showed good form taking five wickets at 9.80 at an economy rate of only 4.45, with a best of 3/13 from four overs in the first match. However, she could not maintain the form. She took 1/29 from four overs in the team's only warm-up on English soil, against the hosts, and was retained for all the matches, despite going wicketless in each of the three group matches and conceding 84 runs at an economy rate of 9.33. However, she was effective with the bat, scoring 13, 31 and 12, all unbeaten, against New Zealand, West Indies and South Africa respectively, the second innings coming when she was promoted up the order in an eight-wicket win. Australia lost to New Zealand but won the last two matches to reach the semi-finals. There she scored one not out before England overhauled Australia's score of 5/163 to reach the final, which they won. Farrell was again ineffective, taking 1/32 from four overs. She ended the tournament with one wicket at 116.00 at an economy rate of 8.92.
Farrell and the Australians stayed in England for a bilateral series against the hosts, who were the reigning world champions in both ODIs and T20s, after the end of the World Twenty20. She took 2/16 from her four overs as Australia upset England in the only T20 by 34 runs. She played in all of the five ODIs, scoring 39 not out as Australia collapsed to be all out for 133. Farrell ended the series with 70 runs at 35.00 and again struggled with the ball taking one wicket at 119.00 at an economy rate of 4.40.
England won all the ODI matches except the last, which was washed out. Farrell made her Test debut against England in a one-off match at County Road in Worcestershire. Batting at No. 10, she scored 8 in Australia's 309, bowled by Nicki Shaw. Opening the bowling, Farrell trapped Caroline Atkins for two in the third over of the innings to claim her maiden Test wicket, and then removed the other opener Lydia Greenway for five to leave England at 2/11. She later bowled English paceman Katherine Brunt to end a 46-run seventh-wicket partnership at 7/183. Farrell ended with 3/32 from an economical display of 30 overs to help Australia dismiss England for 268 and take a 41-run lead. She then made 4 as Australia set the hosts a target of 273 before the match was drawn. She took 0/4 from seven overs in the second innings, six of which were maidens, meaning that she had conceded less than one run per over throughout the match.