Searle was born to play cricket
The top-order prospect had to work hard in her youth to gain respect from the boys in her age group.
Having come full circle, from clueless supporter to topfl ight cricketer, Robyn Searle hopes to become a more permanent fi xture in the national team as she continues to climb the elite ladder.
With Searle’s mother, Yvette, being an avid cricket fan, she was just a few months old when she attended her first match as a “spectator” at the Wanderers.
She soon took to the field herself, and while she had to work hard to gain respect from the boys in her age group, Searle didn’t let the adversity hold her back in her youth.
“When I bowled, the boys would often try and hit my deliveries out of the ground to make a point, or they would be so defensive as they were afraid of losing their wicket to a girl,” she told TuksSport.
“Either way, I ended up taking wickets.”
Though she remains useful as a leg-spinner, however, it is with the bat that Searle has established her place among the country’s most promising players.
After representing the SA U19 team, the top-order prospect went on to make her debut for the Proteas Women in a T20 International against the West Indies in September 2018, at the age of 21.
A couple of months later she was included in the national squad for the Women’s World T20 tournament.
While she hasn’t represented the SA team since, she is still very much on the radar of the national selectors and last year she was named in Cricket South Africa’s National Academy squad.
Having recently moved from Central Gauteng to Northerns in the domestic provincial set-up, she is also the new captain of the Tuks women’s team.
The climb up the career ladder is challenging, Searle admits, but she is eager to continue working her way to the top in the hope of starring regularly for the Proteas Women.
Her senior international career thus far has included only two matches, in which she scored 28 runs against the Windies Women.
Entrenched in the culture of the game since her youth, however, cricket is part of her life and Searle’s passion drives her to succeed.
Returning from the lockdown hiatus which almost derailed the 2020 season, she is glad to be back on the field.
“Cricket can be a humbling game,” she said.
“There are days when it feels like you are on top of your game and the next game you get bowled by a ‘peach’ of a delivery.
“It means you can never rest on your laurels when at the crease.
“To survive, you’ve got to learn to deal with the good as well as the bad.”