Izzy Westbury

Izzy Westbury

Personal information
Full name	Isabelle Mary Geraldine Westbury
Born	(1990-03-08) 8 March 1990 Hammersmith, London, England
Batting style	Right-handed
Bowling style	Right-arm off break
International information
National side	Netherlands
Only ODI	19 August 2005 v Ireland
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2007–2012	Somerset
2013–	Middlesex
Career statistics
Competition WODI List A T20 Matches 1 24 5 Runs scored 0 194 31 Batting average 0.00 12.12 10.33 100s/50s 0/0 0/0 0/0 Top score 0 38 28 Balls bowled 60 820 72 Wickets 0 22 3 Bowling average – 24.63 20.66 5 wickets in innings 0 1 0 10 wickets in match n/a n/a n/a Best bowling 0/58 5/20 1/11 Catches/stumpings 1/– 7/– 2/–
Source: CricketArchive, 9 August 2010

Isabelle Mary Geraldine "Izzy" Westbury (born 8 March 1990) is an international cricketer and former president of the Oxford Union. She is captain of Middlesex women's first team, was a member of the England Women's Academy until 2011 and represented the Netherlands in one One Day International (ODI) in 2005. A right-handed batsman and off break bowler, she played for Somerset until 2012. She was President of the Oxford Union in Michaelmas term 2011 and has been described as "the most engaging president that the Oxford Union has had in years".

Beginning her career in the Netherlands, Westbury progressed quickly within the national side, appearing at both the 2004 and 2006 Women's European Under-21 Championships, and made her senior international debut at the 2005 Women's European Championship. During this tournament, she also made her only ODI appearance, playing for the Netherlands against Ireland. She moved to England in 2006 to study, and joined Somerset for the 2007 season, where played until joining Middlesex. In 2010, she was selected as part of the England Women's Academy, travelling to India for the High Performance Camp.

Career

Early years: In the Netherlands

Born in Hammersmith, London, Isabelle Westbury experienced a nomadic childhood, living in Mongolia, Malaysia and Syria before arriving in the Netherlands. She attended The British School in the Netherlands from 2001–2006. It was in the Netherlands that she first started playing cricket, as she was not allowed to play football at the "very traditional club" near her house. During her time in the country, she played domestic cricket for The Hague Cricket Club. She made her first international appearances at the 2004 Women's European Under-21 Championships for the Netherlands Under-21s, making her debut for the side at the age of 14. Playing as wicket-keeper, she claimed one catch and then scored 15 not out batting from number nine as Ireland won by 98 runs. In the Netherlands' second match of the competition, she moved down to number eleven, and remained unbeaten without scoring when England secured a 219-run victory with over 10 overs remaining. Another loss in the final match of the competition ensured that the Netherlands finished bottom of the table—Westbury scored five runs as no Dutch batsman managed to reach double figures against Scotland.

In 2005, aged 15, Westbury represented the senior Netherlands side for the first time during the 2005 Women's European Championship in Wales. Unlike her appearances for the Under-21s, which she made as wicket-keeper, Westbury played as a bowler for the duration of the tournament, batting in the lower order. She claimed three wickets during the tournament at an average of 46.66. Only required to bat twice, she scored 1 and 0*, made during losses against England Development Squad and Ireland respectively. Unlike the rest of the matches in the tournament, the match against Ireland was given One Day International (ODI) status, giving Westbury her first—and only—ODI cap.

The 2006 Women's European Under-21 Championships saw Westbury reprise her role as wicket-keeper batsman for the youth side. The Netherlands were much improved from the 2004 tournament; after a heavy loss to England in a warm-up match, the Netherlands won their final match to finish runners-up behind England. She scored 30 in the second match, a loss to Ireland, as only herself and Lotte Egging reached double figures for the Netherlands. She made her highest total for the Under-21s in the final match of the competition, scoring 75 before being run out as the Netherlands reached 180 off their 50 overs, and then bowled Scotland out, achieving a 95 run victory. She finished the competition as the leading run-scorer and won the Player of the Tournament for her achievements.

Move to England

Westbury started at Millfield School in Street, Somerset in 2006. She joined Somerset for the 2007 County Championship. After her first match, in which she batted at number nine, and was 19 not out at the close of the innings, she opened the innings for the county for the remainder of the season. She enjoyed mixed success in the role, and finished the season with a batting average of 19.75, the third-best among Somerset batsmen behind Elwyn Campbell and Becky Williams.

File:Izzy Westbury Training.JPG

Izzy Westbury training with the England Women's Academy in Bangalore, 2010

Remaining with Somerset in 2008, she claimed her first wicket for the county during their first match of the season, having Surrey opener Ebony-Jewel Rainford-Brent caught. She appeared in the Super Fours—a competition in which the England selectors place the 48 leading players into four teams—for the first time in 2008, representing the Diamonds in both the 50-over and 20-over forms of the game. She bowled economically in the Twenty20 semi-final, helping to limit the Sapphires to 123, which Diamonds chased down successfully with a ball to spare. She remained economical in the final, but despite restricting the Rubies to 110, Diamonds could only reach 106 in their reply. In three 50-over Super Fours matches, she was less effective; her only wicket coming in the first match. Returning to the County Championship, Westbury dropped down into the lower order batting, while at the same time seeing her workload with the ball increasing. Somerset were rewarded in the match against Lancashire when she claimed five-wickets in the innings for the first time to set up a 132 run win. She continued her form in the following match, claiming four wickets against Warwickshire, conceding only four runs. She finished the season as Somerset's leading wicket-taker, claiming her twelve wickets at an average of 6.41. Westbury also competed in the Junior Super Fours—for 16- to 19-year-old female cricketers—towards the end of the 2008 season. Appearing for Junior Emeralds, she improved as the tournament progressed, following up scores of 18 and 27 with the tournament's highest score, 89, in the final match. She finished as the competition's second-highest run-scorer, her 134 runs trailing only Lauren Onojaife's 138.

The 2009 County Championship campaign saw Westbury's form dip from the previous season. Playing in five of Somerset's ten matches, she scored 18 runs at an average under four, and her three wickets came at 38.66. Her performances in the Junior Super Fours, however, continued to improve with both bat and ball. Named as captain of the Junior Emeralds, Westbury led by example in the opening match, taking three wickets and limiting the Rubies to 21 runs off her eight overs, and then top-scoring with 37 for her side in their successful chase. She bowled even more economically in the following match, conceding 12 runs off 10 overs, once again claiming three wickets. Opening the batting for the Emeralds in their reply—as she had done in the first match—she made 46 runs, sharing a partnership of 102 with fellow opener Beth MacGregor to help set up a seven wicket victory. The Emerald's final match saw the Sapphires score more effectively off her bowling, totalling 30 runs from her 10 overs, but Westbury replied with an unbeaten century to propel her side to another seven wicket win. Her 187 runs and 7 wickets ensured she finished the tournament as the most prolific batsman and bowler, as the Emeralds won after remaining undefeated.

In January 2010, Westbury was named as part of the England Academy squad for the High Performance Camp in Bangalore, India. Despite her earlier appearances for the Netherlands, Westbury has indicated her desire to appear for England in the future.

Personal life

Westbury attended Hertford College, Oxford where she studied Physiology (Natural Sciences). In addition to her cricket career, she also played hockey at Oxford, achieving her Blue by playing in the Varsity Hockey Match against Cambridge University in March 2010. In Michaelmas term 2011, she was President of the Oxford Union, having earlier served as Secretary.

External links

• Player profile: Izzy Westbury from ESPNcricinfo
• Player profile: Izzy Westbury from CricketArchive