Marie Kelly (born 9 February 1996) is an English cricketer who is currently the captain of Warwickshire, as well as playing for Lightning and Trent Rockets. She plays primarily as a right-handed batter. She led Warwickshire to the 2019 Women's Twenty20 Cup title, and was the leading run-scorer in Division 1 that year. She previously played for Southern Vipers, Central Sparks and Birmingham Phoenix.[1][2][3]
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Marie Kelly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1996-02-09) 9 February 1996 (age 26) Birmingham, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm off break | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Batter | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–present | Warwickshire | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | Loughborough Lightning | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Southern Vipers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Central Sparks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | Birmingham Phoenix | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–present | Lightning | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–present | Trent Rockets | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Source: CricketArchive, 1 October 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kelly was born on 9 February 1996 in Birmingham, West Midlands. She has a degree in Sports Science from Loughborough University. Her twin sister, Sian, played for Warwickshire between 2011 and 2017.[2][4]
Kelly made her county debut in 2011, for Warwickshire against Cheshire. She scored 12 runs and bowled 2 overs for no wicket.[5] In 2012, in two innings over one weekend playing for Warwickshire Under-17s, Kelly scored 201* and 110* and soon after became a regular in Warwickshire's first team.[3] She hit her maiden T20 half-century in 2013, against the Netherlands.[6]
Kelly began captaining Warwickshire in 2015, standing-in for Rebecca Grundy. She became permanent captain of the side in 2016.[7] In 2019, Kelly led her side to victory in the Twenty20 Cup. Warwickshire topped Division 1 by one point after beating runners-up Lancashire in the final match, with Kelly top-scoring with 76.[8][3] She also ended the season as the leading run-scorer in Division 1.[9] Kelly was Warwickshire's leading run-scorer in the 2021 Women's Twenty20 Cup, with 162 runs at an average of 81.00.[10] She was again Warwickshire's leading run-scorer in the 2022 Women's Twenty20 Cup, with 192 runs at an average of 32.00.[11] She scored two half-centuries on the same day in a double-header against Gloucestershire, 99 from 61 deliveries in the first match and 60 from 27 deliveries in the second.[12][13] In the second match, her half-century came from 15 deliveries, which is the fastest recorded fifty in Women's Twenty20 cricket.[14]
Kelly also played in the Women's Cricket Super League, for Loughborough Lightning in 2017 and Southern Vipers in 2019.[2] She played one match for Loughborough, in which she scored 18 runs against Western Storm. She played five matches for the Vipers, scoring 13 runs at an average of 4.33.[15][16] In 2020, Kelly was announced as part of the Central Sparks squad for the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy. She was the side's second-highest run-scorer, with 223 runs at an average of 55.75, and scored two half-centuries.[17] In December 2020, it was announced that Kelly was one of the 41 female cricketers that had signed a full-time domestic contract.[18]
In 2021, Kelly scored 182 runs for Central Sparks in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, including two half-centuries.[19] In a Charlotte Edwards Cup match against Southern Vipers, Kelly hit 100* from 53 balls, her Twenty20 high score and first ever century, to help her side to a 6 wicket victory.[20] She also signed to play for Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred, but only made one appearance in the competition.[21] At the end of the season it was announced that Kelly had moved to Lightning, and signed a professional contract with her new side.[22] During the 2022 She played eleven matches for Lightning in 2022, across the Charlotte Edwards Cup and the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, scoring 197 runs and taking six wickets.[23][24] She also played seven matches for Trent Rockets in The Hundred, scoring 40 runs.[25]
Kelly has also been a part of the Emerging Players Programme, the England Women's Academy and played for the England Under-19s.[3]
Lightning – current squad | |
|---|---|
Trent Rockets – current squad | |
|---|---|
Men's | |
Women's | |
Coaches | |