Lauren Kaye Ebsary (born 15 March 1983) is an Australian cricketer. Primarily a batter, she is a former member of the Australia national women's cricket team.
Ebsary made her senior debut for South Australia in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) during the 2000–01 season at the age of 18. Although she played in every match in her first season, she was shielded from much of the action and made only six runs. Ebsary was selected in every match in her first three seasons, but in that time, scored only 136 runs at a batting average of 8.50 and took 13 wickets from 24 matches. The following year, Ebsary raised her career average above 10 for the first time and was selected in the Australian Under-23 team. In 2004–05 she made more than 100 runs in a season for the first time, and the following year she made 149 runs at 29.80. In 2006–07, she struggled and totalled only 101 runs at 14.42 and took three wickets, and after the season she transferred to Western Australia. The change of state yielded dividends in the 2007–08 season, as she made 236 runs and took eight wickets, her highest aggregate of runs and wickets in one tournament.
At the start of the 2008–09 season, Ebsary gained selection to the Australian national team and made her One Day International (ODI) debut in the home series against India. She made 37 runs at 18.50, and after scoring 207 runs in the WNCL season, was retained in the national team. After making her ODI top-score of 86 in the Rose Bowl series against New Zealand, she was selected for the 2009 World Cup, but was in and out of the team, making 106 runs at 35.33. In June 2009, she played in all of Australia's matches at the 2009 World Twenty20 and made her Test debut against England in a bilateral series after the World Twenty20. Ebsary scored 211 runs during the 2009–10 WNCL season to retain her position in the national squad for the Rose Bowl series, but after a series of poor performances, she spent the latter half of the campaign watching from the sidelines.
Early years Born in Snowtown, South Australia, Lauren Ebsary was one of four children—two boys and two girls—of Peter and Kaye Ebsary. While pursuing her secondary education at Snowtown Area School, attended a cricket coaching clinic organised by her school in 1996. It was there that her talent was noticed by Australian Test player and development officer for the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA) Joanne Broadbent, who said that Ebsary "had a lot of potential from the start". After Ebsary made her debut for Australia, Broadbent said "I’ve always believed Lauren had the capacity to represent her country." Ebsary was initially a tall and gangly pace bowler who mixed testing deliveries with erratic ones, including many wides.
During her teenage years before she acquired a driver's licence, Ebsary's mother drove her to the state capital, Adelaide—more than 100 km away—to play for the Flinders University Cricket Club in SACA's district women's competition on weekends. Back in Snowtown, she practised against her father and one of her brothers.
Cricket career
Junior selection In 1997–98 she attended the state under-17s trials and was successful in gaining selection at the age of 14. Due to the lack of opportunities to females to play cricket at local youth level, she played her first competitive game at the national championships in Brisbane. In January 2000, at the age of 16, Ebsary was chosen for the South Australian team for the Under-19 interstate championships. Playing as a specialist batsman—she bowled a solitary wicketless over in six matches—she failed to pass five with the bat in her first five matches, before scoring an unbeaten 34 in the final match against Tasmania. Nevertheless, it was not a successful tournament, yielding 45 runs at a batting average of 9.00.
Senior debut Despite the lack of success at youth interstate level, Ebsary was promoted into the senior South Australian team in the 2000–01 season at the age of 17, playing in all of her state's eight matches in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL). She made her debut against reigning champions New South Wales, and after not batting, took one wicket for the loss of six runs (1/6) from two overs as South Australia lost by seven wickets. In the next match of the double-header the next day, she took 0/15 from two overs and was run out for a duck in her maiden senior innings in a 22-run loss. During the season, Ebsary often batted at the bottom of the order in a specialist bowler's position and thus rarely batted, but she hardly bowled, delivering only six overs in total in her first seven matches. In effect, she was shielded from taking on a meaningful workload and not trusted to contribute with either bat or ball. In the last match of the season, she was finally given a substantial opportunity against Queensland, taking 3/21 from seven overs, as South Australia proceeded to a six-wicket victory. Nevertheless, in eight matches she scored only six runs at 2.00 in three innings, and took five wickets at a bowling average of 9.40 and an economy rate of 3.61. South Australia won only three matches and did not make the finals.
During the 2001–02 WNCL, Ebsary played in all eight matches, and was given more responsibility. This season, she batted in seven innings and bowled 51 of a maximum possible 80 overs. In the first match of the season, she took 3/29 from 10 overs against the titleholders New South Wales, and she scored 51 in the fifth match against Victoria. Ebsary did not have a significant impact in the other matches, never taking more than one wicket per match or reaching double figures with the bat. She ended the season with 67 runs at 9.57 and six wickets at 30.83 at an economy rate of 3.62. South Australia won four of their eight matches and did not make the final.
Ebsary was 18 during the season and still eligible for the Under-19s and she represented her state during the tournament, which was held in the middle of a break in the WNCL. She scored 119 runs at 19.83 and took nine wickets at 15.55 with a best of 4/27 against the Australian Capital Territory. At the end of the season, Ebsary was chosen in the Australia Youth team to play New Zealand A and New Zealand. In four matches she took two wickets at 32.00 at an economy rate of 2.66 but had no impact with the bat, scoring five runs at 1.66.
In the 2002–03 WNCL, Ebsary played in all eight matches, but was given less responsibility with the ball and had little success. She bowled only 23 overs and took two wickets at 34.00. She also had little effect with the bat, scoring 63 runs at 11.50 with a best score of 18. South Australia won five of their matches, narrowly missing the finals. Up to this point her batting average in 16 completed innings was 8.37.
At the start of the 2003–04 season, Ebsary was chosen in an Australian Under-23 team that played a two-innings match against the touring England team. Ebsary scored nine not out and took 4/35 and 0/4 from a total of 20 overs. She was somewhat more successful in the WNCL than in previous years, bowling 28 overs and taking five wickets at 17.00 at an economy rate of 3.03 with a best of 2/19 in the last match of the season with Victoria. She scored 91 runs at 15.16, her highest season aggregate and average to date, with a best of 26. This brought Ebsary's career average above 10 for the first time. South Australia won four of their matches and another was washed out, failing to make the final. She played in three matches for Australia Youth against New Zealand A at the end of the season, scoring 29 runs at 29.00 and taking three wickets at 16.66 at an economy rate of 4.54.
In 2004–05, Ebsary scored more than 100 runs in a WNCL season for the first time. She scored 125 runs at 20.83, averaging more than 20 for the first time in a season. Her best score of 36 not out came in a ten-wicket win over Western Australia, and in the other match against the state the preceding day, she scored 28 and took 2/26 in a 29-run win. Her best bowling performance came in the first match of the season as she took 3/32 and scored 25 in a six-wicket win over Queensland. Ebsary ended the season with six wickets at 26.83. She bowled 37 overs and conceded 4.35 runs per over.
In the 2005–06 WNCL season, Ebsary struggled to make an impact with the ball, taking four wickets at 43.00 at the relatively high economy rate of 4.91. Her figures were flattered by a haul of 3/32 in the final match of the season against Western Australia, in which she also made 26 to help seal a three-wicket win. Her batting continued to progress; she scored 149 runs at 29.80, including a best of 43 against Victoria. South Australia won five of their eight matches, again missing the finals.
Ebsary had more difficult times in the 2006–07 WNCL season. She took only three wickets at 60.33 and an economy rate of 5.14, the worst average and economy rate she had recorded for a WNCL season. She never took more than one wicket in any match. Her batting also regressed, making 101 runs at 14.42, more than half coming in a 51 against New South Wales in the last match of the season. This was Ebsary's last season for her native state as she moved to Western Australia for the 2007–08 season.
Move to Western Australia The transfer, in 2007, coincided with an upturn in Ebsary's career. After a slow start in the new WNCL season—Western Australia lost their first five matches—Ebsary became more productive. She scored 30 of 141 and took 1/16 in a low-scoring win over New South Wales in the sixth match. In the last double-header of the season, against Queensland, she made consecutive half-centuries for the first time in her career. In the first match she made 72 before taking 4/46 to help secure a 104-run win, before scoring 62 the next day to lay the foundation for a five-wicket win. Ebsary scored 236 runs at 29.50; her previous best WNCL aggregate was 149. However, she did have trouble in running between the wickets; three of her eight dismissals were run outs. She took eight wickets at 33.87 at an economy rate of 4.43 and had a workload more than 50% heavier than in previous seasons. Ebsary was not as successful in the fledgling Twenty20 format; in two matches for the season, her first in the most abbreviated form of cricket, she scored 33 runs at 16.50 and conceded 51 runs at an economy rate of 7.46 without taking a wicket. Ebsary later said "Looking back, the move to the West has been the best thing for my cricket...After settling our line-up, it gave me a chance to let loose at the top of the order and helped my confidence to be aggressive at the batting crease...Under the leadership of Avril Fahey, the West Aussies were very welcoming and I found my groove at the top of the order."
International debut
Ebsary was rewarded with international selection for the five-match One Day International ODI series against India at the start of the 2008–09 Australian season. Nerve damage in her toe ruled Ebsary out of contention for the first match at Hurstville Oval, which the hosts won by eight wickets with more than 12 overs to spare. The next day, she was given her debut in the second match of the series, at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Ebsary made five not out as the hosts made 6/215 batting first. Ebsary came in at 6/194 with 14 balls remaining in the Australia innings. She took a single off each of the five balls she faced, rotating the strike as her partner Lisa Sthalekar completed an unbeaten century. In the seventh over of India's reply, Ebsary's throw from the boundary ran out Jaya Sharma as the opener attempted to take a third run, leaving the tourists at 2/9.