Eileen Whelan

Eileen May Ash ( Whelan; 30 October 1911 – 3 December 2021) was an English cricketer and supercentenarian who played primarily as a right-arm medium bowler.

As Eileen Whelan, she appeared in seven Test matches for England between 1937 and 1948/49. Ash was the longest-lived international cricketer, living to the age of 110 years and 34 days.

Early life and education Eileen May Whelan was born in Highbury, Middlesex.

Cricket career Ash played club cricket for the Ilford Wanderers and Wagtails teams, and top level domestic cricket for Civil Service, Middlesex, and South of England. and playing her last Test against New Zealand in Auckland in March 1949. A specialist bowler, she took ten Test wickets at an average of 23.00. Also in 1949, she met Australian cricketer Don Bradman at a French restaurant in Sydney, and received a bat signed by him.

Working life and retirement Ash was employed by the Civil Service from the age of 18. She was seconded to MI6 during World War II, and went on to work with that organisation for eleven years. Ash and her husband eventually retired to Norwich. She took up golf in later life, only quitting aged 98.

Centenarian In 2011, Ash became the first female Test cricketer to live to 100 years old. She was made an honorary life member of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) to mark the occasion.

In July 2017, aged 105, Ash rang the bell at Lord's to signal the start of play at the 2017 Women's World Cup Final, which England won against India. She rang the bell for five minutes at Lord's in order to commemorate the 80th anniversary of her international debut. To mark her 106th birthday, she was taken for a flight in a Tiger Moth. In 2019, the MCC unveiled a portrait of her at Lord's.

In January 2021, aged 109, she became one of the oldest people in the UK to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Ash celebrated her 110th birthday on 30 October 2021 at the Norwich care home in which she resided. She died just under five weeks later, on 3 December 2021.