Erin Osborne

Erin Alyce Osborne (born 27 June 1989) is an Australian former cricketer and current cricket coach and commentator, who appeared in 2 Test matches, 60 One Day Internationals and 59 Twenty20 Internationals for Australia between 2009 and 2016. An all-rounder, she played as a right-arm off break bowler and right-handed batter. She coached the ACT's female Meteors Development Squad, and was Cricket ACT’s Male Pathway Manager, the first woman to hold the role. She is now currently the head coach of Somerset Women.

She made her international debut in early 2009 after topping the wicket-taking aggregates in her debut season for New South Wales in the WNCL. However, she found it difficult to maintain a regular position in the Australian team because of the presence of Shelley Nitschke and Lisa Sthalekar, two spin bowling all-rounders who were ranked in the top ten in the world for both bowling and all-round performance.

After scoring an unbeaten century for New South Wales at Under-19 level in 2007, Osborne made her WNCL during the 2008–09 season. After taking two wickets for 13 runs (2/13) from ten overs on debut, she took three wickets in each of the next two matches. She later took 4/18 against Victoria and ended with 15 wickets at 14.20 as New South Wales took out the WNCL. Osborne was rewarded with selection for the Rose Bowl series against New Zealand, and took 3/32 in her third match, ending the series with five wickets. She was retained for the 2009 World Cup held in Australia, playing in six of the hosts' seven matches. She took nine wickets at 19.77.

Osborne was selected for the 2009 World Twenty20 in England but did not play in any of the matches. Australia stayed for a bilateral series against the hosts, and Osborne was dropped after going wicketless in the first two ODIs and being required to bowl less than half of her overs; she was also overlooked for the one-off Test. During the 2009–10 WNCL, Osborne took 15 wickets at 14.17, including a haul of 3/33 in the final against Victoria, helping to secure a 59-run win and a fifth consecutive WNCL title for New South Wales. She was named the player of the match for her contributions. In the T20 competition, she took eight wickets in seven matches. In a series for the Australian Under-21s against New Zealand Emerging Players, Osborne was dismissed once in scoring 129 runs and took six wickets at 15.50.

Osborne was selected for the Rose Bowl series at the end of the season but had limited opportunities because of the presence of Sthalekar and Nitschke. She played in six of the eight ODIs and bowled less than half of the possible number of overs, taking five wickets at 32.20. She played in only one of the five T20 internationals, taking 1/13 from two overs.

Youth career In January 2007, aged 17 and a half, she played for New South Wales in the Under-19 interstate competition. In the match against Western Australia, she hammered an unbeaten 106 as New South Wales amassed 3/305 before dismissing their opponents for 35.

Domestic debut In October 2008, Osborne played her first match for the senior New South Wales team in a match against India. She took 1/24 from eight overs, took two wickets and scored 21 in a 48-run loss.

International debut

Osborne was rewarded with her first international call-up ahead of the 2009 Women's Cricket World Cup after leading the wicket-taking in the WNCL. She made her debut on the Rose Bowl series in February 2009 played away against New Zealand. Osborne played in the first four ODIs, making her debut at Cobham Oval in Whangārei. Batting in the lower-order, she made four not out as Australia made 8/150. She then took 1/19 from her ten overs, with three maidens, as the hosts narrowly won by two wickets. She was recalled and took 1/22 against Pakistan and 1/41 against England, bowling ten overs in both games. Osborne was not required to bat as the Australians won both matches but it was not enough to place them in the top two nations and qualify for the final. They faced India in the third place playoff and Osborne fell for six. The hosts were all out for 142 and India reached the target with three wickets in hand despite Osborne's economical return of 2/21 from nine overs.

Australia stayed in England for a bilateral series against the hosts, who were the reigning world champions in both ODIs and T20s, after the end of the World Twenty20. Osborne was drought in and took 2/24 from four overs as Australia upset England in the only T20 by 34 runs after scoring 3/151. She was played in the first two ODIs held at Ford County Ground, Chelmsford, taking a total of 0/39 from eight overs and making 1 and 11 not out in comfortable English victories by nine wickets and 53 runs. She was left out of the remaining three matches; England won all the matches except the last, which was washed out.

Australia were grouped with defending champions England, South Africa and the West Indies. In the first match, Australia defeated England after the scores were tied, as well as the Super Over, because they had scored the only six of the match. In the following match, they defeated South Africa by 24 runs. Osborne played in neither matches, but she was called into the team for the West Indies match in place of Sarah Elliott. A leg spinning all rounder, Elliott failed to have an impact with either bat or ball, making only 4 from 15 balls, and 8 from 6 balls in the two matches, and had only bowled in the latter fixture, taking 0/22 from two overs. Osborne was brought in, giving Australia an extra frontline bowling option.

Osborne was not required to bat as Australia finished on 7/133, and was then expensive with the ball, taking 0/20 from two overs as Australia won by nine runs to finish the group stage unbeaten at the top of their quartet. She caught Pamela Lavine from the bowling of Perry. Australia went on to face India in the semi-final, and Elliott was brought back in place of Osborne. Elliott was required to neither bat nor bowl as the Indians ended with 3/119, which was chased down by the Australians with seven wickets and seven balls to spare, and was retained for the final, making 19 not out from 20 Australia won by three runs in a low-scoring match.