Who Is Joanna Child? The 64-Year-Old Cricketer Who Becomes Second-Oldest Debutant In T20I Cricket

Joanna Child achieved an elusive landmark during the Portugal Women's Cricket Team's match against Norway in the 1st T20I game of the series at Albergaria, on Monday, April 7th. The 64-year and 184-day cricketer etched her name on the record books as she became the second-oldest cricketer to ever make a debut in the T20Is.

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Who Is Joanna Child?

During Portugal Women's three-match series against Norway, Child played all three games of the series. In her three T20I matches, the Portuguese cricketer scored three runs in one inning at a strike rate of 25.00. Meanwhile, with the ball, she failed to bag any wickets and gave 11 runs in just one inning at an economy rate of 16.50. She is a right-handed batter, and her bowling style is right arm slow

Joanna Child became a sensation on the internet as soon as the news went viral on the internet. She received lots of praise from the social media users.

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Taking to X (formerly known as Twitter), a social media user hailed Joanna Child and pointed out that Portugal's women's side also featured players with an age group of 15 and 16.

“Congrats to Joanna Child, who made her T20I debut recently. At 64, she becomes the 2nd oldest cricketer to make her T20I debut after Gibraltar's Sally Barton. Portugal team also featured cricketers who were just 15, 16. The team's captain Sarah called Joanna an inspiration,” a user wrote on X.

Joanna Child Scores 2 Runs In Her T20I Debut Match

It was not the debut match Child wanted, the 64-year-old scored two runs from eight balls on April 7th. However, her performance did not stop Portugal from sealing a triumph over Norway at Albergaria. The Portuguese side clinched a 16-run victory against Norway in the first game.

In the second match of the series, the Norwegian side made a comeback over Portugal and clinched a five-wicket victory over the hosts. In the third and final match of the series, Portugal maintained dominance and sealed the game by nine wickets. Portugal won the series 2-1 over Norway.

Only Gibraltar's Sally Barton stands ahead of Joanna Child in the list. Sally played her maiden T20I game at the age of 66 years and 334 days. Meanwhile, Child leapfrogged Falkland Islands' Andrew Brownlee to achieve the milestone. Brownlee made his debut in the T20Is at the age of 62 years, and 145 days.