2023 ended on a bright note for Darcey as she was nominated for the ICC Women\u2019s Emerging Cricketer of the Year Award, alongside eventual winner Phoebe Litchfield, Marufa Akter and Lauren Bell. Darcey, who has qualified to play for Scotland through her mother\u2019s Scottish heritage, is now geared up to take part in the upcoming Women\u2019s T20 World Cup in the UAE from October 3-20.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"Seeing England win ODI World Cup in 2017 was really great. I was growing up watching World Cups, it\u2019s always been a dream of mine to get to one. Qualifying for the under 19 World Cup was the first time I was in a World Cup. I was part of a new group for Scotland. Just to be able to be a part of that first ever under 19 World Cup was a really great experience.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"Definitely a bit of butterflies. It\u2019s like the biggest tournament in cricket and it\u2019s really exciting. There\u2019s more excitement now. I\u2019m really lucky to be able to play in my first World Cup at 19. Like, there\u2019s not an awful lot of people that get to do that.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"The fact that I\u2019ve already got that opportunity is great. So I\u2019m definitely more excited than nervous. The prep before that first game is probably when it\u2019ll start sinking in and actually realise that it\u2019s pretty big deal of being at a World Cup,\" said Darcey to IANS in the run-up to the tournament.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Hailing from Bexley, Darcey has featured in 17 T20Is for Scotland - making 335 runs at an average of 23.92 and picking 15 wickets while averaging 12.93. She has mentioned that her parents will be making the journey to the UAE in order to join the group of Scotland\u2019s supporters, which comprises other players\u2019 families and friends.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"I haven\u2019t been in the group for that long, so I haven\u2019t experienced all the other qualifiers. When I came in to the team, we managed to qualify in my first qualifiers, it feels great to be able to do that and get to a World Cup, especially for all the other players that have been here for such a long time,\" she added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In just her second international game in July 2023, Darcey made an immediate impression by striking 53 not out - her maiden half-century in the tri-series against the Netherlands. Her best bowling figures is 3-11, again coming against the Netherlands.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Darcey acknowledged that the call-up to the senior Scotland team came as a surprise. Although Darcey\u2019s life as an international cricketer has been enjoyable, it has not been entirely comfortable.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"Since then, just the tours after that and just trying to like find my place in the squad - it\u2019s been really exciting and also quite nerve-racking sometimes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"Like coming into a new group and playing international cricket. But I really enjoyed it. I wouldn\u2019t say I\u2019m comfortable, but definitely a bit more settled and not as nervous as I was when making my international debut.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Scotland, an associate nation member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in Group B of the T20 World Cup alongside England, South Africa, West Indies, and Bangladesh. Darcey remarked Scotland is determined to show their potential on the largest stage they have ever faced in their cricketing history.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"It just allows us to play with freedom and play our style of cricket. If we can win a couple of games, that\u2019d be great. But it\u2019s also just showing all the other teams what we can do. An England game will always be a really exciting game. Like that rivalry, it\u2019s been there for quite a while. So I think that\u2019s definitely the game I\u2019m most excited to play.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"Our analysts will be sorting out like facts to help us look at what the other teams will be bringing, like what they do, and that will be really helpful. But at the moment, you just have to think you are just here to play the game. I don\u2019t try not to focus too much on who we\u2019re playing against, just try and turn up and do my best.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
During her formative years, Darcey, a product of the Kent Talent Pathway system, witnessed her father\u2019s cricket matches due to her mother\u2019s efforts to take her and her brother to watch him play.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
As five-year-olds, she and her brother took to playing cricket. At an under 11s practice, her coach introduced the playing group to practising spin bowling, and Darcey developed a liking for bowling off-spin.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"I finished school last year, so obviously, balancing school and international cricket is quite difficult. It\u2019s not that easy and there\u2019s a lot of things you have to kind of try and balance to make both things work. But with me finishing school, I have a lot more time to just focus on cricket, which has been really helpful for me in the last couple of months.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Outside of the T20 World Cup, Darcey hopes to explore a bit more of Dubai, something which she didn\u2019t get to do last time during the qualifiers. \"We have a couple of people on our team who are social secretaries, so they\u2019ll sort out fun little things for us to do as a team to just keep that bonding going. I\u2019m not sure we\u2019ve got a plan yet, but I\u2019m sure there\u2019ll be a few things lined up.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
As Scotland makes its debut in the Women\u2019s T20 World Cup, Darcey, a devoted fan of England\u2019s left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone, wishes for the team\u2019s success to inspire a surge of interest in women\u2019s cricket among people back home.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Outside of the T20 World Cup, Darcey hopes to explore a bit more of Dubai, something which she didn\u2019t get to do last time during the qualifiers. \"We have a couple of people on our team who are social secretaries, so they\u2019ll sort out fun little things for us to do as a team to just keep that bonding going. I\u2019m not sure we\u2019ve got a plan yet, but I\u2019m sure there\u2019ll be a few things lined up.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
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