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Her Game Too Cricket are excited to announce that the campaign has partnered with The Rosa Talks Ball Podcast. This marks the cricket branch’s first partnership with a podcast.
An extension of the personal mission that Rosa Simkin – the podcast’s host and founder – has dedicated herself to since the age of 15, the Rosa Talks Ball Podcast was established with one simple mission: “to shine a light on those within women’s sports and present a platform to those who most require it.”
Like so many of us, cricket has always been a part of Rosa’s life. Surrounded by a family of players and enjoyers, it was only inevitable that she was going to catch the cricket-loving bug.
Whilst the family had cricketing connections in Roses territory – having frequented both Old Trafford and Headingley – it was when Rosa’s parents worked together at Warwick University that ultimately lead to her beloved Warwickshire membership.
Over the years, Edgbaston has played host to some of English cricket’s greatest moments; whether on the field or in the stands, it’s a place where memories that will last a lifetime are made. For Rosa, it is where she fell in love with the game and where her journey in cricket media began.
After being “quite literally dragged” to a T20 Blast game at Edgbaston by her older sister, Mae, Rosa started to understand what all the hype was about...
“I couldn’t tell you who was playing or what happened during the game, but I genuinely enjoyed it. Sports had never really interested me before, but over time, that enjoyment turned into love”
Thrilled to have converted another daughter into a cricket-lover, the whole family would take trips to England internationals, Warwickshire matches and T20 Blast Finals Day each year.
Rosa’s introduction to Women’s cricket came in 2021 when she attended a Rachael-Heyhoe Flint Trophy clash between Central Sparks and Western Storm. Unlike her first experience of Edgbaston, this is a match that has stuck with her ever since...
“The highlight of the day was England wicketkeeper Amy Jones’ 163* from 114 balls, a total that will forever remain the highest in the tournament.
Don’t get me wrong, I was aware of women’s cricket before this point, but I had never particularly appreciated it as much as the men’s game and a lot of that was owing to the lack of exposure surrounding the sport.”
It was this recognition of the stark differences between the coverage of Women’s cricket in comparison to their male counterparts which has driven Rosa towards pursuing a career in cricket media....
“I attended a Central Sparks/Bears double-header at Edgbaston and was extremely frustrated to see the packed crowd empty out ahead of the women’s game. So, I started my platform, Rosa Talks Ball, initially focused on vlogs on Instagram and coverage of Central Sparks and Birmingham Phoenix.”
By the end of 2023, the Rosa Talks Ball platform had evolved following the successful launches of a blog and a podcast of the same name.
“My platform, in all its forms, exists to serve one purpose: shining a light on those involved in women’s sports—especially those who are so often overlooked—while also discussing the challenges and issues they face.”
2024 was an exciting year for Rosa Talks Ball; over the summer, Rosa covered 28 professional cricket matches across 19 teams, 10 grounds, and 5 tournaments/series, attending the Rachael Heyhoe-Flint Trophy, Charlotte Edwards Cup and Hundred Finals as well as getting the opportunity to do some pitchside photography. On top of all this, she secured an internship with Wisden/The Cricket Paper and published her first written pieces for the publications: a Vitality Blast Group Stage Round-Up and a Danni Wyatt-Hodge interview for The Cricket Paper.
Looking ahead to 2025, Rosa is showing no signs of slowing down...
“My passion is to help drive the game forward. We are living in an era of great successes for women’s sport; record attendances, increased financial interest and that iconic Lionesses’ home European Championship victory. However, the reality for the majority is still a battle for growth, especially within cricket. The need to level up the domestic cricket landscape and my anger towards the inequality women’s cricketers face, even lacking at times the basic resources they require for success drives the need and focus of my platform.”
With professional Women’s cricket in England and Wales undergoing a drastic restructure ahead of the 2025 season, which has seen the introduction of a new tiered system along with a new FA-cup style T20 tournament, it is an exciting time to amplify new voices and raise the profile of the Women’s game.
At Her Game Too, it is our mission to highlight the importance of equality and diversity, fight against sexism and misogyny and give encourage more women and girls to get involved in sports; whether that is through playing, spectating, officiating or working.
It, therefore, brings us great pleasure in announcing that Her Game Too Cricket are joining forces with the Rosa Talks Ball podcast.
Paige Caunce, Head of Her Game Too Cricket, said: “Rosa has been an incredible advocate for not just Her Game Too, but for women working in and being a fan of sports for a long time now. She is committed to raising awareness of Women’s sport, as well as being an incredible role model for those aspiring to get into sports media and journalism. To have been able to achieve all of this at such a young age is astonishing.
We are incredibly excited to be working alongside Rosa, combining our platforms to spread the message that cricket is Her Game Too and to inspire the next generation of female players, journalists, officials and broadcasters.
On behalf of the team, I’d like to express our gratitude to Rosa for her unwavering support of the campaign.”
Keep up with the Rosa Talks Ball platforms...
Podcast: Available on Spotify.
X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @rosatalksball