Take Her Lead, the not-for-profit organisation launched by former England cricketer-turned-broadcaster Isa Guha in September 2022, has announced a new initiative to empower women & girls through cricket. ‘Got Your Back’ aims to celebrate women and girls across the game, listen to their needs, and showcase the positive powers of the cricket community.
The digital-focussed initiative is led by a launch video featuring England captain Heather Knight and leading batter Sophia Dunkley, both of whom are Take Her Lead ambassadors. The video sees Knight and Dunkley join a group of girls enjoying a coaching session and committing to having each other’s back in different cricket-related scenarios.
“Take Her Lead as an organisation is all about living up to its name”, said Isa Guha. “We want cricket to be an inclusive, positive and engaging experience for every woman and girl.
“As an organisation, we have heard so much from women and girls about why they love cricket; the game itself, the friendships made and the opportunity to learn and develop skills that benefit you outside of cricket.
“But we’ve also heard about the challenges faced along the way. The stories of girls feeling isolated in the game. This is where our ‘Got Your Back’ campaign has originated from. We want girls to know that we see you, that we are all part of the same squad, and that together we can drive a positive future for the sport.”
Heather Knight also showed her support for the initiative, saying: “Cricket has changed massively for girls but there are still a lot of barriers that I can relate to growing up, including being the only girl in an all-male team.
“It is important that these young girls have role models and people who can look out for them and give them the feeling that someone has their back.”
As the first black woman to play Test cricket for England, Sophia Dunkley knows first-hand the importance of representation. She commented: “We have listened to women and girls and heard their experiences of entering cricket for the first time. There are many positive experiences, but there are also learnings and ‘Got Your Back’ is a great opportunity for us to shine a light on those women and girls and demonstrate our support to them.”
‘Got Your Back’ has been endorsed by the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), who are working closely with Take Her Lead in support of the organisation’s mission.
Richard Gould, Chief Executive at the ECB, announced their backing: “We are committed to transforming women’s & girls’ cricket, with the fundamental goal of making cricket a gender-balanced sport.
“Our vision is closely aligned with Take Her Lead, and the ‘Got Your Back’ campaign is a great show of support as we look to reduce the barriers to women & girls taking part in our great game.
“We listen to what our player base is telling us and are proud to work with Take Her Lead to make cricket an inclusive sport for all.”
Finally, Eoin Morgan, England’s former World Cup winning captain and Take Her Lead ambassador, spoke of his desire to support ‘Got Your Back’. “I’ve been lucky to have strong female voices around me who I have been inspired by, so I am all for championing women in our sport. Having female leaders is integral to supporting young girls in the community and I hope that young boys are inspired by it too.”
The campaign is asking cricket fans across the UK to join the conversation by sharing their own ‘Got Your Back’ message of support on social media using the hashtag #TakeHerLead. These messages will join those of Take Her Lead ambassadors and shared across social media over the coming months.
To find out more about ‘Got Your Back’ and Take Her Lead, please visit takeherlead.org, or find them on Instagram, Twitter & LinkedIn.
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About Take Her Lead:
Take Her Lead is a non-profit organisation working to ensure that cricket is a place where every woman & girl can fulfil her potential and thrive. They work to enable a more inclusive culture across cricket for women and girls by empowering, amplifying and connecting across the game.
‘Got Your Back’ has been developed in partnership with Engage Digital Partners, who produced the launch video. For more information, visit www.engagedigitalpartners.com.
Contact details:
Jayde Ellis, Chief Executive Officer
+44 (0) 7557 735616
