Danielle McGahey Retires: Canada’s Danielle McGahey, who became the first transgender cricketer to play at the international level retires from cricket after ICC bans transgender cricketers.
Danielle McGahey Retires From Cricket
McGahey became the first transgender cricketer to play international cricket in October when she played for Canada in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 qualifier. McGahey played 6 matches and scored 118 runs in her international career for Canada.
The Brisbane-born 29-year-old, who played grade cricket in the men’s competition in Melbourne, moved to Canada in 2020. After her transition, she began playing women’s cricket in Canada and was called into the national team in October 2022.
The batter went on to play all 6 of Canada’s matches during the Women’s T20 World Cup Americas region qualifiers event in Los Angeles, to add to national team appearances previously in fixtures which did not hold official ICC status.
Canada came second in the four-team event, failing to qualify, with McGahey making 118 runs at 19.67 with a top score of 48 against Brazil.
The ICC said it had taken the decision, following an extensive scientific review and nine-month consultation, to “protect the integrity of the international women’s game and the safety of players”.
The new “gender eligibility regulation” does not apply to domestic cricket leagues, whose governing bodies will have to decide whether to apply similar regulations, the ICC said.
In a heartfelt post on social media, Daniele McGahey said she had no other option but to retire from international cricket after the ICC’s ruling came through on Tuesday.
“Following the ICC’s decision this morning, it is with a very heavy heart that I must say that my international cricketing career is over. As quickly as it begun, it must now end. Thank you so much to everybody who has supported me in my journey, from all of my teammates, all of the opposition, the cricketing community, and my sponsor,” McGahey, the 29-year-old, cricketer wrote.
McGahey did not hold back, sharing her view on the ICC ruling and the messaging it sent to the transgender community.
“While I hold my opinions on the ICC’s decision, they are irrelevant. What matters is the message being sent to millions of trans women today, a messaging say that we don’t belong. I promise I will not stop fighting for equality for us in our sport, we deserve the right to play cricket at the highest level, we are not a threat to the integrity or safety of the sport (sic),” McGahey said.
The ICC said the decision was taken following a 9-month consultation process with the stakeholders of the sport after a review was led by tits Medical Advisory Committee.
