It’s rare for an Ashes summer in England to feature a Bermudian cricketer, but teenager Brianna Ray changed that last month.

Ray, 19, got to play a role in the historic women’s five-day Test match between England and Australia at Trent Bridge as a substitute fielder and got to rub shoulders with international stars of both teams as she was handed the task of carrying drinks out to on the field.

While Australia won the contest by 89 runs on a thrilling final day, Ray’s family were thrilled to see their daughter play a part on the international stage, with her dad, Gary, taking immense pride in his daughter’s career.

“We are really proud of her achievements,’’ said Gary Ray.

“She got to be the twelfth man in the Test match between England and Australia, the biggest rivalry in women’s cricket.

“It was actually unbelievable and exciting and just being a part of the environment with the best cricketers in the world is huge.”

Ray has been in England since she was 14 on a cricket scholarship facilitated for her by the Bermuda Cricket Board in 2018 and she now plays for Lancashire.

She is also part of The Blaze Academy, the East Midlands’ new regional women’s side based at Trent Bridge. Considered the quickest bowler in the squad, Ray made the switch to The Blaze from Thunder, and her father is thrilled with her progress.

“She has really worked hard in the six years she has been in the UK to get to where she is now and it’s all starting to pay off for her,” he said.

“She truly deserved that opportunity. It’s very rewarding for her as she went to England on a cricket scholarship and to see where she is now is truly remarkable and makes us proud as parents.”

With opportunities limited in Bermuda with no national women’s team, Gary Ray feels that his daughter’s international path remains with England.

“She wants to play for England,” he said.

“That is what she is working on and she qualifies to play for England since she has been there for six years.”

At the moment, Ray is combining her burgeoning cricketing career with her studies at Loughborough University and the university were quick to applaud her success on Twitter.

“With the first women’s Ashes test coming to a conclusion today, we wanted to celebrate our very own Brianna Ray, who appeared as a substitute fielder for @englandcricket,’’ posted Loughborough at the time.

“Congratulations Brianna, we look forward to seeing many more Ashes appearances.”

Twitter

Her involvement in the women’s Ashes came days after she was part of the Loughborough team that defeated Durham by eight wickets in the final of the British Universities and Colleges Sport Women’s Championship at Kibworth Cricket Club.