Published: January 28, 2026 at 4:35 pm
Winds of change is blowing across women’s cricket. Some sensational, some dramatic, some emotional. It is also not just matching up to men’s cricket — taking catches out of the blue, hitting soaring sixes and earning accolades scoring centuries in all formats of the game. They are also not just bowling with venom but fielding with great alacrity like the men and building new ‘partnerships’ off the field which was a ‘no-no’ kind of alliance till three or four decades ago. We are witnessing a new dimension, a sexual orientation that some of these big-name players are involved in. Sports and sex were indeed strange bedfellows.
When Nat Sciver-Brunt hit the first WPL hundred, scoring 100 not out for Mumbai Indians against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a new side of their personality has come into focus. Whatever this phenomenon is called, it is, however, not new. It has caused raised eyebrows and frowns but nothing ‘under the sun is really ever new’. Nat said that hopefully her “partner” Katherine was watching her success with the willow.
Martina Navaratilova (right) with wife Julia Lemigova, who was the last Miss USSR and later became a model and actress. Pic: OutSFL
“Katherine obviously is watching as well, hopefully. I mean, she’s actually a really nervous watcher, so she’s probably not watching. But she wanted a tea and she wanted me to get three figures, so here we go,” Nat Sciver-Brunt said after her historic knock.
Nat Sciver-Brunt hit the first WPL century, scoring 100 not out for defending champions Mumbai Indians against Royal Challengers Bengaluru a few days ago. Sciver-Brunt ended a long wait for a century to be hit in the WPL, a 1059-day wait of the league, finally came to an end with Sriver-Brunt wielding her willow in style. She was also the first cricketer for England to take a hat-trick in a Women’s Twenty20 International match.
In October 2019, Sciver-Brunt announced her engagement to fellow England cricketer Katherine Brunt. This news created quite a ripple in sporting circles. Lesbianism is not new in women’s sports. There were a few incidents in international tennis and then in the world of athletics. But they were swept under the carpet after it created quite a flutter. This was also not the first in women’s cricket. But so far, all these incidents were under cover and never out in the open. This case has definitely raised its head and is making heads turn.
Nat married Katherine in 2022
These two were scheduled to get married in September 2020, but their wedding was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pair married in May 2022. Both changed their last name to Sciver-Brunt when they married, and in January 2023 it was announced that the pair would both use the name in all cricket-related instances. On 20 September 2024, the couple announced Katherine was pregnant with their first child. Their son was born in March 2025.
American football legend Abby Wambach (centre) with partner Glennon Doyle and family. Pic: Yahoo.com
It may be pertinent to mention that Sciver-Brunt was born in Tokyo, Japan. Her mother, Julia Longbottom, a British diplomat, was based in Japan at the time of Sciver-Brunt’s birth and has been the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Japan since March 2021. Sciver-Brunt’s father, Richard, is a business executive. As a child, Sciver-Brunt also lived in Poland, where she played in women’s league football, and the Netherlands, where she played basketball.
Sciver-Brunt attended Epsom College, Surrey, England, where, between 2007 and 2011, she played cricket alongside her future England teammate and fellow Test centurion Alice Davidson-Richards. She then studied sports and exercise science at Loughborough University. After her studies she played for England and met Katherine in due course and their relationship blossomed.
Following is the list of same sex marriages in women’s cricket:
Nat Sciver-Brunt and Katherine Sciver-Brunt (England).
Lizelle Lee and Tanja Cronje (South Africa).
Dane van Niekerk and Marizanne Kapp (South Africa).
Amy Satterthwaite and Lea Tahuhu (New Zealand).
Rachael Haynes and Leah Poulton (Australia).
Winds of change blowing in India too
There are such incidents in Indian sports too. Many women cricketers’ lives were enmeshed in such relationships, but they were never in the open. Many who had represented the country, sacrificed a lot, remained single and had given everything to their sport. Their passion for the sport made them focus single mindedly only on cricket and not on their personal lives. As coaches, mentors, managers, these players have remained down to earth, serving game and not exposing any of their weaknesses. Many embraced singlehood because of the passion they had for their sport. They never wanted to get married because it could be an impediment to their sporting careers.
Olympic boxer Nicola Adams (right) with partner Ella Baig, who is a model and influencer. Pic: Sky News
Call for equal treatment on and off the field
Many have come out of the closet. There are still many elephants in the room.
Iconic lesbian and queer Sports stars are as follows:
Soccer: Megan Rapinoe, Marta Vieira da Silva, Pernille Harder, Sam Kerr, Kristie Mewis, Abby Wambach, Casey Stoney, Magdalena Eriksson, Tierna Davidson, Mapi León.
Basketball: Sue Bird, Brittney Griner, Diana Taurasi, Candace Parker, DeWanna Bonner, Alyssa Thomas, Erin Phillips.
Tennis: Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, Demi Schuurs, Nadia Podoroska, Tara Moore.
Athletics & others: An Indian (sprinter), Nicola Adams (boxer), Amanda Nunes (MMA), Amandine Buchard (judoka), Laurel Hubbard (weightlifting), Kelly Holmes (middle-distance runner).
Notable LGBTQ+ couples in sports and many athletes share their lives publicly, often playing in the same leagues or for the same teams:
Kristie Mewis & Sam Kerr: US midfielder and Australian forward.
Marta & Carrie Lawrence: Brazilian forward and Orlando Pride teammate.
DeWanna Bonner & Alyssa Thomas: Connecticut Sun WNBA teammates.
Pernille Harder & Magdalena Eriksson: Danish and Swedish national players.
Tierna Davidson & Alison Jahansouz: US soccer.
These athletes continue to challenge stereotypes, with many, such as Rapinoe and an Indian athlete actively advocating for equality.
