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Lisa Sthalekar on leadership on and off the field
Lisa Sthalekar is a former Australian cricketer and is on the boards of the Chappell Foundation and the Federation of International Cricketers' Assocations. In this special episode to celebrate International Women's Day and the T20 Women's Cricket World Cup, Lisa talks about how leadership in sports translates to the wider world, what she admires in a leader, changing the inherent bias in cricket language and the growing diversity of the sport. [01:02] How did you become a world class cricketer? What’s your story? Born in India, Lisa was adopted by a white English mother and an Indian father. Lisa said that when she was young she followed her Dad around everywhere, and cricket happened to be one of his passions so she was naturally drawn to the sport. Growing up going to cricket games at the SCG, Lisa quickly developed a deep curiosity but soon realised the barriers that existed around girls playing cricket in Australia. It wasn’t until Lisa was around 10 that her dad spoke to the local boys team and asked if she could play with them, and while they were hesitant about a girl playing for an all boys club this is where she did end up playing and this is where her passion for the game was developed. [03:09] Did you believe this was the norm that only boys could play cricket? Unbeknownst to the world of women’s cricketing Lisa learned through motivation by both herself and her parents that there were a number of opportunities for her to progress in Australian cricket, however, she also knew she had to get out of her comfort zone in order to do so. [04:31] Was the idea of Cricket as a career unthinkable growing up? Even following her retirement in 2013, Lisa was unsure what her next steps would be. Throughout her career, Lisa was juggling both full time work, training commitments and taking leave when she went on tours for cricket Australia. While Lisa was consistently one of the highest paid women Cricketers throughout her career, the economy of women’s cricket didn’t allow for total focus, however, Lisa notes that seven years on from her retirement some women are getting paid triple figures and opportunities are growing. [05:31] What do you think being a leader of sports team and being a leader in the business world have in common? Lisa believes that a leader, regardless of whether they are in business or on a sporting team, have a clear goal and can communicate with large, varying groups of people on how to achieve this goal. Finding a common goal amongst a group of people and using your passion to extract this from them is difficult, but essential in becoming a good leader. [06:57] Can you give us some examples of how the language used in women’s sport is changing to fit the more inclusive and progressive nature of sports nowadays? Being a commentator Lisa understands that the history of many sports, including cricket, has been dominated by male players, announcers and terminology. However, she’s noticing that with a change in opportunity, people around the game are beginning to understand the importance of using gender-neutral terms. For example, batsman into batter, or man of the match into player of the match. Lisa believes this is important as it teaches the youth watching that there is this opportunity for women to participate and succeed. Lisa also believes it’s the role of the commentator as the first line of reception for these young kids to be the pioneers of this change. [10:29] Who are some great leaders you’ve admired? Former New South Wales and Australia Cricket Captain, Belinda Clark was deeply influential for Lisa as she was an instrumental leader throughout nearly her entire professional career. Lisa believed that Belinda was passionate and showed time and time again what it took to come back from adversity and get better following defeat. She said that her ability to understand her team and adjust her leadership style gave her the longevity and capability to lead both th
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