Beams excited for Ashes debut

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There’s nothing typical about Kristen Beams.

The Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars leg-spin bowler is Tasmanian but plays for Victoria.

Beams has an affinity with Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt but opted for the life of a tweaker rather than an express pace bowler.

And Beams waited more than a decade to make her international debut, but now that she has embarked on her first international tour, she’s not going to give it up without a fight.

“I think I’m different to most, I’ve played a lot of cricket and I take comfort in that, that I’ve had the opportunity to play so much, it makes me enjoy it more than be nervous about it,” Beams told cricket.com.au.

“You’d hope you’re good enough to play at that level and I’m just going to keep taking my opportunities and hope they can never get rid of me.”

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The 30-year-old lives with the mantra that opportunities are meant to be taken, something she hasn’t shied away from since making her Australian debut in 2014.

“I’m surprised I’m getting the opportunity so I think I’m really just enjoying it as opposed to being really nervous,” she said.

“I think sometimes people forget I haven’t been around for a long time just because I am a little bit older, the girls have played a lot of cricket together and been on tours before so there’s some good experience that I can draw from.”

Beams worked closely with former Test spinner Bryce McGain, who also debuted on the international scene after a long domestic career, and said she hasn’t experienced a preparation like the Southern Stars’ one so far in her short career.

“Our preparations have been so good, I’ve probably never bowled this many balls in the lead up to a series… tactically for me, I want to be really challenging, bowl a bit straighter and ask a few more questions, I’ve really enjoyed working with Bryce and I’m hoping that it’s a partnership moving forward.”

Beams has experienced English conditions previously, having spent a summer with county side Essex in 2013 but has yet to face England in her six ODI and T20 matches to date.

As the only leg-spin bowler in the squad, Beams has one goal in mind during the Ashes.

“The ultimate is the Test match. I’ve had the opportunities to play ODIs and T20s but the dream has always been to play Test cricket for Australia so if I was lucky enough to get a Baggy Green I’d be very, very happy,” said Beams.

Southern Stars coach Matthew Mott also sees the importance of Beams’ addition to the squad, particularly on the spin-friendly wickets of the United Kingdom.

“I’ve been lucky enough to see in the last couple of months her development, her speed on the ball has improved a lot and I think she will be a real handful in their conditions,” Mott said.

“Certainly Beamsy’s development has been exciting to watch and I personally can’t wait to see her unleash in game format.”

When prompted to deliver a warning message to her English counterparts, Beams opted for the agreeable approach.

“No message but they can be sure I’ll be looking forward to bowling with them and I’ll be smiling the whole time.”

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