Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Hannah Rainey pictured at Yorkshire’s pre-season photo-shoot.
It was a strange old winter for Yorkshire fast bowler Hannah Rainey, but when all is said and done it could have paved the way for a very special summer.
Rainey joined the White Rose from Roses rivals Lancashire late last summer, initially on loan prior to a two-year contract.
She helped the county win the Tier 2 Metro Bank One-Day Cup title, impressing during the competition’s latter stages thanks to two wickets in the semi-final win over Middlesex at Radlett and then one in the rain-affected final win over Glamorgan at New Road.
The 28-year-old then spent the winter with Scotland, building up to a successful T20 World Cup qualifying campaign in Nepal.
Rainey played in a handful of warm-up games either side of Christmas, but when the main event came she was sidelined with a side injury.
Thankfully now, she is fit and firing. First, her main focus is on Yorkshire. Then, come June time, she will turn her attentions to that T20 World Cup, hosted in England.
“At the start of our trip to Nepal, it was pretty disappointing (to pick up the injury),” she said. “It’s never what you want, but it’s part and parcel of being a seamer.
“You have to pick yourself up and go again and get ready for the next thing.
“But I’m really proud of the team and how they played in Nepal to qualify. And I’m hoping to be a part of it this summer.”
Rainey, who is out in Potchefstroom on Yorkshire’s pre-season tour, added: “I’m all good now, fit and ready to go, which is great.”
To be able to join Yorkshire’s squad for the best part of two months before joining full-time was definitely something the London-born quick saw as a bonus.
She continued: “It was definitely a really nice way to get integrated into the team – making the move across the Pennines – to get to be part of the team before I joined them in the winter.
“Enjoying that taste of victory at the end of the season was very special, and they’re memories I’m sure we’ll all remember forever. Hopefully, we can carry through that success into Tier 1.
“It’s really exciting that we’re making the move up. There’s a lot of us who want to go out and show what we can do. As a team, we might be a little bit of an underdog, but I think we’re a very strong team. We’re a really fit team, and we’re ready to take on that challenge.”
Rainey has experience of both top-level regional cricket and Tier 1, whether it be with the old (Lancashire) Thunder side or with Warwickshire, who she spent a brief time on loan with last summer.
“It’s definitely challenging,” said the player who is approaching 100 senior appearances across all cricket.
“You’ll realise when you go up to that level, the margin for error is definitely smaller. But we did very well in Tier 2, and we’re ready for it.”
And on the prospect of playing at the T20 World Cup, which includes the blockbuster group game of Scotland versus England at Headingley, she added: “It’s very, very special that it’s in the UK.
“A lot of us have family and friends who’ve never really been able to travel and watch us play abroad.
“So to be able to play on home soil, especially at places like Headingley and Old Trafford, it’s amazing. To play against England at Headingley will be extra special.
“I hope there will be more Scotland fans who come to watch us, and – fingers crossed – we can win some games.”