Multan Sultans appoint Catherine Dalton as fast bowling coach

Dalton, who has played county cricket for Middlesex and Essex, is the first female to hold a coaching position in the Pakistan Super League

Nick Friend | 17/10/2023 at 13:44

Catherine Dalton has been named as Multan Sultans' fast bowling coach, breaking ground as the first female to hold a coaching role in the Pakistan Super League.

It is also believed that she is the first female to take up a bowling coach role within men's franchise cricket.

Sarah Taylor and Julia Price have also held coaching positions, while it is understood that former England bowler Alex Hartley is also set to join Sultans' backroom team, under the watch of Hijab Zahid, who was announced earlier this year as the first female general manager in PSL history.

Dalton, who has played county cricket for Middlesex and Essex, have prior experience of coaching in Pakistan, providing masterclass courses at the Tareen Cricket Academy set up by Sultans owner Ali Tareen. So, the 30-year-old has already worked with the likes of Mohammad Ilyas, Arshad Iqbal and Sameen Gul, all of whom are seamers with PSL experience.

"I know that it is such a groundbreaking role," she told The Cricketer, "and I know how much this is going to impact the cricket world and inspire more females to get into coaching, realising that there is a pathway into men's franchise cricket.

"But also, I have worked with a lot of first-class male players already. I'm only turning 31 next month, and I started quite young while I was playing."

She has been helped along the way by Ian Pont, the former Essex bowler turned fast bowling guru. Dalton credits him with her progression as a coach, all the way back to when Pont coached Dalton as a player on the edge of the England pathway.

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^{Dalton's appointment is a landmark moment for the game (Image: Multan Sultans)}

"I always thought that when I stopped playing I'd hopefully become a coach," she added, "but I hadn't really thought 10 years ahead. I don't think you do. I just fell into coaching in that sense, but I loved it. I started by coaching junior players at my local junior club – Hutton CC in Essex, with the women and girls' section. And I still enjoy it on a Friday, helping out young girls who are brand-new to the game. I just love seeing the improvement in any player.

"I wanted to be the first female fast bowling coach at a franchise. It is in the notes section on my iPhone as a goal. That is where I wanted to see myself, I really wanted to break down this barrier.

"I think if you have something to offer a player, they don't mind what source it comes from.

"So, that is what I've realised from going around the world, coaching male and female players. If you give them something to improve their game, they will latch onto it. So, my aim was to get into this. I want to be the first, but I don't want to be the only one. I want this to carry on now, so there are more female coaches breaking into these franchises because there are some fantastic coaches out there – and there will be more in the women's game now that it is professional.

"We saw Katherine Sciver-Brunt and Anya Shrubsole retire this year, and there will be more knowledge from these players, certainly. My aim was always to do that; I have ambitions to go on – maybe even be a head coach or a national coach at some point. But for right now, I am really enjoying what I'm doing."