First Indigenous Australian Cricketer Faith Thomas Dies At 90

Indigenous people in Australia suffered a lot of atrocities and difficult situations in the past. Their struggle for equal respect and rights is known to the world. Among the many leaders who brought indigenous people into the spotlight was Faith Thomas, Australia's first-ever indigenous sportswoman who the world lost on April 17.

90-year-old Faith Thomas died of old age on Monday leaving behind a legacy of contributing to the welfare of Indigenous people in Australia. A cricketer as well as a hockey player, Thomas was the first Indigenous woman who represented Australia in a sport. Born to a German father and Adnyamathanha mother in 1933 in South Australia's Nepabunna Aboriginal Mission, Thomas played cricket with stones and woods when she was a child. She was raised in Quorn's Colebrook Home for Aboriginal Children and went on to pursue nursing training before she entered sports.

Suggested Reading: Who is Nandini Gupta? 19-Year-Old Crowned As Miss India 2023

Who Was Faith Thomas?

A 1954 graduate from the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Thomas was the first South Australian Indigenous woman to become a public servant as a nurse. It was during her training that she was introduced to cricket and she soon was a part of the women's cricket team of South Australia. She was a part of the state cricket team between 1956 to 1958 while she was getting trained in midwifery at Adelaide's Queen Victoria Hospital.

A skilled right-handed fast bowler, Thomas was famous for her deadly yorkers and in 1958, she got into the Australian national women's cricket team to play against England. This was the same year when she was offered an employment opportunity at Raukkan post her midwifery training.

Thomas was offered a place in the Australian national women's cricket team for a test match tour to New Zealand and England which she declined as she wanted to focus on her career as a nurse. 

Before Ashleigh Gardner's selection in Australia's national cricket team in 2019, Thomas was the only Indigenous woman to play test cricket for the country. To honour her contribution to women's cricket and the Indigenous community, a tournament is named after her which is organised by the Women's Big Bash League annually and the winner gets the Faith Thomas Trophy.