Kirstie Gordon Returns to Scotland, Ending England Stint for Homecoming

The 28-year-old left-arm spinner, who was born in Huntly, began her international career with Scotland at just 14 years old. However, in 2018, she chose to focus on a full-time cricket career within the English domestic system.

During her time with England, Gordon earned selection for the 2018 T20 World Cup and played in a one-off Test against Australia in 2019.

"It's always been in the back of my mind in the last couple of years to return to Scotland, and it has helped having Craig Wallace (Scotland head coach) in my ear! He's been on the phone a few times and I feel like I've really connected with him and his vision for the team. If you couple that with the chance to play again with two of my best mates in Kathryn (Bryce) and Sarah (Bryce), it feels like it's the right moment to come home," Gordon said in a Cricket Scotland statement.

"I made my Scotland debut very young, and I was fortunate to go to the first global qualifiers in Thailand in 2015, so I had some awesome experiences with Scotland at that time, but I was really keen to try and take my cricketing career as far as I could. Going to Loughborough for university, the opportunities and avenues to play at a higher level really opened up from there. I eventually decided to stop my Scotland career and become a local player in order to play for Loughborough Lightning.

"I guess I did that while not really knowing what the prospects were, but I then was selected for England at the World Cup in the West Indies. It was probably always on my radar that I wanted to play at the highest level, so I absolutely loved it, and I'm really grateful for those opportunities," she added.

Between 2012 and 2017, Gordon represented Scotland in 60 international matches before switching to England. Now, after recovering from a back injury, she plans to be ready for the start of the 2026 domestic season and will be available for future Scotland selections.

"It's exciting to hear Kirstie is now available for selection for Scotland and we are delighted to welcome her back home. She's obviously a top-class player and an excellent person and having got to know her I'm looking forward to the opportunity to work with her. I think the most pleasing thing about her decision is that it shows the strength of our squad, that somebody of Kirstie's ability is wanting to come and challenge to compete for a place in the team. We have created a strong group and culture on and off the pitch, and it's fantastic that she wants to join it and be part of the journey," head coach Craig Wallace said.

Scotland are gearing up for the T20 World Cup qualifiers, which will take place in Nepal in January 2026.

"The standard (of Scotland cricket) now is much higher, and there's real competition for places, and I absolutely think it'll be a great place to be part of. There's also a number of young spinners pushing through, and I'm keen to help them if I can, so that when I eventually leave the game, I've added some value to help improve Scottish cricket even more.

"I'm hoping like everyone else is that the team will be successful in Nepal and qualify for the World Cup in the summer, but this decision is not about the short term - hopefully for a number of years, I can be a part of Cricket Scotland as a player as well as supporting the younger players coming through. Whatever that looks like, I'm eager to get involved," Gordon said.

- IANS