Hailing from Melbourne, Rachael Haynes started playing cricket from a very young age. Having grown up playing mainly against boys, she made the move to Box Hill Cricket Club to take part in the women’s competition. After representing Victoria in the interstate U 17 and U 19 tournaments, Haynes made her WNCL debut for Victoria in the 2005/06 season as a 19-year-old.
While her debut season was rather quiet, the following year saw Haynes recording two fifties and her side - Victoria - finished as runners-up in 2006-07. It was in 2008 when Haynes’s leadership qualities were first observed. The left-handed batswoman guided her team - Australian Youth team - to victories over senior teams of England and Australia.
2008-09 was Haynes’s breakthrough season. She notched up her maiden hundred against Queensland at Melbourne, a knock for which she was named the Player of the Match. Batting at the top of the order, the southpaw amassed 357 runs in nine matches at an average of 44.62 to end as the leading run-getter for Victoria and fourth in the competition.
