Former Australian women's cricket captain Alex Blackwell will return to Griffith to discuss her new autobiography 'Fair Game'

Having released her autobiography Fair Game in January 2022, Ms Blackwell will be returning to her old stomping ground for a conversation with co-author Megan Maurice at Griffith City Library.

The event will be held Tuesday July 12 from 6pm and will feature Ms Blackwell discussing her book and her cricketing career in front of the home crowd.

"I'm really looking forward to seeing familiar faces, old family friends and school friends," said Ms Blackwell, who currently resides in Sydney with her wife Lynsey and their daughter.

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The cricketing champion said she holds fond memories of growing up in Yenda alongside her twin sister Kate. The two sisters would regularly ride their bikes to Cocoparra National Park, build rafts for the canal and help out on the family farm.

She said this regional upbringing contributed to her successful sporting career.

"It had an influence on building that sense of confidence and can-do attitude," she recalled.

"Sport in a regional town like Griffith was such an important part of our upbringing. Compared with the city there were fewer museums, shows and things that came to town, but sports were always there."

Ms Blackwell also recalled the sledging which the two sisters became accustomed to as the only girls on the cricket team, something she described in Fair Game.

"The boys did participate in a bit of sledging, but sadly it was the parents on the sideline that we remember the most. Things like 'Don't get out to a girl!'," she said.

"I think that attitude has mostly changed," she added, citing a study by True North Research in 2020 which found the Australian women's cricket team and The Matildas had the greatest emotional connection to Australians of all national sports teams.

With 251 caps to her name, the second most of any Australian women's player behind Ellyse Perry, Ms Blackwell has seen the sport undergo immense change.

She said documenting her experience with women's cricket transitioning to a televised professional sport, as well as cricket in general becoming more inclusive, motivated her to write Fair Game.

She also said it was a story about a country girl recognising she was different and embracing her uniqueness.

"It's a coming out story about being proud of who you are, just as you are," she said.

"Being a gay woman in sport and being the first female international cricketer to actually talk about that publicly was a big step and an important one to reach my full potential. That's my proudest achievement."

Ms Blackwell said there were few people who knew her better than her Fair Game co-writer Megan Maurice, who she expected would be able to "tease out the juicy bits" in their conversation at Griffith City Library.

"I think the conversation will really delve into all the different topics and hopefully get people thinking 'Wow, this sounds like an interesting book, I'd love to read it'," she said.

"I'm really looking forward to coming back to town."

'Alex Blackwell in conversation with Megan Maurice' will be held Tuesday July 12 from 6pm at Griffith City Library. Refreshments will be provided and bookings can be made via Eventbrite.

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