Date of birth: 3rd April 2002 (Birmingham, West Midlands)

The Blaze List A debut: 22nd April 2023 (Rachael Heyhoe-Flint Trophy v Central Sparks | Trent Bridge, Nottingham)

The Blaze T20 debut: 20th May 2023 (Charlotte Edwards Cup v South East Stars | County Ground, Beckenham)

Batting: Left-handed

Bowling: Left-arm medium-fast

Providing a key point of difference as a left-arm bowler, seamer Grace Ballinger became a champion of The Hundred in 2025 but can still most often be found taking the new ball for The Blaze across formats.

She began her career with her home county of Warwickshire, before moving from West to East Midlands to join Lightning in 2020, concurrently with starting a degree at Loughborough University.

During her time with Lightning at the regional elite level, Ballinger also spent two years with Leicestershire, for whom she was both the leading wicket-taker and run-scorer in the 2022 Women’s T20 Cup.

Her rapid ascent that year continued when she took her maiden List A five-wicket haul for Lightning with a return of 5/29 against Thunder in July, and just six weeks later, she made her debut in The Hundred after being called into London Spirit’s squad.

Ballinger remained with Lightning through the transition to being known as The Blaze, and in 2025 was the side’s joint-highest wicket-taker in the Metro Bank One Day Cup, taking 18 scalps at 29.66 apiece.

She was also crowned as a winner of The Hundred in the same year with Northern Superchargers, claiming 11 wickets at a miserly average of just 15.54 as the Headingley-based side, whom she joined in 2023, lifted their first trophy in the competition.