As Women's Big Cricket Month continues, the only female agent currently working in the game shares the story of her journey into the game.
Saimah Zaharah, who counts the likes of Mohammad Abbas, Shan Masood and Usman Khan Shinwari as her clients, describes how an ability to multi-task, a thick skin and the support of her family have been vital to her success.
Ten minutes into sharing her story as a woman in cricket, Saimah Zaharah is interrupted.
The ever-present burble of childhood conversation is joined by the shriek of a fast-food drive thru operative calling out to take an order.
And as Saimah puts in her order, it becomes clear that it is juggling responsibilities, spinning plates and multi-tasking that defines her daily life.
‘Routine’ it most certainly is not.
The only female agent in the game, Nottingham-based Saimah’s journey and story are unique – and she has a daily regime to match.
“Before I'm even able to get to my laptop, I get the kids ready, pack their lunches and feed them breakfast, then drop them off at school, tidy the house… and only then am I ready start.
“In normal times, I’d then head to the gym, and work from their café until it’s time to do the school run. I might be contacting teams or franchise owners, or making applications for my players to compete in various leagues around the world.
“Then it’s a case of preparing dinner while answering more calls. I might even end up meeting a player in the evening.
“Being an agent and a parent is like leading a crazy double life, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
With a roster which includes Pakistan internationals Mohammad Abbas and Shan Masood, Saimah’s work sees her jostling and jousting with some of the most celebrated teams, media organisations and public figures in the sport.
In a COVID-affected year which has seen her best-known clients have their summer plans severely disrupted, spending months in bio-secure bubbles to play international cricket, her job could hardly have been further from the typical nine-to-five.
“It’s a job that’s 24-hours-a-day,” she confirms.
“Pakistan and India start their day before ours because of their time zones, so you need to start your working day early. Then Australia have their daytime during our night time, so you end up sending emails at midnight.
“No matter what you’re doing or where you are, your phone could ring and you could need to sort something out – I’ve often had to break away from family dinners to sort interviews and equipment issues for my clients.
“You’re constantly on your phone – whether to send emails, speak to players or update social media. It’s a job that requires you to work hard and be quite flexible.”
“Being an agent and a parent is like leading a crazy double life, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Becoming an agent was something of a change of gear for Saimah, whose previous experience was in sales and recruitment.
Family support has been vital in helping her to make the leap into her chosen vocation.
“My husband is a sports psychologist, and he was the one who first educated me in cricket – in terms of things like what a fast bowler was, what a spinner was, and what to look for in a cricketer,” she says.
“He was the one who introduced me to my first client, and I still send him footage of a player before I decide to take them on.
“Between us, we’ve been able to make sure we take on clients before they make it big, which has really helped me to have some bigger talent in my stable.
“I think my background in sales and recruitment has helped me as well – it's made me more of a tough cookie.
“Your player could easily be someone else’s tomorrow, and there can be some dishonest people around that you need to be wise to.
“The trick is not to become too emotional about your job or your clients. If you do that, you’ll get hurt.”
As those clients have become more successful and higher profile, the demands of representing them have increased in equal measure.
It is here where Saimah, mother to a 16-year-old daughter and four-year-old son, feels her life experience gives her an advantage.
"My children and my clients can both be demanding, but in different ways," she says.
“While my son might be demanding a lollipop, a player might be demanding more attention from me, saying that another agent would be doing more for him.
“The hardest thing about the job is making sure your players receive enough attention from you – and that only gets more challenging the further they progress in their careers.
“I do think being a mum has helped me to deal with that, and I think growing up with four brothers gave me a bit of a male mentality as well.”
"As a bit of an outsider in cricket, I sometimes think my perspective can help people see what they need to do in order to improve."
While participation levels amongst women in cricket continue to increase, the story away from the field can be somewhat different.
“Women in cricket need more support,” says Saimah.
“Sport is an industry where it can help to be able to travel long distances for meetings, jet around the world, or go for a drink after work. As a working mother, it can be tough to have the elasticity you need to be able to do that.
“The best people I’ve worked with in cricket have been Mick [Newell, Director of Cricket] and the Community and Development team at Notts. They have the right mentality in terms of wanting to do whatever they can to support you.
“That’s why we had so much success last year with launching the Haydn Road Community Cricket Club, and with attracting more women and people of Asian backgrounds to participate in the game. Notts allowed me to use my contacts to open doors for them, and to make sure the community got what they needed from the new facility.
"As a bit of an outsider in cricket, I sometimes think my perspective can help people see what they need to do in order to improve. I definitely think that’s helped me throughout my career.”