She was a strong voice for Australia’s same-sex marriage referendum and with the Supreme Court of India last week throwing out Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, in place since 1861 to criminalise sexual activities ‘against the order of nature’, Blackwell expressed her happiness. She lauded the activists who made the change possible, but added “there is more to change”.

Speaking to Mumbai Mirror from Canada, the recently-retired Blackwell, 35, added, “Even in a country like Australia, where homosexuality was not criminal for many years, and even so, we only achieved marriage equality recently.

Thank you @vijaymirror for reaching out to speak with me about the recent decriminalisation of homosexuality in India and writing this article for the @MumbaiMirror. A great step forward for equal rights and respect for same-sex attracted ppl in India #LGBTQI #HumanRights https://t.co/xmfqomndP7

— Alex Blackwell (@AlexBlackwell2) September 10, 2018

“Even though it is a nation of acceptance of difference, there are not that many prominent athletes, particularly in the male sport. In the women’s sport, we’ve more examples of people being able to be themselves, be authentic and be visible. It’s almost like a shining light that in women’s sport, people are able to come out, like myself.”

Like Blackwell, who led Australia to the title at the 2010 World T20 and has multiple world champion medals with her team, her team-mates Megan Schutt, Elyse Villani and Jess Jonassen have been vocal about gay rights. South Africans Dane van Niekerk and Marizanne Kapp made their choices public and exchanged marriage vows earlier this year, as have White Ferns cricketers Lea Tahuhu and Amy Satterthwaite.

“We need to continue to see the examples that sponsors would rally behind the athletes. That is one of the things holding some athletes back. They feel that coming out would be detrimental to their profile and career. We need to show examples that would not be the case. I am yet to see many of those examples.”

Addressing Indian women cricketers in response to a question, Blackwell asked for everyone to be ‘what you are’.

“As part of LGBTI community around the world, I accept that this decision (the Indian verdict) is something to be celebrated by many of the Indian cricketers. I can’t speak for anyone in the Indian cricket team, but I think they will be proud of what happened recently,” she said.

“You must take the step to be what you are. From my point of view, it’s the best way to go. I know it can be very hard. I’ve been fortunate that I’ve had family support. At the end of the day, it’s the best gift you can give yourself.”