Shaw was born in Nuneaton, Warwickshire on 30 December 1981. She gained a degree in Criminology and Social Policy at Loughborough University. A right-handed batsman and right-arm fast-medium bowler, she made her debut in the Women's County Championship in 1998, appearing for the East Midlands She was part of the East Midlands team that won the County Championship in 1999. Her international debut came the following summer, in the 1999 Women's European Championship. Facing the Netherlands, Shaw claimed one wicket and was not required to bat in a large win for England. Domestically, she played for Nottinghamshire from 2000 until 2007, and moved to Surrey in 2008, where she assumed the county captaincy. She scored her highest total in county cricket for Surrey, striking 118 runs off 133 balls against Berkshire in 2009. Her best bowling performance occurred during her time with Nottinghamshire, facing Surrey. From ten overs, Shaw claimed four wickets and conceded just 17 runs: one of only three four-wicket hauls in her career. She played regularly for England from 2000 until 2010. She was named as England vice-captain in 2007. A year later, she was one of eight players to be awarded the first women's contracts from the England and Wales Cricket Board. She only appeared in half of the matches during the 2009 Women's Cricket World Cup, and had been omitted from the final until an injury to Jenny Gunn during the warm-up. Named to the team just minutes before the contest, she went on to collect a career-best four wickets for 34 runs, and scored 17 not out, earning herself the player of the match accolade. She was also part of the England team which won the 2009 ICC Women's World Twenty20, taking two wickets for 17 runs in the final. In addition to captaining Surrey, Shaw was selected to captain the "Diamonds" team during the 2007 Super Fours competition, and the "Emeralds" in the subsequent 2008 tournament, designed to bring together the "top 48 players in England" in four teams. She also captained England on five occasions, deputising for Charlotte Edwards. She retired from international cricket in July 2010 to give her time to prepare for a move to Australia. She took 46 wickets in Women's One Day International cricket at an average of 29.41, and 19 wickets in Women's Twenty20 Internationals at 22.78. She never passed 50 runs in an international match: her highest total in any international was 35, scored against New Zealand in 2000. In addition to winning the 2009 Women's Cricket World Cup and the 2009 ICC Women's World Twenty20, she was part of the England team that won the women's Ashes series in 2007–08. She played domestic cricket in Australia until the end of the 2015–16 season.
