Who Is Grace Hayden? The Presenter Behind Seven Racing, IPL Coverage and Fox League

Grace Hayden is an Australian TV presenter and sideline reporter, aged 24 per PerthNow, and the daughter of former Australia opening batter and commentator Matthew Hayden. She is not Hayden Panettiere, the American actress.

This profile follows a Stellar magazine interview, reported by The Daily Telegraph on 2 October 2026 and PerthNow on 3 October 2026, in which she answered critics who say her career rests on her surname. It covers published professional work only and is current as of 3 October 2026.

Is Grace Hayden the same person as Hayden Panettiere?

No. Grace Hayden is an Australian sports broadcaster, and Hayden Panettiere was an unrelated American actress. If you were looking for the actress, our page on Hayden Panettiere’s films and TV shows is the one you want.

Who is Matthew Hayden, Grace Hayden’s father?

Matthew Hayden is a former Australia opening batter who played 103 Tests and 161 one-day internationals and now works as a cricket commentator. According to standard career records he scored 8,625 Test runs at 50.73, including 30 centuries, and 6,133 ODI runs at 43.80. Grace has said she is proud of her parents and has worked alongside him on cricket broadcasts, including the 2025 IPL.

What is Grace Hayden’s career timeline?

Her career runs from racing fashion reporting in 2022 to NRL sideline reporting in 2026, with cricket as the thread in between. The table gives each role with the year it was announced or reported, and the sections below say what each rests on.

How did Grace Hayden start in racing television?

She started in 2022 as Channel 7’s Oaks Day ambassador and went on to report on fashion for Seven’s spring racing coverage. Her management agency’s biography dates the Oaks Day role to 2022, and press reports describe her as a fashion and lifestyle reporter on Seven’s racing coverage. The biography also lists the 2023 Golden Slipper and, in 2024, the Australian Turf Club’s Golden Eagle. It is self-published, so we have not independently confirmed those two.

In May 2025 press reports called her lead presenter for the digital racing platform Racing X, and we could not confirm whether she still holds that role. We found no confirmation of a Seven role for the 2026 spring season, so we treat Seven as a past credit.

What has Grace Hayden done in cricket?

Her main cricket work is as a host and colour reporter for Star Sports in India, covering the Indian Premier League since at least 2024. Her agency’s biography dates the start to 2023, but 2024 is the earliest year we could corroborate elsewhere. In May 2025 she announced a return to the IPL’s closing stages with Star Sports India, alongside her father.

The biography also lists the GT20 Canada (July 2024) and the Caribbean Premier League (September 2024). Several outlets list the Big Bash League among her credits, but we could not confirm the broadcaster or seasons, so we say no more. In July 2025 she launched a weekly video podcast, Game On with Grace, for the US broadcaster Willow, with Adam Gilchrist as first guest. We could not confirm whether it is still releasing episodes.

What has Grace Hayden done in tennis, motorsport and rugby league?

Since January 2026 she has added tennis, motorsport and rugby league, each with a different broadcaster.

• Tennis — Sony Sports Network hired her to present its Australian Open 2026 coverage for India, reported on 19 January 2026 as her first tennis role. In an interview published on 14 January she said she would stay in cricket as well.
• Motorsport — On 24 March 2026 motorsport press reported she had joined the six-person Fox Sports and Kayo team for the Shannons SpeedSeries, with all six rounds shown live. Supercars driver Nick Percat joined as an expert voice.
• Rugby league — She joined Fox League as an NRL sideline reporter in July 2026. Her debut was round 21, Bulldogs v Warriors at Accor Stadium, on Saturday 25 July 2026.

What is the criticism of Grace Hayden, and how has she responded?

Criticism of her has been reported and she has responded publicly, so we set out both without taking a side. A Yahoo News Australia analysis piece on 4 August 2026 said the reaction to her Fox League appointment had been swift and, in places, harsh. It said much of it centred on her public image, social media presence and modelling background rather than her reporting. It asked whether sexism played a part, while noting that critics could argue any new hire invites scrutiny of credentials.

In the Stellar interview reported on 2 and 3 October 2026, she answered claims that her career rests on her surname. “I do the hard yards, and it’s a lot of research,” she told the magazine. She also said she wrestled with the “Matthew Hayden’s daughter” label when younger, was advised to embrace it, and is proud of her parents. In May 2026 she told an Australian news website that she tries not to focus on labels and that her priority is being prepared and professional.

Nothing we found establishes how any individual job was won, and hiring decisions rest with the broadcasters. This page therefore does not attribute her roles to any single factor.

What is Grace Hayden doing next?

As of 3 October 2026 the only upcoming role reported is as ambassador for the Australian Turf Club’s Sydney Everest Carnival. PerthNow reported the appointment on 3 October. The Everest is scheduled for Saturday 17 October 2026 at Royal Randwick, and one report says she is due to attend. We have not seen the club confirm her appearance, and this page treats the role only as a race-day ambassador appointment.

Her 2026-27 cricket and tennis work had not been announced in anything we found. We have not verified which NRL games she has covered since her debut, or her plans beyond this season.

What does this profile leave out?

This profile covers only Grace Hayden’s published professional work. It leaves out her private life, her appearance and her personal social media posts, none of which explain her career. It should be refreshed after Saturday 17 October 2026 and whenever she announces a new broadcaster.