No Lanning, no worries for Aussie women

Australian women's cricket selectors have named six uncapped players in the Test squad for next month's Ashes against England.

Tahlia McGrath of the Adelaide Strikers

Tahlia McGrath was a threat with bat and ball for the Adelaide Strikers in the WBBL. (AAP)

Australia's batters have declared they have the depth required to cover the loss of injured captain Meg Lanning in the upcoming women's Ashes series.

Selectors have named almost identical squads for the three one-dayers and one-off Test match against England, which the world's top-ranked batter Lanning will miss due to a shoulder injury.

Without her though, five players who average above 30 in international cricket were still picked to try and retain the trophy, while Alyssa Healy and Elyse Vilani are also well established Australian players.

"I don't think we're losing too much," Healy said.

"Obviously Meg is the best batter in the world in my mind and a crucial part of our team. But we've got so much depth in the batting department, we can cover that."

Australia's batters are hitting the summer in form.

In the opening rounds of the domestic 50-over competition over the weekend, Vilani and stand-in captain Rachael Haynes each hit centuries.

"Rach is hitting the ball as well as I've ever seen over the weekend so I have no doubt she will go out there and do just as good of a job as Meg can," Healy said.

Alex Blackwell, Nicole Bolton, Healy and uncapped Test rookie Beth Mooney also struck half-centuries, while all-rounder Ellyse Perry averages above 50 in one-day international cricket.

"(Meg) would be a loss to any team that she was part of," Haynes said.

"But I think from the weekend you can see our batters are really rising to the occasion and you can see that in the runs that they scored.

"I feel really confident we've got the depth in our team, that's a great facet of Australian cricket and I think we're really well placed going into the series."

Five other Test rookies were named alongside Mooney in the 15-player squad for the November 9-12 match at North Sydney Oval, but as few as two are likely to play with the majority being bowlers.

Tahlia McGrath, Lauren Cheatle, Ashleigh Gardner, Belinda Vakarewa and Amanda-Jade Wellington will each battle for one of the final bowling spots, with the Test squad to be reduced to 13 following a three-day tour match next month.

Vakarewa is the only player not also named to play in the one-dayers, while selectors are yet to pick the T20 squad.

The series is played in a points format, with ODIs and T20 matches each worth two, and the stand-alone Test worth four.

AUSTRALIAN WOMEN: Rachael Haynes (c), Alex Blackwell (vc), Kristen Beams, Nicole Bolton, Lauren Cheatle, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Elyse Villani, Belinda Vakarewa (Test only), Amanda-Jade Wellington.


Share

3 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world