After Australia’s emphatic run in the recently concluded ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup that was played in New Zealand from March 4 to April 3, when they won their seventh World Cup title, Cricket Australia, on Thursday, announced the list of centrally contracted players for the 2022-23 season. A total of 15 players were named in the list.
Leg spinner Alana King was the new entrant in the list for the 2022-23 season, after the left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux was left out. Apart from this change, the other 14 players were the same for this season compared to the 2021-22 season.
On the other hand, the leg spinner had a great outing during the World Cup. Playing her maiden ICC event, King completed the tournament with 12 wickets in nine matches. She was the fourth-highest wicket-taker overall and second-highest wicket-taker for Australia in the World Cup. The wily spinner featured in all the matches and played an integral role in Australia’s journey to their seventh World Cup title. Having made her international debut just early this year, King impressed one and all with her bowling discipline and maturity during the mega event.
Regarding the left arm spinner’s omission, Shawn Flegler, Australia’s chief selector said, “Sophie Molineux is unfortunate to miss out on a contract, she’s been an important part of the side over the last couple of years. Unfortunately, she’s missed a large amount of cricket due to various injuries, but we feel she can continue to play an important role with a more consistent run of matches. We’ll continue to work with Sophie and have full confidence in her finding her way back into the squad.”
Alana King awarded Australia’s contract for the upcoming season#TeamAustralia #CWC22 pic.twitter.com/s3OrUiU5g9
— Female Cricket #CWC22 (@imfemalecricket) April 7, 2022
Apart from Molineux, Amanda-Jade Wellington and Grace Harris were the other players who could not find a place in the list of centrally contracted players for the 2022-23 season. They were the only two players from the Australian World Cup winning squad that could not make the cut. While Wellington featured in a couple of matches during the World Cup in which the leg spinner picked up three wickets, including one against Pakistan and two against New Zealand, Harris, on the other hand, failed to make her World Cup debut.
Cricket Australia’s list of centrally contracted women cricketers
| 2021-22 | 2022-23 |
| Darcie Brown | Darcie Brown |
| Nicola Carey | Nicola Carey |
| Ashleigh Gardner | Ashleigh Gardner |
| Rachael Haynes | Rachael Haynes |
| Alyssa Healy | Alyssa Healy |
| Jess Jonassen | Jess Jonassen |
| Meg Lanning | Alana King (IN) |
| Tahlia McGrath | Meg Lanning |
| Sophie Molineux (OUT) | Tahlia McGrath |
| Beth Mooney | Beth Mooney |
| Ellyse Perry | Ellyse Perry |
| Megan Schutt | Megan Schutt |
| Annabel Sutherland | Annabel Sutherland |
| Tayla Vlaeminck | Tayla Vlaeminck |
| Georgia Wareham | Georgia Wareham |
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I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.