Australia announce powerful squad for U19 Women's T20 World Cup
#TurnItUp | The 2023 ICC Women's T20 World Cup is here!
The powerful Australians recently completed their Under 19 national championships in Perth and a number of their best performers during that event have been named to feature at the inaugural Under 19 event next month.
Australia named an experienced 15-player squad for the tournament on Tuesday, with Aley to be joined by assistants Erin Osborne and Dulip Samaraweera in a strong coaching department for the tournament that will run from January 14-29.
Up to eight players in Australia's squad have experience playing in domestic cricket Down Under, with key batter Claire Moore and spinners Ella Hayward and Amy Smith expected to be able to translate their good performances for their states to the South African event.
"The Under 19 World Cup provides players with an exceptional development opportunity, and we look forward to watching our team on the world stage," Cricket Australia's Head of Women's Performance Shawn Flegler said.
"Our squad has several players who have experienced professional cricket environments, but final selection for the World Cup was based on overall performances across a variety of competitions.
"Inevitably, there were difficult selection decisions, but we will continue to support and monitor the development of all players in our pathway systems."
Australia are drawn in Group A alongside Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the USA and will require a top three finish in their group to progress to the Super Six stage of the tournament.
Australia squad: Chloe Ainsworth, Jade Allen, Charis Bekker, Paris Bowdler, Maggie Clark, Sianna Ginger, Lucy Hamilton, Ella Hayward, Milly Illingworth, Eleanor Larosa, Rhys McKenna, Claire Moore, Kate Pelle, Amy Smith, Ella Wilson. Non-travelling reserves: Paris Hall, Samira Dimeglio, Sara Kennedy, Olivia Henry, Ananaya Sharma.