'I'd take it with both hands' – Ashleigh Gardner up for batting promotion

Opener Nicole Bolton, who had been named in the squad, opted out to focus on her health, leaving a vacant spot in the batting line-up, and Gardner is one of the candidates.

She has never batted between No.1 and 3 in one-day internationals, but she has significant numbers in Twenty20 Internationals in those positions. While her overall batting average in the shortest format of the game is 17.78, it rises to 23.18 when she bats in the top order. Her best T20I score – 63* against Pakistan Women in Kuala Lumpur – came at one down.

"I’d love to [bat higher] if I got the opportunity," Gardner said on Wednesday, 4 September, the eve of the first ODI. "Having Bolts not there, it opens that opening spot which Rachael Haynes could potentially [move up to], which could push other people up as well.

"If I got the opportunity to bat as high as possible, I know I’d try to take it with both hands."

Australia have fond memories of touring the West Indies: it was the venue of two of their four T20 Women's World Cup titles, in 2010 and 2018.

"When I think about the West Indies, I just think about the World Cup and the team performance," acknowledged Gardner, who scored an unbeaten 33 in the finals of the 2018 edition against England.

"It’s nice having those memories personally, but the team comes first and it’s nice coming back here to a place where we’ve had really good success and hopefully we can create some more good memories."

"But it’s been really nice being back here. We’re really keen and ready to go, we’ve trained really hard coming off a successful Ashes series and coming here a few weeks later, we’re all ready to go come Thursday."

Australia Women play three ODIs – part of the ICC Women's Championship – and as many T20Is against West Indies. The first ODI is in Antigua on Thursday, 5 September.