Carey's milestone knock adds to Aussie abundance of riches

A maiden domestic century for Tasmania was a major milestone for Nicola Carey, and the Australia allrounder now hopes to make a habit of racking up big scores for her adopted state.

After a Rebel WBBL campaign where she averaged 17.55 for the Hobart Hurricanes, Carey picked her moment well; striking the first ton of the new domestic 50-over season and doing so in front of national selector Shawn Flegler, who was watching at Canberra's EPC Solar Park on Wednesday when Carey struck a match-winning 105 before bagging three wickets.

It was the innings Carey and Tasmania had been hoping for since her arrival at the Tigers ahead of the 2019-20 season, after she left her native New South Wales seeking greater opportunities up the order with the bat.

Impressively, her gritty knock came on a difficult deck where the next highest score was ACT veteran Erin Osborne's 54, and where only one other Tasmania player passed 20.

"It was really nice to start the season with a win for the team and it was nice to contribute and get the first one, hopefully there's more to come," Carey said after Tasmania sealed a 20-run win over the Meteors.

"To be honest it was a bit of a slow start and then I felt quite scratchy through the middle, the pitch was quite low and slow from the start.

"We knew it would be a bit of a grind so I was happy to be patient at times."

Carey has cemented herself in Australia's ODI XI in recent years, taking the field in their past nine one-dayers – a commendable effort given the competition for spots in a team that has won its past 21 matches on the bounce.

However, it has been with the ball not the bat that the allrounder has made an impact at international level, batting just three times in those nine matches and never higher than No.7.

For Australia's rivals, Wednesday's innings was a reminder of the batting depth in the world's top-ranked side, one year out from the next ODI World Cup.

In Australia's most recent ODI series against Brisbane, Carey came in at No.8 on the one occasion she was required to bat, behind a top seven of Alyssa Healy, Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning, Rachael Haynes, Sophie Molineux, Ashleigh Gardner and Annabel Sutherland – and all with Ellyse Perry sitting on the sidelines rehabilitating her injured hamstring.

"I'm happy to bat wherever, I don't know if you've seen the top six in that team but it's pretty hard to crack into," Carey laughed.

"I think they're doing a pretty good job at the minute and I'll do whatever role they give me in that team."

Australia will tour New Zealand for three ODIs and three T20Is next month, with Carey among those set to play across the Tasman for the first time.

Twelve months out from the 2022 World Cup, it is a chance for Australia's selectors and coaching staff to assess who will thrive in the foreign conditions – and it is an opportunity Carey is eager to take.

"It's nice to get a few games in (for Tasmania) and hopefully be selected on that tour," she said.

"It'd be cool to get over there and play a few games against New Zealand at the backend of the season."

A tweak to the schedule for the New Zealand tour, announced on Thursday morning, now sees Australia play at three of the venues they will return to during the World Cup next year.

Originally all three T20Is were to be held at Hamilton's Seddon Park – where Meg Lanning's team will begin their ICC tournament against reigning champions England – but the second and third matches have been shifted and will be played as double headers alongside the Blackcaps and Bangladesh.

The second T20I on March 30 will be played at McLean Park in Napier, with the series finale held at Auckland's Eden Park – a ground Australia will return to next year to meet India during the World Cup.

All three ODIs will be played at Tauranga's Bay Oval, where Australia will take on a yet-to-be-determined qualifier in 2022.