Aussie stars set for extended run in domestic cricket

Australia's international stars are set for an extended run with their domestic sides this summer with an expanded women's national one-day competition "a huge step forward" for the women's game.

Australia's women are locked in to host Pakistan for three ODIs and three T20Is in January and while the leading players concede the schedule at first appears "a little bit light", they are enthused by the opportunity to play more state-based cricket.

The Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) has been expanded to a 12-game full home-and-away schedule from next summer, an increase of four games per team.

"We've been pushing for (a full home-and-away season) for as long as I can remember – the last three or four years at least," Australia batter Beth Mooney said this week.

"The opportunity to play a bit more WNCL leading into the WBBL this year is certainly a bonus for Australian cricket, and for global cricket as well, because our domestic pathways help us thrive at an international level.

"We play a lot less domestic cricket than our male counterparts – and that's not through lack of effort or training, we're contracted the same amount of months of the year.

"An extra four games added to the WNCL calendar certainly is a huge step forward for the women's game in this country."

The WCNL expansion, the only major change to come from a 12-month extension to the Memorandum of Understanding that underpins relations between Cricket Australia and the players' union, will also see players benefit financially.

Players will pocket about an extra $7000 in match payments from the additional games, with the average annual salary for a female domestic player involved in both the WNCL and Weber WBBL competitions increasing to around $86,000 per year.

"The increase in WNCL games is absolutely tremendous and I think something that is going to be pivotal for the game to continue to grow and keep building our depth in players and giving lots of girls opportunities," Aussie allrounder Ellyse Perry said.

"The opportunity for there to be more domestic cricket this year, and for the internationally contracted players to be a part of that is brilliant.

"That competition (the WNCL) has a rich history in women's cricket, it's also a great ground to continue to develop lots of players, so to have that at full strength for hopefully close to 12 games will be wonderful."

Domestic fixtures haven't been finalised yet but the competition is expected to begin in September, a period when Australia have been in action the past two summers.

With a hectic men's schedule that includes the men's T20 World Cup in October and November and with the women at the start of new Future Tours Programme (FTP) cycle, Meg Lanning's Aussies will not be in action on home soil until Pakistan arrive in January.

They will, however, soon be off to the northern hemisphere for a T20 tri-series in Ireland also featuring this summer's opposition Pakistan, before women's cricket's debut at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Australia are also set for a December tour of India after the WBBL for five T20s that will serve as crucial preparation ahead of February's women's T20 World Cup in South Africa.

While the men's FTP is in its final years, with a glut of fixtures paused by the pandemic to squeeze in, the women are at the start of a new cycle that has seen the ICC Women's Championship one-day tournament expanded to 10 teams.

With Australia's women's team locked in to host Pakistan this summer, they will host India, South Africa and West Indies across the 2023-24 and 2024-25 summers, while also playing away against England, New Zealand, Bangladesh and Ireland before the 2025 ODI World Cup, for which the host nation is yet to be announced.

And while the series against Pakistan will not feature any Test cricket after Australia's women played two last summer, players are pragmatic that forcing Test cricket for the sake of it isn't the right way forward for women's cricket.

"What's starting to happen, and maybe it's sort of slow going, but certainly the uptake of countries wanting to be involved in Test match cricket is growing," Perry said.

"South Africa are playing England over in England this (northern) summer, which is a great step forward. Hopefully, when (the Proteas) tour here, we've got that opportunity against them as well.

"I think the more momentum the multiformat series are building for Test cricket and providing it with great context, is important.

"Pakistan aren't there yet this time around, but I think the more that we continue to discuss it, the more that we do it, and not just Australia but all the nations in the Future Tours Programme, the more likely it is that we play more Tests."

Mooney added: "The game is still growing around the world, so whilst we do want to play more long-form cricket, we understand it's not going to happen overnight.

"Teams have to be prepared and understand how to play that format of the game, and Pakistan are a great team in their own right, so perhaps in two or three years they'll be ready to play a Test match against us.

"Obviously India and England are now doing that a little bit more, but at the moment, it's important to remember there are a few more steps to be taken before we get there with everyone else."

Australia's Tour of the UK, 2022

Australia's squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Darcie Brown, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Grace Harris, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Amanda-Jade Wellington

T20 Tri-Series

July 16: Australia v Pakistan

July 17: Australia v Ireland

July 19: Ireland v Pakistan

July 21: Australia v Ireland

July 23: Australia v Pakistan

July 24: Ireland v Pakistan

All matches start 3pm local time (midnight AEST) and played at Bready Cricket Club, Derry, Northern Ireland

2022 Commonwealth Games

July 29 v India (11am local time, 8pm AEST)

July 31 v Barbados (6pm local, 3am Aug 1 AEST)

August 3 v Pakistan (11am local, 8pm AEST)

Group A: Australia, India, Pakistan, Barbados

Group B: England, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka

Semi-finals: August 6, 11am local (8pm AEST) and 6pm local (3am Aug 7 AEST)

Bronze medal match: August 7, 10am local (7pm AEST)

Gold medal match: August 7, 5pm local (2am Aug 8 AEST)

All matches played at Edgbaston Stadium