Brown returns but no room for Jonassen in World Cup squad

Darcie Brown has recovered from a foot injury to be named in Australia's squad for next month's T20 World Cup, but there is no room for in-form spinner Jess Jonassen.

Cricket Australia today revealed the 15-player touring party that will play for an unprecedented fourth consecutive title with Brown the only inclusion to the group that featured in Australia's last T20 series in March.

Brown was originally named for that Dhaka tour before pulling out at the last minute with a foot injury, but the 21-year-old has now recovered and is set to form an exciting express duo with Tayla Vlaeminck.

The same squad will also feature in three T20Is against New Zealand in Mackay and Brisbane next month, with the addition of allrounder Heather Graham.

Australia's T20 World Cup squad: Alyssa Healy (c), Tahlia McGrath (vc), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham, Tayla Vlaeminck

Australia were slated to meet Sri Lanka in their opening World Cup game on October 4, but the ICC is yet to confirm an updated schedule since moving the event from Bangladesh to the United Arab Emirates last week.

Vlaeminck is set to play in her first World Cup since the 2018 event in the West Indies, after she missed the 2020 and 2023 T20 tournaments and the 2022 ODI World Cup in New Zealand due to injury.

Left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux will play in an ICC event for the first time since she stole the show on stage with Katy Perry at the MCG in 2020, continuing her upwards trajectory after breaking back into the national side earlier this year.

Molineux had a setback during the off-season when she was forced to pull out of The Hundred having suffered an acute rib fracture after being struck by a ball while batting.

Grace Harris, who also missed the English 100-ball competition due to a calf injury, has also recovered to make the squad while rising batter Phoebe Litchfield will head to her first ICC tournament. 

"This is the first time in a long time we've had our entire contract list available for selection ahead of a World Cup and it's resulted in a really stable and balanced squad," said selection chief Shawn Flegler.

"It's the first time Alyssa will have the reins at a World Cup and we've already seen what her and Tahlia bring from a leadership perspective, so it's exciting for them to have this opportunity to lead their country on the biggest stage.

"Phoebe is a real x-factor for us and will be well supported by an experienced group at her first World Cup.

"The pace duo of Tayla and Darcie is one we've been wanting to unleash for a while and is a real point of difference for us."

But strong form in the Women's Premier League and The Hundred was not enough for fellow left-arm tweaker Jonassen to force her way back into Australia's squad.

The 31-year-old, who has taken more T20I wickets than any other Australian spinner, last played an international game in October 2023 before carrying the drinks during the summer's multi-format series against India and South Africa.

She was then dropped for the March white-ball tour of Bangladesh.

Jonassen responded to the snub on the overseas franchise circuit, finishing equal top wicket-taker for Delhi Capitals in the WPL and made several important cameos with the bat striking at 146.

Jonassen then finished as the third-highest wicket-taker in The Hundred earlier this month, capturing 12 wickets at 14.16 for Welsh Fire while also hitting 176 runs at a strike rate of 130.37.

"Jess Jonassen is again unlucky to miss out but we've been impressed with the way she's bounced back and we'll continue to monitor her form ahead of the home summer," Flegler said.

Australia, whose last international assignment was their white-ball tour of Bangladesh in March and April, will meet New Zealand in three T20Is next month immediately prior to their departure for Dubai.

The switch in World Cup host, made due to ongoing civil unrest in Bangladesh, will require some research from the Australians who have never played a senior international match in the Emirates.

CommBank T20I Series v New Zealand   

First T20: September19, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 7.10pm

Second T20: September 22, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 7.10pm

Third T20: September 24, Allan Border Field, Brisbane, 7.10pm

ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024

Fixtures to be confirmed following tournament's move from Bangladesh to UAE