Words: Cameron McMillan
Design: Paul Slater
The 39-year-old will be aiming to lead her side to a third World Cup final. Ranked number two batter in the world, she has scored the most runs of any female player in the history of the game. She made her international debut as a 16-year-old, when she scored an unbeaten 114 on debut, and has added another six international centuries since. With two decades of ODIs behind her, she will search possibly one last time for that World Cup title that has eluded her.
The Australian wicketkeeper is the top-ranked batter in the world and opens for a side stacked with batting talent. She scored her maiden century against India in 2018 (the 133 remains her highest score), and backed it up with two more tons the following year against Sri Lanka and West Indies. Has averaged just a touch under 40 over the past 12 months.
The England team are packed with talent and it’s hard to pick out just one star. Sciver is the second-ranked all-rounder in the women’s game, often jostling for the top spot with Australian skipper Meg Lanning. The 29-year-old Sciver made history when she became the first England player to take a T20 hat-trick, playing against New Zealand in 2013. Sciver, who has three centuries to her name, bats at four for England, and is a reliable fifth bowling option for the team.
After making her debut as an 18-year-old in 2007, the 2022 World Cup could well be the swansong for 33-year-old pace bowler although she isn’t showing signs of slowing down, taking eight wickets in her last two matches against West Indies. Ismail, ranked fifth in the world, leads a strong South African bowling line-up which includes Ayabonga Khaka and Marizanne Kapp, both ranked in the world’s top 10. Ismail’s career best of 6 for 10 came in a World Cup qualifier when South Africa bowled out the Netherlands for 36 in 2011.
She’s come a long way with the bat since making her ODI debut at number 11 for the White Ferns in 2006. The New Zealand skipper brings plenty of power to the crease and has shown in T20s that scoring quickly isn’t an issue. If New Zealand are to replicate the 2000 side that claimed a World Cup title on home soil they’ll need the likes of Devine, Suzie Bates and Amy Satterthwaite scoring big knocks in the big matches. A lot rests on Devine’s shoulders as she will likely open the bowling and bat at five, but she’s proven over the years that she’s up for the big occasion.
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