There is a distinct feeling around Australia’s campaign for the Women’s Cricket World Cup: that the end of an era is upon us. Captain Alyssa Healy told News Corp earlier this month that “there’s no secret” about this being her last time competing in the event.
At 35, Healy is the oldest member of the Australian ODI squad, with Ellyse Perry (34), Megan Schutt (32) and Beth Mooney (31) not far behind. These players have been stalwarts of the team and in the case of Healy and Perry quite literally the face of women’s cricket in Australia since it started being marketed in earnest.
However, despite the finality hanging over the team in its current form, it is hard to see anything but the bright future ahead.
Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll, both 22, have stormed their way into the team off the back of strong Women’s Big Bash League campaigns. Both strong top order batters, they bring fresh excitement to women’s cricket and an assurance that the dominance of the Australian women’s team is likely to continue for many years.
For Voll, this World Cup campaign feels like a glimpse into the future: she understands her opportunities will be limited, but she is determined to make the most of the experience.
“I’m happy just continuing to learn,” she said. “If I get an opportunity, I’ll take it with both hands. But I think with how strong the Australian team is at the moment, even just to be able to run out and give the girls some drinks is pretty special.”
Litchfield’s role in the team is more assured, having made her ODI debut in early 2023. But after she captained the Sydney Thunder in the WBBL last season, it is an adjustment to come into this environment as a junior member of the squad.
“I’m a different player in every team I play for,” she said. “It’s kind of nice to get to live out the kid role again in the Aussie team. It’s nice to have no responsibilities, so I just get to focus on proving myself with the bat and hopefully in the field – to just be a kid and play cricket for the love of it.”
Voll and Litchfield are close friends who are enjoying the opportunity to play together, which they hope will continue well into the future. Last season, Voll joined Litchfield at the Thunder, a move that was difficult to make, but ultimately incredibly rewarding.
“To tell the Brisbane Heat that I was moving on for more opportunities was probably one of the toughest things, especially when they’ve given me that opportunity in one of the best comps in the world,” she said. “But I wanted to go up the top of the order and see what I could do up there and the Thunder gave me that opportunity. At the time, I obviously had no idea the impact or how that decision would change my career.”
During her first season with the Thunder, Voll scored 330 runs at a strike rate of 144.74, making a name for herself as one of the competition’s most dominant opening batters. She was elevated to the Australian team soon after, showing that the move had been worth the heartache.
Litchfield was delighted that her friend was courageous enough to take that step and that it paid off.
“We spoke about it a couple months prior,” she said. “Volly wanted that opportunity and playing with her is so much fun. We played together when we were younger and became good mates. I think when you’ve got that connection, scoring runs out in the middle, and then sharing the field with a mate is much more fun than having to play against them.”
While both players are focused on the upcoming campaign and learning as much from their teammates as they can, they are also able to look to the future and ruminate on what their generation may inspire.
“It’s funny, most of us try to emulate a player that’s already playing, so I can’t imagine us changing the brand too drastically,” Litchfield said. “But the game is evolving as well. So while I don’t think we’re coming in to change it, we will probably have to adapt with the changing game.”
Voll sees the potential of more players who have grown up playing T20 cricket bringing those skills to the longer format of the game.
“Playing against some of the young girls in Big Bash, it’s this exciting, aggressive style that they bring,” she said. “We’ve seen across the last 12 months, it’s heading towards more like T20 style for 50-over cricket. With how strong the Australian team is, if one person loses their wicket, the next person comes in, we bat all the way down to 10 or 11, so everyone can be aggressive and attacking.”
While this may be the end of an era that we are watching during this World Cup, the next generation is primed and ready to take over. And you can be sure that they will bring the fireworks.
