Key takeaways from Australia's CWC25 squad
We take a look at the key talking points as seven-time champions revealed their 15-player squad for the upcoming World Cup.
Australia announced a strong squad for the 13th edition of the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup, with a host of their stars that tasted success in New Zealand at the most recent tournament in 2022 hungry for even more success.
Veteran keeper-batter Alyssa Healy will lead the star-studded squad, while the return from injury of spinner Sophie Molineux bolsters their already potent bowling line-up.
Australia squad: Alyssa Healy (c), Darcie Brown, Ash Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham
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Tried and tested squad
The Australian squad of 15 players almost picked itself for this year's event and when you have previous match-winners like Alyssa Healy, Ellyse Perry and Megan Schutt at your disposal, then it's not hard to see why.
A total of 10 players from this 15-member squad were there in New Zealand in 2022 when the Aussies won an unprecedented seventh World Cup title and every one of these stars is going to be keen to add another trophy to their already bulging mantelpiece.
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How to squeeze in their wealth of riches
There is no apparent weakness within this Australia squad and it's going to be difficult for selectors to fit all their talented players in the XI across the group matches.
Young gun Georgia Voll might be squeezed out of a top-order batting role given Australia's batting depth, while pitch conditions will likely determine how many spin options the Aussies take into each game.
You can be assured head coach Shelley Nitschke will have already planned for all contingencies, so the Aussies won't get caught out with the lack of preparation.
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Healy the benchmark
You can almost be guaranteed if experienced skipper Alyssa Healy performs well at the top of the batting order then the Aussies are going to be well on their way to a record-breaking eighth World Cup title.
Healy was in a class of her own during the most recent World Cup in New Zealand in 2022 when she amassed a tournament-high 509 runs that included a match-winning knock of 170 in the victory over England in the final.
The veteran has had some injury concerns of late, but showed enough signs in recent hitouts for Australia A that she can make a massive impact at this tournament.
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Molineux return the right call
You need some good spin option when playing in the sub-continent and Sophie Molineux remains one of the best spinners in the world when she is injury free.
The Aussies won't take any risks with Molineux and will only push her into the fray if her body is right, but expect the left-armer to perform well if she has overcome the knee injury that has plagued her in recent times.
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