Australian women’s cricketers seek more home games in peak summer
The national team faces a home-fixture gap until March 2027 after its Bangladesh and New Zealand series, with players concerned about reaching young fans.
Senior Australian women’s cricketers are pressing Cricket Australia for more matches during summer’s peak, warning that fixtures outside school holidays could limit opportunities for girls to watch the national team.
Australia’s home season opens with three Brisbane ODIs against Bangladesh, followed by three Sydney T20s against New Zealand. Each Sydney game is on a school night. The team’s next home appearance will be an ODI series against New Zealand in March 2027.
The current ICC calendar leaves Australian school holidays without either women’s internationals or WBBL matches for at least three years. Players are seeking more December home fixtures around Christmas, a period when Australia is scheduled to tour Sri Lanka this year.
Veteran wicketkeeper-bat Beth Mooney said inconvenient match times could discourage parents from taking children to games and hinder girls’ participation. She also raised concerns about marketing and the absence of a regular annual occasion for fans to watch the team. Ellyse Perry has voiced similar scheduling concerns.
Mooney suggested women’s T20s could be staged before a men’s day-night Test or on evenings during a men’s Test. Coach Shelley Nitschke expressed disappointment about having no December or January home matches, while captain Sophie Molineux said December games could attract fans, acknowledging an increasingly crowded calendar.
