Missed World Cup driving Jonassen

Australia allrounder Jess Jonassen says the disappointment of missing the 2013 Women’s World Cup through injury has only made her more determined to have an impact when the 2017 edition gets underway later this month.

Jonassen was named in Australia’s squad for the event four years ago, only to be ruled out one week before the start of the tournament, having failed to recover from a knee injury in time.

Instead of standing on the podium with her teammates in Mumbai celebrating her country’s sixth title at the showpiece 50-over event, Jonassen was instead forced to watch on from home.

Four years later, the Queenslander has gone through her fair share of ups and downs due to further injuries – including undergoing knee surgery early last year – but the 24-year-old has declared herself in rude health as the Australian squad completes its final preparations for the tournament at a training camp in Hampshire. 

"It was a bit bittersweet last time, missing out then watching the girls win it," Jonassen said in Southampton.

"For me it’s been an up and down last few seasons on the injury front but the body is in good shape at the moment and I’m looking forward to getting out there and hopefully playing some good cricket along the way.

"With World Cups they only come around every four years. I’ve been fortunate enough to play in some T20 World Cups but the 50-over World Cup is pretty big."

The left-arm spinner has become a mainstay of the Australian attack in recent years, frequently taking the new ball and exhibiting an uncanny ability to frustrate opposition batting line-ups with her tight lines.

Jonassen is also a wicket-taking threat – she finished the ICC Women’s Championship as the competition’s leading wicket taker – and while she hasn’t been able to regularly translate strong domestic batting form into big international runs, the elegant left-hander – who has a Test match 99 to her name - still possesses the ability to clear the ropes coming in lower down the Australian order.

It’s a skill that will be crucial in England, with head coach Matthew Mott emphasising the need for Australia to make the most of their final 10 overs when batting after a trend of late-innings collapses. 

But rather than feeling pressure, Jonassen is embracing the responsibility. 

"That has been a big one for us over the last few months, is how we finish an innings with the bat," she said.

"That’s something we want to try and nail down before the group matches start."

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Jonassen was typically economical in Australia’s first hit out on English soil on Wednesday, with figures of 0-19 from four overs in an unofficial warm-up against New Zealand in Southampton.

"I didn’t feel too bad actually, it was nice to have a wicket with a little bit of turn in it," she said

The 15-player Australian squad enjoyed a light training session on Thursday but will lift the intensity again on Friday for an intra-squad practice match.

Two ICC warm-up games will follow in Leicester, before Australia begin their World Cup defense in earnest against West Indies in Taunton on June 26.

"We’d like to improve on the areas we faltered in a little bit (against New Zealand)," Jonassen said of Australia’s focus for the remaining tour games

"Nail the batting down in those last 10 overs and push to a really competitive score, and our bowling unit to knuckle down and limit the boundary balls and bowl really tight areas."