Evolving Aussies ready for WWC17: Lanning

Australia captain Meg Lanning is confident her new-look squad has what it takes to claim a seventh World Cup title in England next month.

The Southern Stars’ 15-player squad for the prestige tournament features two uncapped fast bowlers in Belinda Vakarewa and Sarah Aley, while allrounder Ashleigh Gardner and leg-spinner Amanda-Jade Wellington both made their ODI debuts last summer.

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Australia are also without injured quick Lauren Cheatle, but with plenty of experienced players at her disposal – including vice-captain Alex Blackwell, who will be playing in her fourth World Cup, and allrounder Ellyse Perry, playing in her third – Lanning is confident the No.1 ranked Australians can deliver the one major piece of silverware the 25-year-old has yet to claim as national captain.

“It’s very important that we’ve got people pushing from outside the squad and we’ve got some new people coming in,” Lanning told cricket.com.au.

“Ashleigh Gardiner and Amanda-Jade Wellington have both really added to the group, bringing in different things which I think is really important.

“Over the last six months we’ve evolved as a side.

“We did have a couple of injuries which we’ve had to deal with, but Vakarewa has come in as a young player who’s impressed at camp.

“We’re trying to cover as many bases as we can and get the balance of team right and we’ve got some good options.”

Image Id: 096E1CE6CD7B46949F88CE79624DCEBE Image Caption: Belinda Vakarewa has impressed Lanning // Getty

Lanning took over the Australian leadership full-time in early 2015, having already led her team to the 2014 World T20 title while standing in for then-skipper Jodie Fields.

Since then, she has guided the Southern Stars to an Ashes victory on English soil and the inaugural ICC Women’s Championship.

“It is (a bit different) coming in as captain this time, in the last World Cup in India I was pretty new to the side and I didn’t really know too much about what to expect,” said Lanning, who headed into the 2013 World Cup as a 22-year-old with just 16 ODIs under her belt.

“It’s a huge honour to lead Australia into a World Cup and it’ll certainly be a challenge for the squad, it’s a very open tournament.

“I’m looking forward to leading the side and hopefully we get the result we want.”

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In an ominous sign for opposition bowlers, Lanning – the world’s top-ranked ODI batter – says she has also been working on adding some new skills to her bag of tricks during the Southern Stars’ pre-tournament training camps in Brisbane.

“It’s just about expanding my all-round game and making sure I’m strong on both the off and on side,” Lanning explained.

“I’m just tweaking a few things here and there, nothing too major but it’s important to keep changing things to make sure you stay ahead of the game.”

Image Id: 0A85A0F8616E438183FB5B118D2FEA0C Image Caption: Lanning scored a century at the 2013 World Cup // Getty

The Australian squad is currently in Brisbane undergoing their final preparations for their World Cup campaign, which will begin against West Indies in Taunton on June 26.

Their last week of training will see the players head to the Sunshine Coast for some intra-squad practice matches, with Lanning looking forward to spending some time in the middle. 

“We’re moving in to more game-based training which is good, it gives us a good opportunity to see how the players go under a bit more pressure in a game situation,” she said.

“We try and make it as competitive as possible and get used to being out in the middle.

“You can train in the nets as much as you want, but you have to get out into the middle and see the results of what you’re doing.

“It will be nice to get outdoors on the Sunshine Coast and hopefully at the end of that, everyone is confident and ready to go.”

Women's World Cup 2017 Guide

Australia World Cup squad: Sarah Aley, Kristen Beams, Alex Blackwell (vc), Nicole Bolton, Ashleigh Gardner, Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Meg Lanning (c), Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Belinda Vakarewa, Elyse Villani, Amanda-Jade Wellington

Squads: Every World Cup squad named so far

Australia's World Cup schedule

View the full tournament schedule here

Warm-up matches

June 20: Australia v South Africa, Oakham

June 22: Australia v Pakistan, Leicester

Tournament

June 26: Australia v West Indies, Taunton

June 29: Australia v Sri Lanka, Bristol

July 2: Australia v New Zealand, Bristol

July 5: Australia v Pakistan, Leicester

July 9: Australia v England, Bristol

July 12: Australia v India, Bristol

July 15: Australia v South Africa, Taunton

July 18: First semi-final, Bristol

July 20: Second semi-final, Derby

July 23: Final, Lord's