Aussies soak up Games vibe as 'part of a bigger team'

Australia have wasted no time making themselves at home at the Commonwealth Games, embracing the chance to rub shoulders with the who’s who of Australian sport.

Meg Lanning’s 15-player squad touched down in Birmingham from Belfast on Sunday, escorted to their new home in a hotel on the outskirts of the city centre.

A scattered approach to the Commonwealth Games accommodation means there is no single athlete’s village for this event; instead, various hotels are being used as satellite sites alongside a larger hub based at the University of Birmingham.

All eight cricket teams are being housed together at the same hotel, alongside the beach volleyballers – including Tokyo silver medallists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar.

On Monday, the majority of the Australian squad snapped up a chance to spend their first full day of Commonwealth Games life exploring the main village, where they met the likes of Olympic champions Ariane Titmus, Emma McKeon and Ellie Cole.

"We had a good day yesterday … I think they're starting to really get into the spirit of the Comm Games," Australia coach Shelley Nitschke told reporters in Birmingham on Tuesday.

"It's still really good that the main village is a 15-minute walk (away), so we're able to go down there and mingle with some of the other athletes.

"That's one of the really exciting things for us, is being part of that bigger team, which is something really new for us. I think we'll be making the most that."

The next challenge for the Australian players will be to make themselves at home at Edgbaston, where all matches are to be played and where their Commonwealth Games campaign will begin on Friday with a blockbuster against rivals India in front of what is expected to be a sell-out crowd.

A headline venue for the international men’s game in the United Kingdom, Edgbaston is rarely used for women’s international cricket; the last time it hosted a game was in 2014, while Australia have played there just three times, and not since 1976.

Nitschke and her team will not get a look at the venue until match eve on Thursday, with their first official training session on Wednesday to be held at a local club.

"I'm really confident that the group is ready to go, we've still got another couple of decent sessions here in Birmingham before our first game," Nitschke said.

"They're seasoned campaigners so I'm still confident that they're going to be ready to go on Friday."

The timing of the opening match against India – scheduled to begin at 11am local time on Friday (8pm AEST) – does mean the Australian squad will miss the chance to take part in Thursday evening’s opening ceremony.

Australia are also yet to unveil their playing kit for the Commonwealth Games, but allrounder Grace Harris revealed on The Scoop podcast last week that it would feature a yellow helmet, something that has not been part of the international women’s uniform since the turn of the century, and not seen on the Aussie men since the one-off retro-kit ODI series against New Zealand in March 2020 that was cancelled as the pandemic took hold.

2022 Commonwealth Games

Australia's squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Darcie Brown, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Grace Harris, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Amanda-Jade Wellington

See all the Commonwealth Games cricket squads here

Group A: Australia, India, Pakistan, Barbados

Group B: England, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka

July 29: Australia v India (11am local, 8pm AEST)

July 31: Australia v Barbados (6pm local, 3am Aug 1 AEST)

August 3: Australia v Pakistan (11am local, 8pm AEST)

Semi-finals: August 6, 11am local (8pm AEST) and 6pm local (3am Aug 7 AEST)

Bronze medal match: August 7, 10am local (7pm AEST)

Gold medal match: August 7, 5pm local (2am Aug 8 AEST)

All matches played at Edgbaston Stadium