Australia lock in Nitschke as new head coach

Shelley Nitschke is poised to oversee a busy period of opportunity and transition for the Australian women’s team, after she was on Tuesday confirmed as head coach of the world's No.1 side for the next four years.

Her appointment is reward for a strong Commonwealth Games campaign as interim coach in July and August, which saw Australia claim an historic gold medal as T20 cricket made its debut in Birmingham.

Nitschke will remain at the helm of the Perth Scorchers for the upcoming Weber WBBL|08 season before stepping down at the conclusion of the tournament. She had originally signed a new two-year deal with the club prior to Matthew Mott’s departure to coach England’s men’s white-ball teams.

The legendary Australia allrounder, who won four consecutive Belinda Clark awards between 2009-2012, has been working with the Australians as an assistant coach since early 2018.

Her ascension to the top job means the team will have two assistant roles to fill, with a full-time replacement for Ben Sawyer still yet to be confirmed following his departure to coach New Zealand’s women in June.

Australia’s next assignment is a five-game T20I tour of India in December, which will be followed by home ODIs and T20Is against Pakistan in January.

Those series will serve as crucial preparation for the 2023 T20 World Cup in February, where Australia will be vying for a third consecutive title.

Nitschke’s appointment is one piece of the puzzle for an Australian side undergoing a period of transition; another question mark hangs over their leadership following the retirement of vice-captain Rachael Haynes last week, and with skipper Meg Lanning on indefinite leave from the game.

"Shelley did an outstanding job in an interim capacity during the Commonwealth Games and was the clear standout candidate in the recruitment process," Cricket Australia high performance manager Ben Oliver said.

"Shelley is an incredibly well-respected coach with a proven track record. She knows what it takes to be successful at an international level and brings significant coaching and playing experience to the role.

"She’s been a great mentor for the spin group since joining as an assistant in 2018, helping develop them into some of the world’s leading bowlers, and we look forward to seeing what the team can achieve with Shelley at the helm.

"We have begun recruitment for the vacant assistant coaching roles and look forward to Shelley’s input in that process."

The four-year contract presents ample opportunity to Nitschke to add to Australia’s already bursting trophy cabinet.

Key upcoming tours include travelling to the United Kingdom for the Ashes next year, and to India for a multi-format series at the end of 2023, before hosting a multi-format series against South Africa in early 2024.

Another T20 World Cup will be staged in Bangladesh in September-October 2024, while India will host the next 50-over World Cup in September-October 2025.

The next Commonwealth Games will be held in Victoria in early 2026, before England host the T20 World Cup in mid-2026.

Across that period, Australia are also likely to bid farewell to some of the key players behind their stunning success in recent years – Lanning (30), Ellyse Perry (31) and Alyssa Healy (32) are all aged over 30 – presenting Nitschke with the challenge of maintaining her team’s global dominance while renewing personnel.

"I’m honoured to have been given this opportunity to lead the team full-time and to continue to build on the legacy created by Matthew Mott," Nitschke said.

"While I enjoyed my time working as assistant coach, I feel the time is right to step up and lead this group in what’s shaping as a new era with a new-look coaching group and the retirement of Rachael Haynes.

"The loss of Rach will no doubt be felt, but it presents a great opportunity for others to put their hands up both from a leadership perspective as well as with the bat and in the field.

"Our challenge is to ensure the team continues to evolve; we’ve seen teams like India take their game to the next level and it’s important that the players feel they have the support they need to keep getting better every day.

"Our team continues to go from strength to strength and I’m excited to see what this group can achieve next; there’s some important cricket on the horizon including the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in February and away Ashes next winter, so it’s a great time to be involved."