20 summers: Perry's continued hunt for her newest edge

As she enters her 20th summer of international cricket, Ellyse Perry says her mind is not yet drifting to life beyond the game she has dominated for two decades, still driven by the desire for constant improvement.

Perry is currently preparing in Brisbane for Australia's ODI series against Bangladesh, beginning on Friday at Allan Border Field, in what will be the 365th international match of a career that started in Darwin in 2007.

In 2026-27, the allrounder comes into the season off her most successful individual T20 World Cup campaign, where she helped Australia lift the trophy for the seventh time at Lord's in early July.

With her 36th birthday a little under a month away, Perry this week said she remained determined to make the most of every opportunity to wear the green and gold – and find new ways to stay ahead.

"I still love waking up every day and having the opportunity to hopefully get better, to work with the team, to look forward to a new challenge," she said. "And while that's the case, I don't really want to change my mindset.

"I'm incredibly grateful that I've had this amount of time doing it and nothing will last forever ... but for as long as that's the case, I just kind of want to make the absolute most of it."

Perry's journey from a 16-year-old fast-bowler-slash-Matilda into arguably the game's greatest-ever allrounder is a well-worn tale.

It has not been without its setbacks, of course – there was the serious hamstring injury that forced her to watch the 2020 T20 World Cup final from the sidelines, and her sensational axing from the T20 side in 2022.

There were also the moments where Perry rose above adversity to write her name into cricketing folklore. Famously, she bowled her full allocation of 10 overs through the pain of a stress fracture in her ankle in the 2013 ODI World Cup final, capturing 3-19 as Australia secured the title.

"I remember she was in so much pain, and even playing her was a gamble," Megan Schutt recalled to cricket.com.au last month. "And for her to go on and produce a match-winning spell on what was a severely (injured) ankle … that was my first real glimpse of who Ellyse Perry was – just pushing through for whatever the team needs.

"Her evolution as a player has just shown whatever you need, she'll give it a crack.

"Obviously there's raw natural talent there … but the sheer determination – or maybe it's another way of saying stubborn – but (she's saying) 'I'm going to do this and this is how I'm going to get there', and it's just been logical, planned, precise, and professional, and she's just found a way to do it.

"And throughout that, also remained an extremely good teammate, friend, and done whatever was required for the team. I don't think there's too many people you can say that about."

Those challenges, and the ever-evolving nature of the women's game, have helped feed Perry's hunger for improvement.

Currently, the chance to continue to help shape a new era for the Australian team under the leadership of skipper and best mate Sophie Molineux is an enticing prospect.

"I think one of the most enjoyable things about being involved in elite sport is that the game is constantly progressing, and people are getting better at finding new edges, and so you've got to try and keep up with that to some respects," Perry said.

"I love going to training and working on things and finding new ways to hopefully be better as a player and ultimately contribute to our team.

"That's probably looked different over the years, and hopefully it continues to look different.

"But certainly Soph has given everyone in the team the capacity to play true to themselves, both on and off the field, and that's been great because I think it's encouraged everyone to keep getting better and just taking the game along."

Molineux first arrived in the Australian team as a raw 20-year-old, selected for a tour of India that was about as far flung from her native country Victorian home of Bairnsdale as she could imagine.

The outgoing allrounder was uncharacteristically daunted upon arriving in the national side and finding herself lining up alongside players she had idolised as a younger cricketer, including Perry.

But Perry was among those to coax the Victorian out of her shell, with Molineux hailing her role as a leader in the Australian side, despite never holding an official title.

"Even when I was a kid, to Pheebs (Litchfield) being new into the squad and Lucy (Hamilton) now, she's very generous with her time and makes sure that people feel like one, they're good enough, and two, they're more than welcome in this Aussie team," Molineux told cricket.com.au.

"I think the biggest part of it is that in the last half of her career, she's had a really open mind to exploring new things, and she's never set on something, and always curious and wants to get better and wants to make the people around her better.

"We're the lucky ones as teammates, firstly, be able to watch it and have the best seat in the house, but secondly, to be able to just feel the impact she has on this group. It's really hard to put into words because she's never really had the formal titles or anything like that but she honestly is one of the biggest leaders and has had such an impact on the group and the individuals in it."

NRMA Insurance Women's ODI Series v Bangladesh

First ODI: Friday, October 9 (D/N)

Second ODI: Sunday, October 11 (D/N)

Third ODI: Wednesday, October 14 (D/N)

* All matches played at Allan Border Field, Brisbane, starting at 1:50pm local

Australia ODI squad: Tahlia McGrath (c), Ashleigh Gardner (vc), Nicola Carey, Kim Garth, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham 

Bangladesh ODI squad: Nigar Sultana (c), Nahida Akter, Shorna Akter, Marufa Akter, Rabeya Khan, Ritu Moni, Sobhana Mostary, Sarmin Sultana, Sharmin Akter, Sanjida Akther, Sultana Khatun, Dilara Akter, Farzana Haque, Disha Biswas, Murshida Khatun, Habiba Islam

NRMA Insurance Women's T20 Series v New Zealand

First T20I: Sunday, October 18

Second T20I: Tuesday, October 20

Third T20I: Thursday, October 22

* All matches played at North Sydney Oval starting at 7:15pm AEDT

Australia T20I squad: Sophie Molineux (c), Ashleigh Gardner (vc), Tahlia McGrath (vc), Nicola Carey, Kim Garth, Lucy Hamilton, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham 

New Zealand T20I squad: Melie Kerr (c), Eden Carson, Flora Devonshire, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis (wk), Bella James, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Nensi Patel, Molly Penfold, Georgia Plimmer, Hannah Rowe, Izzy Sharp

All women's international matches will be shown live on Seven, 7Plus, Kayo Sports and Foxtel