Schutt's Brisbane heroics push case for T20I recall

Tahlia McGrath has backed Megan Schutt to continue her one-day form in the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand, following the veteran quick's dominance against Bangladesh.

Schutt finished the three-game series at Allan Border Field with 10 wickets at 7.1 with an economy rate of 2.37, culminating in her miserly display on Wednesday afternoon when she bowled 10 overs straight, taking 4-16 and sending down a remarkable 53 dot balls.

With rising quicks Lucy Hamilton and Darcie Brown sidelined for the series, Australia stuck with Schutt and Kim Garth as their frontline pace bowlers through all three matches – something they have been reluctant to do in recent times, typically rotating their resources.

That meant Schutt played just three of six one-dayers in 2026, while she also fell out of favour with the T20I side, playing just one game during the T20 World Cup in England earlier this year.

"She's had a pretty rough 12 months in the fact that she's been in and out of the side and not bowling as much as she would have liked for us," McGrath said following Australia's eight-wicket win.

"But you give the new ball to 'Schutter' and you know she's going to do a job for you, you know she's going to either hold down an end or take poles, and she had an unbelievable series for us.

"It was awesome to see her back playing in the Aussie shirt, and awesome to see her dominate.

"Bangladesh didn't really stand too much of a chance with the new ball with her at the top of her mark, she just didn't miss her length all three games, and 10 overs straight today, not many players can do that."

That had left the 33-year-old admitting she was unsure of where her future lay in the shortest format – including next February's T20 Champions Trophy India – when speaking to media following the first ODI last Friday.

Schutt's form against the Tigresses will have done her chances of a T20I recall against the White Ferns no harm, although she will also be competing with left-armer Hamilton, who will return for the three-game series at North Sydney Oval after overcoming a quad niggle.

"She's shown she's in good form," McGrath said of Schutt. "I think through the Big Bash, the introduction of the Power Surge has really helped her bowling and we know what she can do up front.

"She swings the ball for fun, she's unbelievable, but since the Surge has come in, her death plans have been enormous.

"She can bowl in any phase – you can throw the ball to her at any time, and she's a real striker, a real weapon bowler.

"If she's called upon in that New Zealand series, I reckon she's going to play a pretty good role for us."

Schutt's 10-over spell with the new ball was highly unusual – in CricViz records stretching back to 2012, only former England quick Katherine Sciver-Brunt had done it previously in women's ODIs.

But with Bangladesh scoring just 35 runs in the Powerplay while Schutt took three wickets, stand-in skipper McGrath said she felt compelled to keep handing her fellow South Australian the ball.

"She looked like she was going to take a wicket every over, and she wanted to keep going and I wanted her to keep going," McGrath said.

"I just kept going over and saying, 'How you going? You OK? You want to go again?' And she was like, 'Do not take me off'.

"It's pretty good when you get a bowler in form like that who wants the ball in hand, so I just let her do her thing."

The Australian squad will fly to Sydney on Thursday ahead of Sunday's opening T20I against the White Ferns.

Captain Sophie Molineux is firming for a return after missing the one-dayers with a hip injury, while a cloud is hanging over batter Phoebe Litchfield after she sat out the final ODI after suffering a low-grade hips strain of her own while batting in the second match.

Assuming both are fit, Australia will have made just one change to the group that won the T20 World Cup, with Grace Harris missing out in a reduced 14-player squad.

Hamilton will have a chance to prove her fitness on Thursday night, when she lines up for the Governor-General's XI in a match also featuring express quick Tayla Vlaeminck.

NRMA Insurance Women's ODI Series v Bangladesh

First ODI: Australia won by seven wickets

Second ODI: Australia won by nine wickets

Third ODI: Australia won by eight wickets

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