Cricket is the most popular sport in Australia at international, domestic and local levels. It is important culturally and regarded as a national sport (along with Australian rules football),[2] and is widely played across the country, especially from the months of September to April.[3] It was one of the first of Australia's mainstream sports to be established, having begun in the Colony of New South Wales as early as December 1803. The peak administrative body for both professional and amateur cricket is Cricket Australia.
Ausplay in 2024 reports that 541,743 adults and 156,089 children play cricket in Australia.[1] Less than a quarter of all players are female.[1]
Separately, official audience data shows that 93.6% of Australians watched at least some cricket on TV in 2010–11 calendar year.[4]
Cricket at the MCG in 1864Tom Wills was Australia's greatest cricketer in the era before Test cricket.
Cricket has been played in Australia for over 210 years. The first recorded cricket match in Australia took place in Sydney in December 1803 and a report in the Sydney Gazette on 8 January 1804 suggested that cricket was already well established in the infant colony. Intercolonial cricket in Australia started with a visit by cricketers from Victoria to Tasmania in February 1851.[5] The match was played in Launceston on 11–12 February with Tasmania winning by 3 wickets.[6]
The first tour by an English team to Australia was in 1861–62, organised by the catering firm of Spiers and Pond as a private enterprise. A further tour followed in 1863–64, led by George Parr and was even more successful than the last.[7]
In 1868, a team consisting of Aboriginal cricketers became the first Australian team to tour England. The team played 47 matches, winning 14, drawing 19 and losing 14. The heavy workload and inclement weather took its toll with King Cole contracting a fatal case of tuberculosis during the tour.[8]
Further tours by English teams took place in 1873–74 (featuring the most notable cricketer of the age W. G. Grace) and 1876–77.[7] The 1876–77 season was notable for a match between a combined XI from New South Wales and Victoria and the touring Englishmen at the Melbourne Cricket Ground played on 15–19 March. This match, later to be recognised as the first Test match, was won by Australia by 45 runs thanks mainly to an unbeaten 165 by Charles Bannerman. The result of this match was seen by Australians and Englishmen as a reflection of the rising standard of Australian cricket.[9]
Billy Murdoch, who captained the Australia team during the first Ashes test in 1882
The rising standards of Australian cricket was further established during the first representative tour of England in 1878. A return visit in 1878–79 is best remembered for a riot and by the time Australia visited England in 1880, playing the first Test in England at The Oval, a system of international tours was well established.[7] A famous victory on the 1882 tour of England resulted in the placement of a satiricalobituary in an English newspaper, The Sporting Times. The obituary stated that English cricket had died, and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. The English media then dubbed the next English tour to Australia (1882–83) as the quest to regain The Ashes.[10] The Sheffield Shield, the premier first-class cricket competition in Australia, was established in 1892 by the Australasian Cricket Council, the first attempt at a national cricket board.[5]
The era from the mid-1890s to World War I has been described as Australian cricket's golden age. This era saw the emergence of players such as Monty Noble, Clem Hill and in particular Victor Trumper, who was idolised by the Australian public.[11]World War I led to the suspension of both international and Sheffield Shield cricket and the enlistment of many cricketers in the AIF.[5] After the war, a team consisting of cricketers enlisted in the AIF toured the United Kingdom.[7]
International cricket recommenced with a tour by a weakened England team in 1920–21. The strong Australian team, led by Armstrong and with a bowling attack spearheaded by Gregory and Ted McDonald won the series 5–0, the first time this was achieved in an Ashes series.[5]Don Bradman, born in Cootamundra and raised in Bowral was 20 when he made his Test debut in the first Test of the 1928–29 series against England.[12] He would hold the records for the highest individual Test innings and the most centuries in Test cricket and when he retired in 1948 he had the highest Test batting average, the last a record he still holds. He scored 117 first classcenturies, still the only Australian to score a century of centuries and was knighted for services to cricket.[12]
The Bodyline controversy began when Bradman toured England with the Australian team in 1930. Bradman scored heavily, 974 runs at an average of 139.14 including a then world record 334 at Leeds, two other double centuries and another single.[7] Watching these displays of batting was Douglas Jardine, playing for Surrey. Following discussions with other observers such as Percy Fender and George Duckworth, he developed a tactic to limit the prodigious run scoring of Bradman and the others.[13] The tactic, originally called fast leg theory and later called bodyline involved fast short pitched bowling directed at the batsman's body and a packed leg side field. Appointed captain of England for the 1932–33 series in Australia, Jardine was able to put these theories into practice. Combined with bowlers of the speed and accuracy of Harold Larwood and Bill Voce, the tactic required batsmen to risk injury in order to protect their wicket. In the third Test in Adelaide, Larwood struck Australian captain Bill Woodfull above the heart and fractured wicket-keeperBert Oldfield's skull.[14]
In December 1934, the Australian women's team played the English women in the first women's Test match at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground. Despite a 7 wicket haul to Anne Palmer in the first innings, the English women were too strong and won by 9 wickets.[15]
1945–1969
Once again, war brought a stop to Shield and Test cricket as Australia mobilised for World War II. Immediately after the end of the war in Europe in 1945, an Australian Services XI played a series of Victory Tests in England. The team was captained by Lindsay Hassett and it saw the emergence of the charismatic all-rounder Keith Miller. The series was drawn 2–2.[16] After the retirement of Bradman in 1948, Hassett, Miller and all-rounder Ray Lindwall formed the nucleus of the Australian team. They were later joined by leg spinning all-rounder, Richie Benaud and batsman Neil Harvey.
By the 1958–59 series, Benaud was captain of the Australian side and managed to recover the Ashes. The 1960–61 series at home against the West Indies was widely regarded as one of the most memorable. A commitment by Benaud and his West Indian counterpart Frank Worrell to entertaining cricket revived lagging interest in the sport.[17] The gripping series, including the first tied Test, saw Australia win 2–1 and become the inaugural holders of the newly commissioned Frank Worrell Trophy. The West Indian team was held in such affection that a ticker-tape parade in their honour prior to their departure from Australia attracted a crowd of 300,000 Melburnians to wish them farewell.[18]
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, there was an ongoing controversy regarding illegal bowling actions. A number of bowlers, Australian and international were accused of throwing or "chucking" over this period including the South Australian pair of Alan Hitchcox and Peter Trethewey and New South Welshman, Gordon Rorke.[5] The controversy reached a high point when Ian Meckiff was recalled to the Australian team for the first Test of the 1963–64 series against South Africa. Called on to bowl his first over, he was no-balled 4 times by umpire Colin Egar for throwing before being removed from the attack by his skipper, Benaud. As a consequence, Meckiff retired from all levels of cricket after the match and Egar received death threats from persons aggrieved at his call.[19]
1970–present
The 1970s saw players and administrators once again come into conflict. Poor scheduling saw Australia visit South Africa immediately after a tour to India in 1969–70. This would be the last tour to South Africa prior to the application of international sporting sanctions designed to oppose the policy of apartheid. The tired Australians came across a very strong South African team in conditions vastly different from the subcontinent, and were subsequently beaten 4–0. A request by the Australian Cricket Board for the players to play a further match in South Africa was met with resistance by the players, led by the captain, Bill Lawry.[20] During the following home series against England, Lawry was sacked as captain and replaced by the South Australian batsman, Ian Chappell. Lawry remains the only Australian captain to be sacked in the middle of a Test series.[20]
Greg Chappell, Ian's younger brother, succeeded him as captain in 1975–76 and led the Australian team in the Centenary Test in Melbourne in March 1977. A celebration of 100 years of Test cricket, Australia won the Test by 45 runs, the precise result of the corresponding game 100 years earlier.[21]
While Australian cricket celebrated, the Australian media tycoon Kerry Packer was making plans to wrest away the television rights for Australian cricket. During the 1977 Ashes tour, the cricket world became aware that Packer had signed 35 of the world's top cricketers for a series of matches, including 18 Australians, 13 of whom were part of the tour party.[22]World Series Cricket, as the breakaway group was known split Australian cricket in two for nearly three years. Former Australian captain, Bob Simpson was recalled from retirement to lead an inexperienced team in a home series against India in 1977–78, won 3–2 and then a tour to the West Indies, marred by an ugly riot.[5] For the 1978–79 Ashes series, he was replaced by the young Victorian, Graham Yallop. The subsequent thrashing, a 5–1 victory for England, and the success of World Series Cricket forced the Australian Cricket Board to concede on Packer's terms.[5]
The settlement between the ACB and WSC led to the introduction of a series of innovations including night cricket, coloured clothing and an annual limited overs tri-series called the World Series Cup. It also signalled the return of the champion cricketers Greg Chappell, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh. Their retirement at the end of the 1983–84 season was quickly followed by a series of tours to South Africa by a rebel Australian team in breach of the sporting sanctions imposed on the apartheid regime. The combined effect was to leave Australian cricket at its nadir under reluctant captain, Allan Border, losing Test series at home (2–1) and away (1–0) to New Zealand in 1985–86.[23]
The long road back for Australian cricket started in India in 1986–87. Border, along with Bob Simpson in a new role as coach, set out to identify a group of players that a team could form around.[24] These players showed some of the steel necessary in the famous tied Test at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Returning to the subcontinent for the World Cup in 1987, Australia surprised the cricket world by defeating England at Eden Gardens in Kolkata to win the tournament with a disciplined brand of cricket.[25] By the 1989 Ashes tour, the development of players such as Steve Waugh and David Boon and the discovery of Mark Taylor and Ian Healy had reaped rewards. The 4–0 drubbing of England was the first time since 1934 that Australia had recovered the Ashes away from home and marked the resurgence of Australia as a cricketing power.[26] Australia would hold the Ashes for the next 16 years.[27]
The most successful leg-spinbowler in the history of the game, Shane Warne, made his debut in 1991–92 in the third Test against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground. He had an undistinguished Test debut, taking 1/150 off 45 overs, and recording figures of 1/228 in his first Test series. From this modest beginning, Warne dominated Australian cricket for 15 years, taking 708 wickets at an average of 25.41.[28] When the fast medium bowler, Glenn McGrath was first selected in the Australian team for the Perth test against New Zealand in 1993–94, the core of a highly successful bowling attack was formed. In 1994–95, under new captain Taylor, the Australians defeated the then dominant West Indies in the Caribbean to recover the Frank Worrell Trophy for the first time since 1978 and staked a claim to be considered the best team in the world.[29]
Following a disappointing World Cup at home in 1992, Australia then entered a run of extraordinarily successful World Cup campaigns; runners up to Sri Lanka in 1996 in the subcontinent, fighting back after early setbacks to win in England in 1999 and unbeaten on their way to another victory in South Africa.[30] The change in captain from Taylor to Steve Waugh made little difference in the success of the Australian team. Waugh made a slightly rocky start to his term as captain, drawing 2–2 with the West Indies in the Caribbean and losing to Sri Lanka 1–0 away. A victory in the Australian team's first ever Test match against Zimbabwe was the start of an unparalleled 16 Test winning streak. The streak was finally ended in 2001 in Kolkata with a remarkable victory by India after being asked to follow-on. For Waugh, India would remain unconquered territory.[31]
MCG during an ODI match between Australia and India in 2004
Australia's success was not without its detractors. Accusations of racism were made against the Australian team, one incident leading to a suspension for Darren Lehmann in 2003.[32] Contacts between Warne and batsman Mark Waugh and illegal bookmakers, at first kept under cover by the ACB, were later revealed by the Australian press, sparking accusations of hypocrisy given Australian cricket's earlier attitude toward match fixing allegations.[33] Warne would later be suspended from all forms of cricket for 12 months after testing positive to banned diureticshydrochlorothiazide and amiloride.[33] The brand of cricket played by the Australian team was praised for its spirit and aggressiveness but critics charged that this aggressive approach led to ugly sledging incidents such as the confrontation between McGrath and West Indian batsman, Ramnaresh Sarwan at the Antigua Recreation Ground in 2003.[34] Tasmanian batsman Ricky Ponting would admit to an alcohol problem after incidents in India and in Sydney.[35]
A rehabilitated Ponting would succeed Waugh as captain in 2004. While injured for most of the 2004–05 series against India, his team under acting captain Adam Gilchrist defeated India in India, the first Australian series win in India since Bill Lawry's team in 1969–70. A 2–1 defeat in the 2005 Ashes series in England was quickly avenged at home with a 5–0 thrashing of England in 2006–07. The whitewash was the first in an Ashes series since Warwick Armstrong's team in 1920–21.[36] Following the series, the successful bowling combination of McGrath and Warne retired from Test cricket, with a record that was hard to match. Australia won the 2007 Cricket World Cup under Ricky Ponting in the Caribbean and were unbeaten through the tournament. Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden scored the most runs in the tournament. The finals happened to be Glenn McGrath's last match and he was also the highest wicket taker of the tournament and the player of the tournament.
Australia also hosted the 2022 T20 World Cup from 16 October to 13 November. In total, 45 games where played across the nation, located in all capital cities except Canberra, as well as Geelong.[38] Australia played 5 games, winning 3, losing 1 against New Zealand and having 1 abandoned. The country finished 3rd in their group, missing out on the semi-finals.[39]
The Cricket Australia (CA) is the principal national governing body of cricket in Australia. Its headquarters is situated at the Jolimont, Melbourne. The CA is involved in talent development through grassroots programs and cricket academies. Its initiatives include infrastructure development, coaching, and player welfare programs designed to maintain and enhance Australia's competitive performance internationally.
The CA was established in 1905 as the Australian Board of Control for International Cricket. It is incorporated as an Australian Public Company, limited by guarantee.[40]
The Australian senior national team had several successes and is considered No. 1 team in Pacific and one of the best team in the world cricket. The national team's highest achievement is winning most number of Cricket World Cups.
Ausplay in 2024 reports that 541,743 adults and 156,089 children play cricket in Australia.[1] Fewer than a quarter of all players are female.[1]
The 2017–18 National Cricket Census showed 1,558,821 Australians engaged in cricket competitions or programs – an increase of 9% from the previous year. 30% of cricket's participants were female, and 6 in every 10 new participants were female, one of the highest participation growth figures. More than 2.3 million people attended the cricket during the 2017–18 summer, surpassing the record of 1.8 million set in 2016–17.[41]
The Australian national team is one of the most successful teams in international cricket. Along with England, Australia was recognised as one of the founder nations of the Imperial Cricket Conference, later the International Cricket Council. Australia generally plays a test series against a visiting team, and a one-day series between two other teams at home each summer, and tours overseas for the remainder of the year
Australia have been participating in international cricket since 1861 and competed in international tournament since the first ever the 1975 Cricket World Cup. The Australia national cricket team has also provided some of the greatest players to the world, the biggest example of which is Don Bradman. Australian cricket has a rich history. The Australian men's national team is currently ranked No. 1 in Tests, No. 2 in ODIs and at 2nd position in T20Is. Australia had won six World Championship cups (most by any country). In 1987 Australia won their first world cup under the captaincy of Allan Border. Recently in 2023, they had won their sixth title under the captaincy of Pat Cummins, which was won after a span of 8 years.
Test International- On 15 March 1877, an Australian representative team played England in what would later be recognised as the first Test match. They are the most successful Test cricketing nation, with a higher percentage of won matches than any other nation.[42] In Test cricket, the Australian team compete for various trophies and championships. The ICC Test Championship is an international competition run by the ICC for the 10 teams that play Test cricket. The competition is notional in the sense that it is simply a ranking scheme overlaid on all international matches that are otherwise played as part of regular Test cricket with no other consideration whatsoever.[43] The most famous among all these trophies is The Ashes, which was played for the first time in 1882 between Australia and England. Other bilateral trophies have generally been named after the great players from the two competing nations.
In late September 2021, Cricket Australia announced it would postpone its men's test match against Afghanistan indefinitely to prompt Afghanistan to rethink their approach to women's sports after media outlets reported that Taliban rulers would not allow women to play cricket. The match against the Afghan men's team was originally scheduled for Nov. 27 in Hobart.[50]
One Day International- The Australian team took part in the first one day international on 5 January 1971, once again also against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Since then, the team has maintained a good record in one day internationals, winning six Cricket World Cups, more than any other national team.Following the end of World Series Cricket, from 1979 to 1980 the Australian season featured a triangular series of one day internationals, featuring the Australian team and two touring teams. The first incarnation of this tournament was called the World Series Cup and included night cricket, coloured uniforms and a white ball. In 1994–95, the tournament included an Australia A cricket team, due to the perceived weakness of the invited Zimbabwe team. For the 1996–97 season, the World Series Cup was replaced by a series of tournaments named after a major sponsor, including the Carlton & United Series, the VB Series and the Commonwealth Bank Series. The successor series followed a similar format.Australia and New Zealand co-hosted the 1992 Cricket World Cup, and the 2015 Cricket World Cup. In 1992, for the first time, the tournament featured the innovations already common in Australian one-day matches such as night cricket and coloured clothing. The tournament featured nine nations, expanded to include a South African team recently admitted back into world cricket. Australia despite starting firm favourites,[51] performed poorly, failing to make the semi – final stage. Pakistan defeated England in the final in front of 87,182 spectators at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.[52] The 2015 Cricket World Cup was the 11th Cricket World Cup, jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand from 14 February to 29 March 2015. Fourteen teams played 49 matches in 14 venues, with Australia staging 26 games at grounds in Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.[53] The final match of the tournament took place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground between co-hosts New Zealand and Australia in front of a record crowd of 93,013.[37]
T20 International- Australia played there first T2O International in 2005 against New Zealand. In November 2021, Australia won their first-ever ICC Men's T20 World Cup held in United Arab Emirates, beating New Zealand by 8 wickets in the final.[54]
There are currently 290,566 female participants in cricket. The Australia national women's cricket team competes internationally and has won the Women's Cricket World Cup five times, more than any other team.[55] As in men's cricket, Australia and England were the first two women's Test nations, playing in the inaugural women's Test in Brisbane in 1934. Australia compete with England for the Women's Ashes, a cricket bat symbolically burned prior to the 1998 test series. The Australian team also compete in the Rose Bowl series, a series of one-day internationals against New Zealand.The Australian women's national team is currently ranked No. 1 in ODIs and at 1st position in T20Is.
Test International- Women's test cricket in 1935 Australia made their debut as a Test playing nation in 1934 against England. In past time, Australia women's rarely play test. But in recent years they are playing more test matches.
One Day International-Australia played their first ODI International in 1978 against Young England and competed in international tournament since the first ever the 1973 Women's Cricket World Cup. They have clinched most number of Women's Cricket World Cup title. In the very second edition of women's cricket world cup, australia clinched their first ever title. Recently, in 2022 Australia have won their seventh world cup trophy.
T20 International- Australia played their first T20 International in 2005 against England. Australia Women's have made great impact in T20 international from their early day of this format. They have clinched ICC Women's T20 World Cup trophy six times. In the very second edition of t20 women's cricket world cup, australia clinched their first ever title. Recently, in 2023 Australia have won their sixth t20 world cup trophy.
Sheffield Shield –The Sheffield Shield is the domestic first-class cricket competition in Australia. It was established in 1892 using a bequest of £150 provided by Lord Sheffield for the improvement of Australian cricket and was originally named the Sheffield Shield in recognition. When established, the competition included the colonies (later states) of New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria. Queensland was admitted to the Shield competition for the 1926–27 season, Western Australia in 1947–48 and Tasmania in 1977–78. In 1999, the Australian Cricket Board (now Cricket Australia) announced a 4-year sponsorship deal which included renaming the Sheffield Shield to the Pura Milk Cup, then to the Pura Cup the following season. As of the 2008–09 season, the title has reverted to its original name. At the end of the 2023-24 season, all participating teams have won at least one Sheffield Shield, with New South Wales the most successful state with 47 wins.
Limited overs competitions
One-Day Cup –The Marsh One Day Cup is the domestic List A cricket (limited overs cricket) competition in Australia. It was established in 1969–70 and featured the state teams and a team from New Zealand. Originally a knock-out tournament, the format and name has changed several times since inception depending on the naming rights sponsor. New Zealand withdrew from the competition after the 1974–75 season. The Canberra Comets, a team from the Australian Capital Territory were included for three seasons from 1997 to 1998 to 1999–2000. At the end of the 2023-24 season, Western Australia has been the most successful state with 17 wins. In 2013, the format changed and all matches were held in Sydney at various grounds. It was broadcast live on GEM. The whole competition was held in the month of October, prior to the Sheffield Shield. However it has since moved back to being played from October to March and is now broadcast exclusively on the Pay TV network Foxtel and its streaming platform Kayo Sports.
Twenty20 cricket
Big Bash League – The KFC Big Bash League or BBL, in short, is the Australian domestic Twenty20cricket tournament, which was established in 2011. The Big Bash League replaced the previous competition, the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, and features eight city-based franchises, instead of the six state-based teams which had competed before. Each state's capital city features one team, with Sydney and Melbourne featuring two. BBL matches are played in Australia during the summer in the months of December and January. It is now placed ninth in the list of most attended sports leagues in the world with respect to average crowd per match (2015–16 season).[56][57] At the end of the 2023-24 season the Perth Scorchers are the most successful franchise with 6 wins.
Local club cricket is also popular, as well as social cricket which includes variations such as backyard and beach cricket.
Women's Domestic Cricket
Limited overs competitions
Women's National Cricket League- The Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) is the national domestic 50-over competition for women's cricket in Australia. Featuring seven teams—one from every state, plus the Australian Capital Territory—each season's winner is awarded the Ruth Preddy Cup. New South Wales have historically dominated the competition, appearing in the first 24 title deciders and winning 20 championships.
In 2007, The Age reported that a survey by Sweeney Sports had found that 59% of the Australian public have an interest in cricket, second to none.[66] Cricket is often known as Australia's national sport due to its equal popularity in all parts of the country. Cricket is also a mass participation sport in Australia: a census conducted on behalf of Cricket Australia found that in the 2003–04 season there were 471,329 participants in Australian cricket programmes and competitions, including 47,780 female participants.[67]
In 2015–16, a record 1,300,000 Australians played formal, organised cricket during the year, an increase of nine percent over the previous year, making cricket Australia's biggest participant sport.[68]
Cricket plays an important role in Australia's national identity, in particular its relationship towards the United Kingdom. The national team has been said to represent "de facto Australian foreign policy" particularly with respect to relations with Asian subcontinent nations.[74]
With both predominant winter sports, Australian rules football and rugby league, having largely regionally divided followings, cricket is the only one of the nation's three most popular sports to maintain a truly national following.[75][76]
Audience
Official audience data shows that 93.6% of Australians watched at least some cricket on TV in 2010–11 calendar year.[4]
Australia's victory over New Zealand in the 2015 Cricket World Cup Final was, at the time, the most-watched sports match ever in Australia, peaking at 4.218million viewers nationally. The second innings of the match, which saw Australia winning the match with seven wickets to spare, averaged 2.404million in the five capital cities and 3.285million nationally. A further 522,000 watched Australia's innings on pay-TV channel Fox Sports 3, while 492,000 watched the first session.[77]
The first ever Day/Night test match between Australia and New Zealand attracted nearly 3.1million viewers across the country during the first two days of the match at Adelaide Oval. The third and eventually the final day of the match, attracted a peak national audience of 3.19million.[78][79]
An audience of 2.306million viewers watched the Australia v England Twenty20 match in 2007. It still remains the most watched Twenty20 match in Australia on TV.[77]
In 2013, Ten paid $100million for BBL rights over five years, marking the channel's first foray into elite cricket coverage.[80]Network Ten had previously covered the Big Bash League. In 2018 it was announced that the Seven Network and Foxtel had paid a combined $1.2 billion over 6 years for broadcast rights of all cricket competitions in Australia.
BBL coverage has become a regular feature of Australian summers and attracted an average audience of more than 492,000 viewers nationally in 2023-24 season,[81] including a peak audience of 952,000 viewers for the final.
The Australia national cricket team represents Australia in men's international cricket. Along with England, it is the joint oldest team in Test cricket history, playing and winning the first ever Test match in 1877; the team also plays One-Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket, participating in both the first ODI, against England in the 1970–71 season and the first T20I, against New Zealand in the 2004–05 season, winning both games. The team draws its players from teams playing in the Australian domestic competitions – the Sheffield Shield, the Australian domestic limited-overs cricket tournament and the Big Bash League. Australia are the current ICC World Test Championship and ICC Cricket World Cup champions. They are regarded as the most successful national team in the history of cricket.
Matthew Lawrence Hayden is an Australian cricket commentator and former cricketer. His career spanned fifteen years. Hayden was a powerful and aggressive left-handed opening batsman who, along with opening partners Justin Langer and Adam Gilchrist, contributed heavily to Australia's success during its "golden era" (2000–2008) in Test and ODI cricket respectively. He holds the record of highest individual score by an Australian batsman in Tests, having scored 380 against Zimbabwe during Zimbabwe's 2003 tour of Australia. This stands as the second-highest individual score in test cricket. It is the highest score by an opening batsman in Tests, though infamously he never faced the opening ball in Tests with Langer, always batting at No2. Hayden was a member of the Australian team that won both the 2003 Cricket World Cup, and the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
The England men's cricket team represents England and Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club since 1903. England, as a founding nation, is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test, One Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) status. Until the 1990s, Scottish and Irish players also played for England as those countries were not yet ICC members in their own right.
Shaun Tait is a former Australian professional cricketer who was appointed as the bowling coach of the Pakistan national cricket team in February 2022. He played as a right arm fast bowler and represented Australia in all three forms of cricket, but had most success in One Day Internationals, in which he was a member of Australia's undefeated team at the 2007 Cricket World Cup, and Twenty20 cricket. Tait won four different awards throughout his career including the Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year in 2004. He is considered one of the fastest bowlers of all time.
The Australian women's national cricket team represent Australia in international women's cricket. Currently captained by Alyssa Healy and coached by Shelley Nitschke, they are the top team in all world rankings assigned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the women's game.
Aaron James Finch is an Australian cricket commentator and former international cricketer who served as the captain of the Australian cricket team in ODI and T20I cricket. Finch currently holds the record for two of the three highest individual scores in Twenty20 Internationals (T20I), his score of 172 against Zimbabwe in July 2018 beating his previous record of 156 against England in 2013. Finch was a part of the Australian team that won the 2015 Cricket World Cup, and six years later as Australia's captain, Finch also led Australia to win the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup, which was the maiden T20 World Cup title for the country. In July 2018, he became the first player to reach 900 rating points on the official International Cricket Council (ICC) T20I rankings. He made his Test debut for Australia in October 2018. He is also a part time commentator with Fox Cricket and Triple M. Finch has played domestically for Victoria and Melbourne Renegades. He is an opening batter, and occasional left arm orthodox spinner.
Matthew Scott Wade is an Australian former international cricketer. He plays domestic cricket for the Tasmanian cricket team, who he also captains, and for Hobart Hurricanes.
Timothy David Paine is an Australian former cricketer and a former captain of the Australia national cricket team in Test cricket. A right-handed batsman and a wicket-keeper, he played for the Tasmanian Tigers in Australian domestic cricket and was the captain of the Hobart Hurricanes before his selection for Australia in the 2017–18 Ashes series. During his time with Australia, Paine won the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy.
David Andrew Warner is an Australian former international cricketer and Captain of Big Bash League team, Sydney Thunder. A left-handed opening batsman, Warner was the first Australian cricketer in 132 years to be selected for the national team in any format without experience in first-class cricket. He plays for New South Wales and Sydney Thunder in domestic cricket. Warner was a prominent member of the victorious Australian squad of the 2015 Cricket World Cup, the 2021 T20 World Cup, where he was the Player of the Tournament, the 2021–2023 ICC World Test Championship, and the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Steven Peter Devereux Smith is an Australian international cricketer, former captain of the Australian national team in all three formats of the game and the current vice-captain of the Australia Test team. He is regarded as the best Test batsmen of his generation and one of the greatest Test batsmen of all time. Smith was a member of the Australian teams that won the 2015 and 2023 Cricket World Cup, the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup, and the 2023 ICC World Test Championship.
Josh Reginald Hazlewood is an Australian international cricketer. He is a tall pace bowler known for his accuracy and has been compared to former Australian paceman Glenn McGrath. Hazlewood currently ranks no. 2 in ODI, no. 7 in T20I and no. 2 in Test in the ICC Men's Player Rankings. He won multiple ICC tournaments with the Australian team: the 2015 Cricket World Cup, the 2021 T20 World Cup, and the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
Mitchell Ross Marsh is an Australian international cricketer who represents Australia in all three formats. Marsh is the current Australian T20I captain, ODI vice-captain and also served as Test vice-captain after the 2018 Australian ball-tampering scandal. Marsh currently plays for Western Australia, at for domestic cricket, and Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League.
Rachael Louise Haynes is an Australian former international cricketer who has won six world championships as a member of the national women's team. A left-handed batter, Haynes was vice-captain of Australia from 2017 to 2022. Domestically, she achieved prolonged success in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) and the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL), winning seven titles with New South Wales and two with the Sydney Thunder.
Heather Clare Knight is an English cricketer who is captain of the England women's cricket team. She is a right-handed batter and right arm off spin bowler. Knight played in her 100th Women's One Day International match for England in December 2019.
Bethany Louise Mooney is an Australian professional cricketer who plays for the national cricket team as a batter in all three formats of the game. At the domestic level, she plays as a wicket-keeper-batter for Western Australia, Perth Scorchers in WBBL and for Gujarat Giant in WPL. In March 2020, at the conclusion of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020, she became the world's number one batter in Women's Twenty20 International (WT20I) cricket.
Kimberley Jennifer Garth is an Irish-Australian cricketer who currently plays for Victoria, Melbourne Stars and Australia. An all-rounder, she plays as a right-arm medium bowler and right-handed batter. Between 2010 and 2019, she played international cricket for Ireland, the country of her birth, playing more than 100 matches for the side, before deciding to move to Australia. She made her international debut for Australia in December 2022.
Sophie Grace Molineux is an Australian cricketer from Bairnsdale, Victoria. A left-arm orthodox bowling all-rounder, Molineux has been a member of the national women's team since 2018. At domestic level, she currently plays for Victoria in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) and captains the Melbourne Renegades in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL). Molineux also represents WPL side Royal Challengers Bangalore
Ashleigh Katherine Gardner is an Australian cricketer who currently plays for the national women's team as an all-rounder. A right-handed batter and right-arm off spinner, Gardner also plays for New South Wales in the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL), for the Sydney Sixers in the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) and for the Gujarat Giants in the Women's Premier League (WPL). She has won three world championships and four national titles with her respective teams, while also gaining numerous individual honours, including the Belinda Clark Award.
Georgia Lee Wareham is an Australian cricketer who plays for the national cricket team as a leg spin bowler. At the domestic level, she plays for Victoria and the Melbourne Renegades. In April 2018, she played six matches on an Under 19 tour of South Africa, taking a total of nine wickets including 4/17 in a 50-over match against the Emerging South Africa team.
Annabel Jane Sutherland is an Australian cricketer who plays for the national cricket team as an all-rounder. At the domestic level, she plays for Victoria in the Women's National Cricket League and the Melbourne Stars in the Women's Big Bash League.
References
1 2 3 4 5 6 Commission, Australian Sports Commission; jurisdiction=Commonwealth of Australia; corporateName=Australian Sports. "AusPlay results". Sport Australia. Retrieved 5 November 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Pollard, Jack (1986). The Pictorial History of Australian Cricket (reviseded.). Boronia: J.M Dent Pty Ltd & Australian Broadcasting Corporation. ISBN0-86770-043-2.
↑ Simpson, Bob; Brindle, Terry (1996). Bob Simpson the reasons why: a decade of coaching, a lifetime of cricket. Sydney: HarperCollins. ISBN0-7322-5664-X.
van Duinen, Jared (2018). The British World and an Australian National Identity: Anglo-Australian Cricket, 1860–1901. Palgrave Studies in Sport and Politics. London: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN9781137527776.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
