With less than one year until the 2009 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New South Wales, the section panel made four changes to last year’s squad, with fast bowlers Delissa Kimmence (Queensland) and Rene Farrell (New South Wales) elevated to the senior ranks and all-rounder Lauren Ebsary (Western Australia) and wicket-keeper Leonie Coleman (New South Wales) recalled.
Both Kimmence and Farrell made their international debuts during the 2007-08 season and their performances were enough to warrant promotion from the Australian junior squad (Commonwealth Bank Shooting Stars).
The pair is joined by all-rounder Ebsary and Coleman, with both players selected in the national squad after absences of one and four years respectively.
“Delissa Kimmence and Rene Farrell are two very promising players who have been given and opportunity and we are looking for them to continue their development in the AIS environment over the coming year,” Women’s National Selection Panel Chairperson Marg Jennings said.
“Lauren Ebsary and Leonie Coleman have fought their way back into the national set-up after good performances in the WNCL and in Leonie’s case, for the Australian team.
“Last summer highlighted our need to continue to work on the team’s consistency of performances and our batting. Hopefully the Rose Bowl Series win against New Zealand will give us the confidence to play the style of game we’ll need to win the World Cup.
“Within the group selected, we believe we’ve got a team capable of winning the World Cup.”
AIS Director Peter Fricker said he was extremely proud of the significant role the AIS program had made to the overall success of Australian women’s cricket.
"Watching Australia’s future women’s cricketers develop and reach new heights is very exciting, and to know that the AIS program at the Centre of Excellence has played a major part in that development is a tremendous reflection of the program's success," Professor Fricker said.
The national squad will attend off-season training camps from 17-19 May at the AIS in Canberra and from 1-4 August at the Cricket Australia Centre of Excellence (COE) in Brisbane. Specialist batting and bowling camps will also be held in June and July.
The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup will be played in New South Wales and the ACT in March next year with the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars the number one seed for the tournament.
Before the World Cup, the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars will warm up with series against India and New Zealand.
AIS Female Scholarships to the COE
In addition to the national squad selection, a new initiative for 2008 is to provide a number of female AIS scholarship holders with an opportunity to spend a consolidated period of time (between 4-12 weeks per athlete) at the COE.
The purpose of the program is to enhance the preparation of several AIS scholarship holders in the lead up to the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup. The program is in addition to the AIS/national squad program of camps. The selection panel has selected the following players to participate in the program in 2008.
Kate Blackwell (NSW)
Kris Britt (SA)
Karen Rolton (SA)
Emma Sampson (SA)
The 2008-09 Australian Institute of Sport (AIS)–Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars squad is:
| Player | Age | State | Twenty20s | ODIs | Tests |
| Sarah Andrews | 26 | NSW | 4 | 21 | 2 |
| Alex Blackwell | 24 | NSW | 3 | 47 | 6 |
| Kate Blackwell | 24 | NSW | 5 | 36 | 4 |
| Kris Britt | 24 | SA | 2 | 17 | 1 |
| Melissa Bulow | 27 | QLD | 2 | 19 | 2 |
| Renee Chappell | 24 | WA | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leonie Coleman | 29 | NSW | 2 | 19 | 1 |
| Lauren Ebsary | 25 | WA | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sarah Edwards | 26 | VIC | 3 | 11 | 0 |
| Rene Farrell | 21 | NSW | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Delissa Kimmence | 18 | QLD | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Shelley Nitschke | 31 | SA | 4 | 46 | 4 |
| Ellyse Perry | 17 | NSW | 2 | 13 | 1 |
| Kirsten Pike | 23 | QLD | 4 | 22 | 1 |
| Leah Poulton | 24 | NSW | 1 | 9 | 0 |
| Jodie Purves | 23 | QLD | 2 | 25 | 1 |
| Karen Rolton | 33 | SA | 5 | 122 | 13 |
| Emma Sampson | 22 | SA | 3 | 18 | 1 |
| Clea Smith | 29 | VIC | 1 | 42 | 1 |
| Lisa Sthalekar | 28 | NSW | 5 | 73 | 6 |
2008-09 Commonwealth Bank Shooting Stars squad announced
Meanwhile, the 2008-09 Commonwealth Bank Shooting Stars (under-21) squad was also announced today by the Women’s National Selection Panel.
The squad is:
| Player | Age | State |
| Nicole Bolton | 17 | WA |
| Cassie Brock | 17 | VIC |
| Jessica Cameron | 18 | VIC |
| Sarah Coyte | 17 | NSW |
| Taija Davis | 16 | QLD |
| Alicia Dean | 20 | SA |
| Ashleigh Endacott | 18 | NSW |
| Corinne Hall | 20 | NSW |
| Alyssa Healy | 18 | NSW |
| Emma Inglis | 19 | VIC |
| Jessica Jonassen | 15 | QLD |
| Renee Melton | 18 | VIC |
| Annie Maloney | 19 | VIC |
| Emilee Preston | 17 | ACT |
| Jo-Anne Verall | 2008-04-05
01. January
01. January
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