Rising all-rounder Chloe Ainsworth was rewarded for her superb Premier Cricket and National Under-19 form with a first WA cricket contract aged just 17.
The talented teenager impressed with clubs and balls during the 1919’s Carnival, scoring 175 runs on 35 and winning 10 wickets on 15.1 with a best of 3-12 in a tournament-opening win over Tasmania.
She also broke through on her Women’s National Cricket League debut against Queensland at the WACA Ground in December.
A quartet of experienced players, including Chloe Piparo, captain and last season’s Zoë Goss medalist, have signed two-year contract extensions.
Piparo had a stellar season with the bat in the WNCL in 2022-23, finishing in the top five runs of the competition (513 runs at 51.3) and winning the WNCL Player of the Year award at last month’s WA Cricket Awards received .
Off-spinner and Queensland product Lilly Mills has also committed to WA Cricket after a career-high campaign, finishing fifth in the WNCL’s list of leading wicket-taker with 20 scalps at 24.9.
Piepa Cleary and Lisa Griffith have also signed for the next two seasons.
“We’re proud of the list we’ve put together and we’re delighted to welcome back almost the entire squad from last season,” said Kade Harvey, General Manager of High Performance at WA Cricket.
“Chloe Ainsworth receives her first State contract after dominating Premier Cricket for Melville. We’re excited to see how she does.
“It’s fantastic to sign our key senior players on multi-year renewals as their experience proves invaluable to a young and developing group.”
Alana King and Beth Mooney are also in the squad after being signed by Cricket Australia, allowing WA to select a 16-man squad for the second summer in a row.
Sheldyn Cooper is the only omission from the 2022-23 list after her contract was not renewed.
“As a coach, it’s nice to keep a consistent squad together,” said WA coach Becky Grundy.
“The group was able to challenge each other and improve enormously last summer. I’m excited to see how this young group will perform next season.
“We know our best cricket can challenge the top teams in the competition and we will continue to seek the consistency that will lead us to success.”
2023-24 WA Women’s Squad
- Chloe Ainsworth
- Charis Becker
- Zoe Britcliffe
- Mathilde Carmichael
- Piepa Cleary
- Maddy Darke
- Ashley day
- Amy Edgar
- Lisa Griffith
- Alana King (Cricket Australia)
- Lilly Mills
- Beth Mooney (Cricket Australia)
- Taneale Peschel
- Chloe Piparo (Captain)
- Poppy Stockwell
- Georgia Wylie
