Alice Capsey and Freya Kemp will return to Australia less than two months after England Women’s Ashes humiliating 16-0 whitewash for an A tour.
Issy Wong is also included in the squad, which will play three T20s, three one-day matches and a four-day game against Australia A.
The side will be led by Jon Lewis – not the one who gave the ill-judged Bondi to Coogee walk quote when in charge of England’s senior team during the Ashes but his namesake, who is confusingly the Women’s A head coach and performance batting coach.
Although the players have known about the tour since December, the England and Wales Cricket Board has only confirmed the squads four days before they depart for Sydney.
Here, Telegraph Sport takes a look at some of the talking points of the series...
Future captains
England Women have cultivated a leadership void, where no one bar Heather Knight has extensive captaincy experience or looks poised to take over.
No captain has yet been named for the A squad, with England planning to provide an update once the squads have landed, but there are a number of players doing the role for their counties in the touring party: Bryony Smith at Surrey, Georgia Davis at Warwickshire, Hollie Armitage at Durham and Grace Scrivens at Essex.
Player workload
Capsey is one of the most in-demand players in world cricket and has hardly had time for a break. Between the T20 World Cup in October and the start of the new domestic season in May, she will have played in the Women’s Big Bash, a tour of South Africa, the Ashes, the Women’s Premier League and now this A tour. That can be a lot for any player, let alone one whose place in the international side has been scrutinised like no one else, and at just 20 years old.
There may be questions raised as to whether a player who has already been out to Australia twice in the past six months would be better served with a break rather than another tour.
Danielle Gibson has also clearly performed well enough to convince the most lucrative women’s cricket league in the world, the WPL, that she should be picked, yet will find herself in Australia with pressure to impress after not being fit enough to play a part in the senior series.
Promising youngsters
The A tour offers a chance to gain experience in Australian conditions, but also push a case forward for inclusion in future tours. It is not yet clear what changes will be brought about as a result of the Ashes defeat – because the ECB has not yet published its review – but scoring runs or taking wickets in Australia can only be a good thing for a promising youngster looking to impress.
Mahika Gaur has been earmarked as one for the future, to the extent that she travelled with the Ashes squad as a non-playing member for the experience, with seam bowler Ryana MacDonald-Gay also early in her international career.
After being undone by the leg-spin of Alana King at the start of the year, England have chosen young leg-spinner Jodi Grewcock as well as a plethora of all-rounder options, although there is no place for Hannah Baker, who was on the training trip to Dubai earlier this month.
The case of the Jon Lewises
This tour will be led by “the other” Jon Lewis, who said: “We are looking forward to testing ourselves against a national side with great depth. We are aware of the challenge ahead.
“There has been some good work done by the players based in England and those who have been playing cricket over the winter around the world and this tour provides an opportunity for players to push for selection into the senior squad through strong performances against the Australians.”
But it remains to be seen which head coach the players will be trying to impress ahead of this summer’s international fixtures as Telegraph Sport understands the ECB review into the Ashes will be published before the end of the month, while its A side are still playing in Australia.
England Women A squads to tour Australia
T20 squad
Hollie Armitage, Georgia Davis, Mahika Gaur, Jodi Grewcock, Bess Heath, Emma Jones, Freya Kemp, Ryana MacDonald-Gay, Charis Pavely, Grace Potts, Paige Scholfield, Grace Scrivens, Seren Smale, Bryony Smith, Alexa Stonehouse, Mady Villiers, Issy Wong.
50-over squad
Hollie Armitage, Alice Capsey, Georgia Davis, Mahika Gaur, Danielle Gibson, Kirstie Gordon, Jodi Grewcock, Bess Heath, Emma Jones, Freya Kemp, Ryana MacDonald-Gay, Charis Pavely, Grace Potts, Paige Scholfield, Grace Scrivens, Seren Smale, Bryony Smith, Alexa Stonehouse, Mady Villiers, Issy Wong.
Four-day squad
Hollie Armitage, Alice Capsey, Georgia Davis, Danielle Gibson, Kirstie Gordon, Jodi Grewcock, Bess Heath, Freya Kemp, Charis Pavely, Grace Potts, Paige Scholfield, Grace Scrivens, Seren Smale, Alexa Stonehouse, Mady Villiers, Issy Wong.
