Star batter poised to make WNCL debut

Experienced batter Mikayla Hinkley, who joined from Queensland in the off-season, is poised to make her debut in the yellow and black, adding significant class to WA’s emerging middle order.

Talented left-armer Natasha Kelsey is also a chance to debut, following an impressive pre-season and a productive campaign for Midland-Guildford in WA Premier Cricket last summer.  

Bhavi Devchand is also in the mix to play her first WNCL match for WA since 2018-19, after returning to the state program following a career-best season for Wanneroo in Premier Cricket.

A classy top-order batter and capable spin-bowling option, Devchand’s performances earned her a maiden Karen Read Medal as the dominant player in the Female A Grade competition, after compiling 664 runs at 36.88 and 11 wickets across all formats.

Promising allrounder Charis Bekker also returns to the squad for the first time since February last year, following an injury-riddled 2023-24 campaign. She adds to WA’s impressive array of spin options, featuring last season’s Zoe Goss Medallist Amy Edgar and offspinner Lilly Mills.

Star wicketkeeper batter Maddy Darke will hope to continue her impressive pre-season form, after scoring two centuries for Australia A in the recent multi-format series against India A in Queensland.

Darke (458 runs at 50.88) and skipper Chloe Piparo (470 at 47) were the mainstay of WA’s batting lineup last season, with the pair often getting their side off to great starts.

WA’s games on Tuesday and Thursday will be broadcast on Kayo and Cricket.com.au with the first ball scheduled for 10:00AM.

WA squad for Women’s National Cricket League Games One and Two: Chloe Piparo ©, Chloe Ainsworth, Charis Bekker, Zoe Britcliffe, Mathilda Carmichael, Maddy Darke, Bhavi Devchand, Amy Edgar, Lisa Griffith, Mikayla Hinkley, Natasha Kelsey, Shay Manolini, Lilly Mills, Taneale Peschel