Graham approved as replacement for Gardner in Australia squad

The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 has approved Heather Graham as a replacement for Ashleigh Gardner in the Australia squad. Graham, who has played a solitary ODI for Australia against Sri Lanka in Brisbane in October 2019, is a temporary replacement for Gardner, who has tested positive for COVID-19 and is undergoing a period of isolation.

A COVID replacement can be temporary, in that once the player has recovered, she would be eligible to return to the squad in position of the travelling reserve that replaced her. The replacement of a player requires the approval of the Event Technical Committee before the replacement player can be officially added to the squad.

The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 comprises Chris Tetley, ICC Head of Events (Chair), Adrian Griffith, ICC Senior Manager Umpires and Referees (ICC Representative), Andrea Nelson, LOC CEO (Host Representative), Catherine Campbell (Host Representative), Sana Mir (Independent), Nasser Hussain (Independent).

The 2013 winners got their campaign in neighboring New Zealand off to the perfect start with a 12-run win over defending champions England. The batters fired them to 310 for three in Hamilton but will now face a different test at Bay Oval in Tauranga against a Pakistan side whose slow bowlers impressed at the same venue despite yesterday’s 107-run defeat to India.

(With inputs from ICC Press Release)