Rating Australia's ICC Women's World Cup 2025 squad: Best team in tournament to win 8th title?

It is sometimes said in jest that all other teams prepare for months for a Women’s World Cup just to lose the final against Australia! After all, they have won 13 out of all the ICC Women’s World Cups that have happened so far (21). That is a World Cup win after every 1.6 editions. Talk about dominance.

Australia arrive at the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 carrying both the weight of history and the comfort of dominance. Seven ODI titles already in the cabinet, a squad filled with talent, and the memories of Alyssa Healy’s record-breaking 509 runs in the 2022 edition still fresh. The question, as always, is not whether they are contenders, but whether anyone else can topple them.

Batting: Ruthlessness of Healy & co. (Rating: 9.5/10)

If there’s one area where Australia continues to terrify opponents, it’s with the bat. The Healy–Mooney opening duo has consistently laid solid platforms; in ODIs since 2022, they average a combined 57.4 for the first wicket. Healy’s return from injury is a massive boost. Recently in the warm-up series against India A, she struck at over 100 and denied India A a cleansweep in Brisbane.

The middle order is all about dominance as well. Ellyse Perry remains as dependable as ever, averaging 49.8 in ODIs, while Tahlia McGrath is an underrated threat, as she has had a strike rate of 105 in the middle overs since 2023, the highest among batters in that phase. Ashleigh Gardner, with her power-hitting, gives Australia a finisher.

The young brigade is equally exciting. Phoebe Litchfield, fresh off her Hundred heroics (469 runs at 52.1), is primed for her first World Cup, while Georgia Voll is someone who averages 86.50 in women ODIs. This depth means Australia bat till No. 8 without compromising quality. Grace Harris is as destructive as anyone as well.

Verdict: The batting looks capable of both blowing teams away and grinding out tough wins. Only the occasional middle-order collapse in tricky conditions stops this from being a perfect 10.

All-rounders: The engine room (Rating: 9/10)

Few squads in world cricket boast the kind of all-round depth Australia carries. Perry, McGrath, Gardner, and Annabel Sutherland form a quartet that balances the side almost unfairly. Perry’s ODI bowling average (25.6) still is one of the best, while Sutherland, now a regular, can even take the new ball if needed.

Gardner, meanwhile, is the X-factor, equally likely to change games with a 35-ball 60 or with an off-spin spell breaking partnerships in the middle overs.

Verdict: No other team has this many multi-dimensional cricketers. Australia can pick any XI and still have six genuine bowling options without diluting their batting.

Bowling: Could be their weakest but is as lethal as anyone’s (Rating: 8.5/10)

Australia’s attack covers every base, though injuries have tested their depth. Darcie Brown is the pace spearhead; her strike rate of 28.4 since her debut is the best for an Aussie quick in the past decade. Megan Schutt remains the banker, as she can wreak havoc with her pace, something that we see in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) as well.

Spin will decide their fortunes in India and Sri Lanka. The return of Sophie Molineux, alongside Alana King and Georgia Wareham, means variety: left-arm orthodox, leg spin, and wrist spin. Wareham’s T20 success in the Women’s Premier League, particularly on slow tracks, means goldust.

Still, compared to their batting, the bowling looks slightly less bulletproof. Brown’s fitness record is patchy, and the spinners, while talented, haven’t always run through sides in ODIs the way they do in T20s.

Verdict: Strong, adaptable, but not without soft spots. A quality opposition middle order could test them if the surfaces flatten out.