MCG Great Hall

Lore & Background

Australia played their first Test match in 1934–35 against England. The two teams now compete biennially for the Women's Ashes. A rich history with New Zealand stretches back almost as far while strong rivalries have also developed more recently with India and the West Indies, manifesting predominantly via limited overs cricket. In the 50-over format of the game, Australia have won more World Cups than all other teams combined—capturing the 1978, 1982, 1988, 1997, 2005, 2013 and 2022 titles. They have achieved similarly emphatic success in Twenty20 cricket by winning the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018, 2020 and 2023.

In Their Own Story

The air inside the MCG on a Boxing Day morning is thick with anticipation and the scent of fresh cut grass. As the sun rises over Yarra Park, casting long shadows across the iconic Members' Reserve, the silence before the roar is palpable. A young fan, clutching a faded yellow cap passed down from his grandfather, stands near the boundary rope where legends once walked. The umpires take their positions at either end of the pitch, and as the first ball is bowled, the stadium erupts—not just with noise, but with a collective heartbeat that has pulsed here since 1877. In this Great Hall, history isn't just watched; it is felt in every cheer.

Reader's Guide

In 2003, Women's Cricket Australia (WCA) and the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) merged to form a single governing body, known as Cricket Australia (CA), which remains to this day. CA has expressed a major goal of the organisation is for cricket to be Australia's leading sport for women and girls, citing the performance and exposure of the national team—which is heavily dependent on its increasingly professional domestic structures, namely the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) and the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL)—as a key factor to achieving such an aspiration.

Did You Know?

• A survey conducted by TrueNorth Research in April 2020 showed the national women's cricket team have the strongest emotional connection with Australian sports fans.
• Organised cricket has been played by women in Australia since no later than 1874 when the first recorded match took place in Bendigo.
• The Australian Women's Cricket Council (AWCC) was formed in March 1931 to administer and develop the game at the national level.
• Faith Thomas made her debut in 1957–58, becoming the first Indigenous Australian to play Test cricket.