Australia’s top women’s cricket honours will be handed out in an unconventional setting this season, with the Belinda Clark Award and other major women’s prizes set to be announced on February 15, shortly before the opening T20I against India at the SCG.
Beth Mooney, Annabel Sutherland and Ashleigh Gardner headline a strong field of contenders for the nation’s most prestigious individual women’s award, with leg-spinner Alana King also in the mix for a potential first-time win. The announcement forms part of a revised Australian Cricket Awards schedule, reshaped due to overlapping commitments of the men’s and women’s national teams.
With the traditional awards night unable to take place, Cricket Australia has opted to stagger announcements. Alongside the Belinda Clark Award, the Women’s ODI and T20I Player of the Year honours will also be revealed ahead of Sunday’s high-profile clash. The Betty Wilson Young Cricketer of the Year and Women’s Domestic Player of the Year awards are scheduled to be announced earlier, on Thursday.
The voting period covered a relatively quiet 12 months for Australia’s women, marked by an unusual winter break and the rescheduling of the main home season to February and March. Across the eligibility window, Australia played just 13 white-ball matches; three T20Is in New Zealand in March, followed by 10 ODIs in India and Sri Lanka between September and October, including the ODI World Cup. Australia remained unbeaten through the group stage before suffering a semi-final defeat to hosts India.
Mooney has emerged as a leading contender, particularly in the shortest format. She was named Player of the Series in New Zealand after scoring 166 runs at an average of 83 and a strike rate of 167, making her a standout candidate for the T20I Player of the Year award. Georgia Voll also impressed at the top of the order during that tour, while Sutherland dominated with the ball, claiming eight wickets at an average of eight.
The left-hander also delivered in the 50-over format, playing a crucial role at the ODI World Cup with a match-saving century against Pakistan and finishing as Australia’s leading run-scorer. Across the voting period, Mooney amassed 444 ODI runs at an average of 55.5.
Sutherland, the reigning Belinda Clark Award holder, underlined her all-round value by finishing as Australia’s top wicket-taker in ODIs and second overall at the World Cup, with 17 wickets at 15.82. She also contributed significantly with the bat, registering a career-best 98 not out against England.
Gardner, a two-time recent winner of the award, continued her run of consistency, scoring two centuries at the World Cup, against New Zealand and England while also taking 10 wickets across the ODI campaign.
King’s performances with the ball added further intrigue to the race. The leg-spinner produced a record-breaking 7 for 18 against South Africa and ended the tournament as the leading wicket-taker, finishing with 13 wickets at 17.38.
The Belinda Clark Award is determined through a weighted voting system, with performances in Test matches carrying double the value of ODIs and triple that of T20Is. Although Australia did not play a Test during the eligibility period, the concentration of ODIs during the World Cup window is expected to play a decisive role in determining the winner.
Sunday’s T20I also marks the beginning of a packed 2025 calendar for Australia’s women, who are scheduled to play two Tests, 12 ODIs and at least 14 T20Is. The year includes home series against India and Bangladesh, a multi-format tour of the Caribbean, the T20 World Cup in England and an away ODI series in Sri Lanka.
