A bestselling author, a "wannabe WAG": Meet the cast of the 2018 Women's World T20 final

Beth Mooney, Wicketkeeper-batsman

Among the fastest-scoring openers going around in world cricket, Mooney grew up facing male fast bowlers in Queensland's grade cricket circuit, before debuting for her state side while still in high school. Initially, her chance came as an injury understudy to Alyssa Healy behind the stumps, but she did well enough to retain her place as a pure batsman.

Alyssa Healy, Wicketkeeper-batsman

True to the Healy name, Alyssa has continued the family tradition of outstanding wicketkeeping for Australia, following the footsteps of her uncle, Ian. She is also an explosive top-order batsman, currently in the middle of a purple patch which has seen her bag an astounding four Player-of-the-Match awards in five games at the World T20 this year. Alyssa is married to Australia men's fast bowler Mitchell Starc, whom she first met when the pair were just nine years old, while playing cricket for the same team.

Ashleigh Gardner, Allrounder

A true allrounder who combines blistering hitting as a top-order batsman along with handy off-spin, Gardner is the first Indigenous Australian woman to play for Australia in nearly 60 years, and the first-ever indigenous woman to represent Australia at a world tournament. Still only 21, Gardner is among a growing breed of fearsome six-hitters in the women's game, with the ability to clear big boundaries with consummate ease.

"The sound of ball on roof!"

This from Ash Gardner is making us very, VERY excited for #WBBL04! pic.twitter.com/0PtwhoZk2d

— Rebel Women's Big Bash League (@WBBL) November 22, 2018

Ellyse Perry, Allrounder

Arguably the biggest superstar in the women's game, Perry has represented Australia in both cricket and football at the highest level. In 2011, she became the first woman to represent the country in World Cups across two sports. She won Australia a cricket World Cup while bowling with a broken ankle, scored a thunderbolt from long range at a football World Cup, and as if all this weren't enough, is the author of a best-selling series of children's books.

Meg Lanning, Middle-order batsman and captain

Aptly nicknamed "the Megastar", Lanning remains the youngest Australian - male or female - to score an international hundred, and went to become their youngest captain at 21. By then, she was rewriting the women's cricket batting playbook, having already smashed a 45-ball ODI ton. In 2015 she was named Wisden's inaugural Leading Female Cricketer in the World. Lanning chose cricket over her other sport, hockey, which she continues to play at a competitive level from time to time for her Premier League club, Hawthorn HC.

Rachael Haynes, Middle-order batsman and vice-captain

A proven leader throughout her career, Haynes was elevated to lead Australia during Lanning's prolonged spell out with an injury, despite not being their official vice-captain at that point. Haynes is currently pursuing an MBA degree in marketing, and in the era before full-time contracts, used to work as a Commercial Operations Coordinator for Bowls Australia, the national sporting organisation for lawn bowls, while also playing international cricket.

Elyse Villani, Middle-order batsman

Villani started off as an explosive opener in her early years at the international level, before drifting down to a middle-order batting spot. She was part of the Australia women's side that lifted the World T20 in West Indies, back in 2010. Widely acknowledged as one of the funniest members of the dressing room, she is among international cricket's leading names championing the revival of the floppy hat on the field. She also followed the footsteps of former captain Alex Blackwell in campaigning for gay rights, featuring lines such as "proud gay athlete" and "stands for equality" on her social media bios. In the era before pro contracts, Villani used to work odd jobs such as being an admin staffer at a gym.

Sophie Molineux, Spinner

Still only 20, Molineux's left-arm spin has already become a reliable Powerplay weapon for Australia in T20 cricket. From winning the Betty Wilson Young-Player-of-the-Year award at last year's Allan Border awards and bagging her first central contract with Cricket Australia, a fairy-tale twelve months has culminated in a sustained run in the starting XI at the World T20. She put in an impressive performance on her DJ-ing debut during the tournament last week, attributing her success to the "support crew" around her.

Georgia Wareham, Spinner

The youngest member of their World T20 squad, Wareham is among a crop of Australia's exciting young legspinners making their way up from the Women's Big Bash League and the national performance pathway. She has played four of Australia's five games at the tournament, bowling tidy, economical spells as their fifth bowler.

Megan Schutt, Fast bowler

Among the fastest bowlers in the women's game, Schutt's accuracy and versatility would make her childhood idol Glenn McGrath proud. Her bowling, though, is only part of her story. Among the most straight-talking athletes in all of cricket and a vocal campaigner for same-sex marriage, she is all set to tie the knot with partner Jess Holyoake. Schutt is also big on tattoos and piercings, with this larger-than-life Cheshire cat the stand-out piece of body art.

Delissa Kimmince, Medium-pace bowler

Made her international debut as an 18-year-old, but dropped off the radar after a year at the highest level. She then went away to England, worked in a pub, started a cleaning business and eventually made her way back from the bottom up, via club and state cricket. Kimmince is also an Australian Rules footballer, having been picked by the Brisbane Lions as a rookie ahead of the inaugural AFL women's season in 2017.

Tammy Beaumont, Opener

Now among the most explosive openers going around in the women's game, Beaumont made her England debut as a specialist wicketkeeper, batting at No.10, against West Indies in 2009. Beaumont comes from a cricketing family and grew up under the tutelage of father Kevin at Sandwich Cricket Club in Kent, training and playing alongside the county's former men's captain Sam Northeast.

Danielle Wyatt, Opener

Came of age in stunning fashion on the Ashes tour in 2017 - having never made so much as a half-century in her first 131 England appearances, she smashed an extraordinary 56-ball hundred in Canberra, the first in T20Is in England women's history. Wyatt has made public her admiration of India men's captain Virat Kohli, and was presented with his bat when the pair met during India's tour of England in 2014.

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo earlier this year, she said, "When we met, he said to me: 'You can't do things like that on Twitter! They take things seriously!' I was like, 'okay. Sorry!'". Nicknamed "waggy", because her team-mates think "I'm a wannabe WAG".

Amy Jones, Wicketkeeper-batsman

Arguably the second-best wicketkeeper in the women's game, Jones' misfortune is that the best (by a country mile) is her own England team-mate Sarah Taylor. Nevertheless, she has seized her chance in Taylor's absence on this tour, producing a Player-of-the-Match performance in the semi-final against India.

Heather Knight, Allrounder and captain

England's World Cup-winning captain set a world record in 2014 when she took part in a cricket match on the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, at an altitude of 5785m, breaking the previous record of 5100m at Base Camp 2 on Mount Everest.

Natalie Sciver, Allrounder

The daughter of a diplomat, Sciver's childhood included postings to Tokyo, Warsaw and Amsterdam. Credited with the invention of a new between-the-legs stroke, the "Natmeg" (a play on "nutmeg", the football move), she has also dabbled in a property business with team-mate Katherine Brunt.

Lauren Winfield, Wicketkeeper-batsman

She captained the boys' teams for six years from the age of 11 at her local club in York. Starred with a century in England's record total of 378 for 5 against Pakistan at Worcester in 2016 - adding 235 for the first wicket with Tammy Beaumont. She made her T20I debut in the same game as team-mates Sciver and Jones.

Sophia Dunkley, Allrounder

Among the youngest members of England's squad, 20-year old Dunkley's childhood growing up in a cul-de-sac in North London gave her the chance to play cricket in the street as a kid. She fine-tuned her game after earning a sports scholarship to Mill Hill School. Now in the midst of a sports science degree at Loughborough University, she has split her final year to focus on cricket.

Kirstie Gordon, Spinner

She was a Scotland player as recently as last year's Women's World Cup qualifiers in Sri Lanka, where she claimed 8 wickets from four games, and earned her England call-up after impressing for Loughborough Lightning in the KSL. Only made her international debut for England at the ongoing World T20, where her three-for earned her a Player-of-the-Match award.

Linsey Smith, Spinner

She nearly walked away from cricket a year ago, giving up on her international hopes, to pursue full-time employment after university. Her call-up for World T20 squad caused her parents an abrupt change of winter plans: they had already booked to follow the men's Test tour of Sri Lanka. Like Gordon and Dunkley, Smith wasn't capped at the international level before this tournament.

Danielle Hazell, Spinner

One of the team's senior players, Hazell debuted on England's tour of the Caribbean in 2009 and has twice stepped in as captain, most recently against Australia at Mumbai in March 2018. Was the only woman in the Durham Senior Cricket League before making her international debut in 2009. Hazell was the only married member of 2017 England's World Cup winning squad, and is wedded to an Australian.

Sophie Ecclestone, Spinner

Now England's first-choice spinner at the ripe old age of 19, Ecclestone missed England's triumphant World Cup campaign last year … because she was doing her A-levels. She gained a measure of revenge over the education system by bowling her headmaster first-ball as a 10-year-old.

Anya Shrubsole, Medium-pace bowler

The heroine of England's stunning World Cup final victory over India at Lord's in 2017, Shrubsole made further history the following April when she became the first female cover star of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. She was the subject of a viral social media post from her father following England's win at Lord's, which she says "got my dad his ten minutes of fame".