Alana King’s return a sign of 'healthy competition' in Australia’s already strong spin arsenal

Australia’s wealth of spin options might give a headache to the selectors and the team management in the coming times. Alana King, Ashleigh Gardner, Georgia Wareham, and Jess Jonassen are all vying for a spot in the national team, creating a healthy competition that pushes each player. However, with the T20 World Cup coming soon, the competition is set to become intense as the Alyssa Healy-led side will have to find the right match as soon as possible.

Coming back to the national team after a break, Alana King picked up three wickets against South Africa in the first ODI of the series at the Adelaide Oval. Following which, the 28-year-old opened up about the competition among the spinners in the squad and stated that the team is blessed to have quality players in the mix and added that everyone’s got each other's back.

“I think we're very blessed in Australian cricket and I think it brings the best out of us, when there's competition for spots we want to be performing at our best and playing our best cricket all the time. Being a human being, you're always going to be frustrated (when omitted),” King was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

“But the group that we have, everyone's got each other's back, whether it's the highs or lows ... so when the lows are low, you've got 10 other mates, or even 13 other mates around you to put their arms around you and get you through it,” she added.

Happy with how the ball's coming out: King

King’s three-wicket haul contributed to the team’s dominant eight-wicket victory over South Africa in the first ODI. Speaking about her return, King mentioned that it’s a great feeling to be back with her teammates and added that she felt good while bowling as it was coming out nicely.

“I'm feeling great. It's great to be back amongst the girls, I've missed them. I'm happy with how the ball's coming out, it's fizzing out nicely (but) I was playing second fiddle to what (quicks) Kim Garth and Megan Schutt were doing, they set up the game beautifully for us,” King said.