Tara Murray
Melton’s Nicole Martin is a World Cup winning captain after leading the Australian women’s indoor team to success earlier this month.
Martin, a mainstay of the Australian team for more than 15 years, played a key role for the Australian’s as they won the first World Cup held since 2017.
The 2022 World Cup marks the return of international indoor cricket after the 2020 World Cup was postponed due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Martin, who has previously captained Australia when former captain Jude Coleman wasn’t available, said it was pretty special to win a World Cup as captain.
“It was really good and I’m really privileged and honoured,” she said.
“It was really nice to be at home and have our friends and family around. It was a close game which was something we weren’t expecting, but it was good.”
The Australians went through the rounds of the tournament winning all 12 games before making it through to the grand final against New Zealand.
The two teams finished with two skins apiece, with Australia winning with 117 runs compared to New Zealand’s 111.
Martin said captaining the side was always special, saying it was the group of girls that made it all so special and they were such a good group to be around.
She said the aim was also to compete in this year’s World Cup, after COVID-19 put paid to competition for a couple of years.
“That was the plan as long as children didn’t stop me,” she said. “I plan to keep going as I enjoy the time away and the friendships as well.
“The family is really supportive of me.”
It’s been a big year for Martin who was awarded the Monika Brogan Medal for the best player in the women’s competition at the national championships, which was won by the Victorians.
Martin, who used to coach Melton’s women’s side, has hung up the bat for the outdoor form of the sport having combined both formats earlier in her career.
While she isn’t playing as much, Martin is still busy in the cricket world as she coaches the next generation of players.
Martin has long been part of the pathways and high-performance program in Victoria and will coach of the under-19 Vic Country team that will compete at the national championships in Perth later this year.
The team was set to be announced last week.
