Australia's Women's head coach Shelley Nitschke signed a new three-year deal to remain at the helm until mid-2029. The announcement comes just ahead of the Women's T20 World Cup in England.

Nitschke first took over the role from Matthew Mott in 2022 on a four-year deal. In her tenure, Nitschke has seen Australia win the gold at the Commonwealth Games in 2022 followed by a T20 World Cup triumph in 2023. While Australia continue to remain on top in both the ODI and the T20I rankings under Nitschke, they did bow out in the semifinal of the most recent ODI and the most recent T20 World Cup campaigns.

The former Australian allrounder's new contract will see her take charge of the team in the next four major tournaments - the 2026 and 2028 T20 World Cups, the 2027 inaugural Champions Trophy and the 2028 Olympics. In this period, Australia will also tour England for the Ashes in mid-2027 before hosting them in early 2029.

"It's a privilege to continue coaching this team and working with such an outstanding group of players and staff," Nitschke said in a statement. "We've achieved a great deal together, but there's also enormous motivation around what this group can accomplish in the years ahead. There are some major events and exciting challenges on the horizon and I'm looking forward to helping guide the team through the next phase."

Australia will now play three unofficial practice games against South Africa before taking on England and the West Indies in the ICC-assigned warmup fixtures prior to the T20 World Cup. In the tournament, they are grouped alongside South Africa, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Netherlands.