Meg Lanning set to make much-awaited return to competitive cricket

Australia captain Meg Lanning is set to turn up for Victoria for the first two matches of the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) against Western Australia, set to be played on September 26 and 28 in Perth. She will need clearance from the Cricket Australia (CA) medical team but is expected to make the trip to Perth to join the squad. Lanning, who has not played a competitive game since March, was ruled out of the Ashes on the advice of her side's medical staff.

Alyssa Healy has since led the Australian side, successfully helping her side retain the Ashes. Lanning has not turned up for Australia since the conclusion of the T20 World Cup, and last played a competitive game in the Women's Premier League (WPL) in India.

She was also not named in Australia's upcoming home T20I and ODI series against West Indies, as selector Shawn Flegler said that Lanning would first play domestic cricket. Lanning has been training with Victoria recently and also went on a pre-season tour with them to Queensland.

"We're hopeful that she'll come through domestic cricket first up, and we'll see how things progress through there," Flegler had said earlier. 

"She was up at the Sunshine Coast, and we caught up there. She's progressing well. Just part of that return-to-play plan, we're keen for her to come back through domestic cricket first and see how she goes with that, but she's going well, Meg. Very hopeful that she's back on deck at some point during the summer for Australia."

Lanning has played over 240 international matches for Australia, amassing over 8,000 runs across formats since making her debut in 2010. She is one of the most decorated players in the game's history, having won the T20 World Cup and the 50-over World Cup multiple times and leading her side to the Commonwealth Games title last year.