Hobart Hurricanes have enlisted 13-year-old Mia Barwick for the T20 Spring Challenge.

New Delhi, October 15: The Hobart Hurricanes have brought 13-year-old Mia Barwick into their squad for the T20 Spring Challenge. Barwick replaces Heather Graham, who has joined Australia's T20 World Cup team due to Tayla Vlaeminck's injury.

A seam bowler, Barwick has made a mark in the Cricket Tasmania Premier League and has participated in the Under-16 and Under-19 Female National Championships. She served as the drinks carrier during Monday's match against the Perth Scorchers and now has the opportunity to play in the later stages of this early-season competition, which serves as preparation for the Women's Big Bash League (WBBL).

The Hobart Hurricanes expressed pride in providing a Cricket Tasmania pathways athlete like Barwick with early exposure to professional cricket. With many of Australia's top players at the T20 World Cup and WBBL overseas players yet to arrive, the T20 Spring Challenge has created opportunities for young talents to join the squads.

At the Sydney Sixers, 15-year-old all-rounder Caoimhe Bray has also made an impact after an impressive performance for Australia Under-19s earlier this month.

The Spring Challenge was introduced to offset the reduced number of games in the WBBL, which now features a 40-game regular season. Initially planned as a state competition, it was restructured to align with WBBL clubs due to pressure from New South Wales and Victoria.

In the Women's T20 World Cup, Australia became the first team to qualify for the semi-finals after defeating India by nine runs in Sharjah on Sunday.

After winning the toss, Australia chose to bat first. Contributions from Grace Harris (40 runs off 41 balls, including five fours) and Tahlia McGrath (32 runs off 26 balls, with four boundaries) helped the team reach 151/8.

For India, Renuka Singh (2/24) and Deepti Sharma (2/28) were the standout bowlers, while Shreyanka Patil, Pooja Vastrakar, and Radha Yadav each took one wicket.

During India's chase of 152 runs, early wickets fell, but a partnership between Deepti Sharma (29 runs off 25 balls, with three fours) and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (54* runs off 47 balls, with six fours) brought India close to victory. Needing 14 runs in the final over, India fell short by nine runs due to Annabel Sutherland's tight bowling.

Sutherland (2/22) and Molineux (2/32) were Australia's leading bowlers, with Schutt and Gardner taking one wicket each.