The 2022-23 schedule for Australia's national cricket teams were released this morning, featuring a jam-packed international calendar for the men's side.
The women's draw is a fair bit leaner, with only one international bi-lateral series locked in on home soil.
The team will be busy in the next few months, with both the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, and a T20 International tri-series against Pakistan and Northern Ireland to play in July, as they warm up for the shorter format's debut at the Games.
During the Australian summer, however, the side have only an ODI and T20I series scheduled against Pakistan in January, before they head to South Africa in February to defend their T20 Women's World Cup title.
India are also expected to host the world's number one women's side for a tour during December, but the BCCI are yet to announce the series, or officially lock in any dates.
The India series notwithstanding, that would take the total tally for international opponents this summer to two, compared to the five (Zimbabwe, New Zealand, West Indies, England and South Africa) the men are scheduled to play at home between August and January – not including the men's T20 World Cup.
Veteran player Beth Mooney has argued this difference in international commitments could be a benefit for the women's side, allowing them to shift the focus on developing the domestic game.
This is especially important given the WBBL goes from strength to strength, while criticism of the BBL's lack of Australian superstars has never been louder.
"Every year is different," Mooney told ABC Sport.
"Obviously with the nature of the way the game is evolving around the world, we're playing a lot more cricket domestically and there's a lot of factors that are going to dictate how many games of international cricket we can play.
"Whilst six sounds a little bit light, it is a full schedule for us in the winter… and it's a great time for us to spend more time playing domestic cricket."
The 50-over Women's National Cricket League (WNCL) has also received a significant boost this summer, with the announcement that it will be played as a full home and away season for the first time.
This comes as Cricket Australia finally answers the calls from senior players to place more importance on the one-day domestic format.
"An extra four games added to the WNCL calendar certainly is a huge step forward for the women's game in this country."
Mooney added that Australia's women's cricketers play a lot less domestic cricket then their male counterparts.
"That's not through lack of effort or training, we're contracted the same amount of months in the year, so I think it's a great opportunity for the public and the media to get around some of our lesser-known players," she said.
"The opportunity to play a bit more WNCL leading into the WBBL this year is certainly a bonus for Australian cricket and for global cricket as well, because our domestic pathways help us thrive at an international level."
Women again denied Test match cricket
Fans have been left disappointed by the absence of Test cricket in the Australian and Pakistan women's series, featuring three ODIs and T20Is from January 16 to 29.
After being treated to a single Test match in the recent multi-format series against India late last year and during the women's Ashes in February, many had hoped all three formats would become the standard for all Australian women's bi-lateral series moving forward.
Mooney said it was a difficult issue to navigate, given she would like to play more Test cricket, but understood that the rest of the world might not be ready to play it.
"The game is still growing around the world, so whilst we do want to play more long-form cricket, we understand it's not going to happen overnight," Mooney said.
"Obviously India and England are now doing that a little bit more, but at the moment, it's important to remember there are a few more steps to be taken before we get there with everyone else."
First summer without Mott in charge a 'challenge': Mooney
This summer also provides an interesting challenge for the Australian women's team, as it marks a new era without Matthew Mott calling the shots at the helm.
Mott was appointed as the England men's new white-ball head coach a couple of weeks ago, leaving the women's role after seven years working alongside captain Meg Lanning.
Mooney said the team was sad to see him go, but players were also aware it was important to keep evolving in order to hold onto their number-one ranking.
"We're extremely proud of him, and whilst he's pretty upset to leave, he also believes that the time is right for us to move onto different challenges," she said.
