The Netball World Cup is around the corner and the big teams will be looking to continue their dominance in the competition.
However some teams will be hoping to improve and gain more knowledge and skill as they take to the court. There may be some favourites in the different pools but the underdogs are also looking to make a name for themselves.
GROUP A
AUSTRALIA
The Australian Diamonds have been part of the global competition since it was established in 1963 when it was still known as the World Tournament.
The Diamonds have won 11 world titles, and finished second four times and are the favourites in this pool. Their most recent gold medal finish was on home soil in the 2015 edition held in Sydney. In the following edition held in Liverpool, England in 2019, the team was yet again in the final where they faced rivals New Zealand in a tightly contested match that they lost in the dying seconds 52-51. The Diamonds are the most successful country in the Netball World Cup.
Coach: Stacey Marinkovich
Marinkovich will be leading the Diamonds to the World Cup for the first time. She is still fresh from guiding the team to the gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games after they beat Jamaica in the finals. She has vast experience as a coach, she began her career as the Western Wing mentor where she guided them to a third-place finish in the league. She then moved to West Coast Fever where she started as an assistant to Norma Plummer before she succeeded Plummer as the head coach. During her tenure she led the side to third place in the Australian Conference of the ANZ Championship and later to their first ever grand final in 2018.
TONGA
Tonga have only previously been involved in one Netball World Cup in the 1999 edition held in Christchurch, New Zealand when the competition was still known as the World Championships. The Tala ended in 22nd position in that edition. Tonga booked their place in Cape Town with an impressive run at the Oceania qualifiers where they went unbeaten throughout. This accomplishment saw Tonga rise to the seventh spot in the world rankings. Players such as Mo’onia Gerrard and Cathrine Tuivaiti have come out of retirement and will represent the Tala at the competition.
Coach: Jaqua Pori-Makea-Simpson
Jaqua Pori-Makea-Simpson will lead the Tala to only their first World Cup in Cape Town. Pori-Makea-Simpson led Tonga through the Oceania Netball World Cup qualifiers undefeated last year. She has also coached the side to the silver medal at the 2019 Pacific Games.
ZIMBABWE
Zimbabwe will be heading to their second Netball World Cup. Their first appearance was at the most recent edition in 2019 held in Liverpool. The Gems finished in eighth place overall. The Ropafadzo Mutsauki-led side put up an impressive performance at the Africa Netball World Cup qualifiers where they finished in third place after defeating Zambia 59-41 in the playoffs. Mutsauki will be hoping his side will produce an admirable effort in order to better the performance of their debut at the tournament.
Coach: Ropafadzo Mutsauki
Ropafadzo Mutsauki will be leading the Gems to the World Cup for the first time. He took over from Lloyd Makunde who took the first Zimbabwe team to its debut global competition. Since taking over, Matsauki led the team to a bronze medal finish at the Africa Netball World Cup qualifiers.
FIJI
Fiji will be hoping for a better outcome in Cape Town following a 14th-place finish at the last edition of the World Cup in Liverpool. The Fiji Pearls will be looking to surpass their best-ever finish in the competition, which was sixth place. The islanders achieved this at the 1999 edition held in Christchurch, New Zealand. They have competed at nine Netball World Cup competitions, their first being the 1975 edition where they managed to finish in eighth position.
The Pearls took the silver medal at the Oceania Netball World Cup qualifiers in order to book a ticket to Cape Town. The hosts of the Oceania qualifiers beat the Cook Islands 34-51 in their final match
Coach: Unaisi Rokoura
Unaisi Rokoura made a return to the Fiji coaching position in 2021 having previously taken up the coaching role between 2009 to 2013. She also coached the Papua New Guinea Pepes from 2015 to 2017.