'Relaxed' Jonassen on the cusp of a special milestone

Jess Jonassen ended the 2017-18 season as Australia’s premier spinner. She was the leader of the spin group, no questions asked.



In March 2018, a 20-year-old Sophie Molineux made her international debut. She was Jonassen’s understudy— of that there was no doubt. However, soon enough, Jonassen had to undergo a knee surgery and was ruled out for a few months. It was a period in which Molineux took centre-stage, cementing her place in the Australian side— so much so, that she pipped Jonassen for a place in the starting XI once the senior pro returned.



Without doubt, those were a few frustrating months for the left-arm spinner, who spent Australia’s entire T20 World Cup campaign on the bench as her teammates demolished one opposition after the other on their way to the title.



Coming in to the 2019-20 season, however, the 26-year-old’s luck had turned it seemed. An unfortunate shoulder injury to Molineux meant Jonassen found her spot in the XI again and she has made a resounding return, bagging 30 wickets across limited overs formats.



“I guess (it) probably takes some moments like that— a little bit of disappointment— to almost kind of kick you back into gear and just makes you realise exactly what's important, and how badly you do really want to be part of this team at the moment,” Jonassen said, following another exceptional bowling performance against Sri Lanka in the first ODI in Brisbane. “I'm just fortunate enough that I am able to go out there and run around, (and) do my job to the best of my ability.”



Jonassen credits a more relaxed approach for her new found form, also mentioning the extensive work she has put in with Shelley Nitschke, the former Ausralia left-arm spinner who is now part of Australia’s coaching staff.



“I think the way I am able to do that (perform consistently) is by having fun and actually relaxing and enjoying myself out there. As soon as I start to think too far ahead or get too tense then everything sort of goes out the window. So, it's (the aim) just to try and keep that positive, happy mentality out in the field and the performances generally come along with it,” she explained.



Since the disappointment of the 2017 World Cup in England where Australia were found out, they have put together a strong bowling unit who have recently come into their own as a group. Australia have picked up 179 wickets in 19 ODIs since October 2017, whilst conceding 3515 runs— averaging 19.64 per wicket.



The success of the bowling unit points to a sense of harmony within the group and an understanding of one’s own roles in the team. That, Jonassen said, is something that has helped them succeed over the last year or so.



 



Jonassen has picked up 30 wickets across formats since her return to the XI. © Getty Images



 



“We've got some great versatility in the bowling group," she said. "We've got almost every type of bowler and we've got obviously the likes of Heather Graham and Delissa Kimmince that are sitting off on the sidelines. So we’ve got two quality bowlers also on the sidelines there and I think everyone's sort of just really clear about their roles within the bowling line-up and fortunately over the last period of time we've managed to just click together all at the same time.”



“The bowling unit sort of splits in two in a way. The fast bowlers have their fast bowler cartel and we have our little spin trio. We sort of bounce ideas off each other all the time."



"As a spinner, it's also nice to have Shelley Nitschke there as well. Obviously she has played a lot of games for Australia and has a world of knowledge in her back pocket as well. To be able to learn off her continuously and learn off each other is something that we've done really well as a group over the last few years.”



Australia’s battle for spots in the side has been well documented over the last few months. The likes of Tayla Vlaeminck, Sophie Molineux, Nicola Carey, Erin Burns, Kimmince and now Graham have been constantly pushing the more established faces to lift their game consistently. Whenever given a chance, these players have not only held their own, but also shown that they can contribute to wins at the highest level. It is something Jonassen says it helping Australia continue to grow as a team— their quest for success is never ending.



“I think over the last few years that’s probably been one of our strengths as a team— the competition for spots across the board. The values that we want to live by as a team is all about trying to bring the best out of yourself and out of each other. Yeah, I guess if competition for spots is a way of doing that, then that's a massive advantage especially coming in to such a key tournament as the T20 World Cup out here at home.”



Having made her debut in 2012, come the second ODI against Sri Lanka on Monday (October 7), Jonassen is on the cusp of a special milestone. Three wickets will take the left-arm spinner to a tally 100 ODI wickets— which means she will become the fourth Australian and 19th bowler overall, to reach the landmark.



“I know it was something that I never actually dreamed would ever happen. And yeah, to be so close I think, hopefully I can get three wickets in the next two games and I can bring that milestone up here at home,” she signed off.