Just days after she made her Mortlake division one debut – taking three wickets – the 16-year-old was unveiled as the youngest signing in the league.

A right-arm leg-spinner, she will join what is shaping as a potent bowling attack, with a total of nine spinners in the 15-woman squad.

“I don’t know what to expect, I’m just really looking forward to it,” Wareham said.

“I just want to go out there and show everyone what I can do.”

Wareham said she would stay with family and friends in Melbourne for the duration of the competition, which runs across December and January.

The talented teenager would have been on the recruiters’ radars for years, with a prolific junior representative career, including playing for Victoria in national championships at under 18 level this year and at under 15 level the two years prior.

She has been a regular in Western Waves’ sides and started playing for Mortlake’s division three side two summers ago, before stepping up to play with the division two side last summer.

She has also played for Port Fairy.

Wareham will get her opportunity in the national competition at a time when the profile of women’s cricket is rapidly rising.

“It’s just going to take off from here, I think – it’s really exciting,” she said.