2024 Australian Indoor Championships preview
After a gruelling qualification process, the nation’s best on carpet for the year will converge on Club Tweed for the 2024 Australian Indoor Championships.
64 players will battle it out across two knockout draws of 32 with a plethora of stars scattered across both the men’s and women’s fields.
Men’s singles
Defending champion Ray Pearse returns to the tournament full of confidence after his World Bowls Indoor Championships mixed pairs title and an Australian Open fours crown.
Looking to become the first male since Jeremy Henry in 2015-16 to defend his crown, he enters the event as the top seed and takes on Forster’s Stephen Pell in the opening round with a tantalising prospect of facing his former Melbourne eXtreme teammate in Ali Forsyth in the quarterfinals.
Forsyth takes on Moonee Valley’s Matthew O’Brien first up with a possible matchup against Moama young gun Jacob Brighton in the round of 16.
The second quarter sees fifth seed Warren Holt up against Josh Rudd, with a win placing either of the pair in a possible matchup with three-time champion in Henry if the Warilla product can make his way past Tasmania’s Nicholas Courto.
At the bottom the the section is the sensational opening clash between Australian Open men’s singles runner up in Cohen Litfin and 2020 Australian Champion of Champions conqueror Trystan Smallacombe.
Jack McShane headlines the third quarter as the recently crowned Australian Open men’s pairs winner looks to build on an already outstanding year.
He meets Queensland’s Matthew Blyth in the round of 32 with a possible clash against his fellow Right at Home Pathways Jackaroo Jayden Zeller in the next round, with Victoria’s Colin Veenendaal possibly waiting in the final eight.
The final quarter sees a collision course for two Jackaroos in the quarterfinals with Ben Twist and Corey Wedlock headlining the section.
Twist takes on South Australia’s Nathan Cocks first up, while Wedlock will meet the ACT’s Paul Totterdell.
View the men’s singles draw here
Women’s singles
Fresh off her World Bowls Indoor Championships mixed pairs title with Pearse, defending champion Samantha Atkinson is in some supreme form as she looks to become the first player since Rebecca Van Asch to successfully go back-to-back.
The Victorian’s opening contest sees her up against New South Wales’ Erin Swatridge with a possible quarterfinal clash with eighth seed Colleen Orr, who takes on Lynne Wood in her first clash.
The Northern Territory product will have a tough second round should she overcome Wood, facing either young gun Chanel Chakouch and Nicholle Wendt in a brilliant opening matchup.
Quarter two sees 2022 champion Kelsey Cottrell back in action against Sherilee Stewart first up with a possible matchup with fifth seed and 2023 Australian Open women’s fours winner Olivia Cartwright if the Moama product defeats Patria McGrath of Ocean Grove in her first game.
Emerging Jackaroo Kate Matthews also features in the draw and faces Soldiers Point’s Debra Johns in her first encounter with a tantalising matchup waiting in the round of 16 as Kelly McKerihen and her Australian Open women’s fours winning teammate Louise Cronan fight it out in one of the best opening rounds of the entire tournament.
The bottom half of the draw sees Jackaroo Chloe Stewart against Carolyn Glen with the chance to take on Emerging Jackaroo in Chloe Morrison in the round of 16.
Morrison will meet New South Wales’ Gail Page as she looks to continue her impressive record at the tournament throughout her career.
Tasmania’s Rae Simpson looms large in the quarter and will take on South Australia’s Catrina Green to commence her campaign.
Like the men’s draw, the final quarter sees two Jackaroos on a collision course for the quarterfinals in Brianna Smith and Dawn Hayman.
Two years ago the pair both progressed to the latter stages of the competition, with Hayman falling to Cottrell in the semi and Smith doing so in the decider.
Both will embark on their redemption quests in 2024, with Smith to meet Victoria’s Rebecca Callanan in round one and Hayman up against Sharon Jarvis.
View the women’s singles draw here
The 2024 Australian Indoor Championships runs from August 12-15, 2024, at Club Tweed with all live streaming to take place on Bowls Australia’s YouTube channel.
