Australia names teenager in Delhi 2010 lawn bowls squad

Natasha van Eldik was on Wednesday named to represent Australia at the Commonwealth Games lawn bowls pairs competition in Delhi in October. At 19, she will become the youngest lawn bowler to wear Australian colours in a Commonwealth Games competition.

She lines up alongside reigning gold medallist, 26-year-old Lynsey Armitage. The pair won the silver medal at the eight-nation tournament at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium lawn bowls facility here in April. That convinced Australian coach Rex Johnston that Van Eldik was ready.

“I got the call at 6.45 this morning...they said we would get a call whether we had made the Commonwealth Games team or not so I didn't know what to expect,” she was quoted as saying in the Australian media. “It's a bit overwhelming really. In 12 months I have debuted for my country, played about 14 or 15 games for Australia and now I'm going to a Commonwealth Games. It's a dream come true