Australia’s Sophie Molineux talks ahead of her long-awaited World Cup return, Glenn Maxwell advice
Sophie Molineux had visions of winning 18 World Cups before she retired. Injuries buried that plan before it got off the ground. But now she’s back – and armed with some inside info from Glenn Maxwell.
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Sophie Molineux remembers having the chat with Georgia Wareham.
Along with fellow country Victorian Tayla Vlaeminck, they were part of the squad that won the 2018 Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean before any of the trio had turned 21.
This international cricket thing is all a bit of a lark, right?
Quick Vlaeminck was sidelined through injury when Australia poleaxed India in front of more than 86,000 to win the 2020 global title at the MCG, but by this point Molineux and fellow tweaker Wareham were dual world champions and doing their best impression of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade’s long-term predictions for trophy bonanzas.
“We’re doing the maths and (thinking if) we played for 35 years, we could be on the verge of winning 18 World Cups,” all-rounder Molineux says, perhaps only half-jokingly.
Life comes at you quickly though. More than four and a half years down the track, that wild night at the ‘G that ended on stage with Katy Perry remains Molineux’s most recent World Cup match.
So long even that Perry has been back performing at Melbourne’s sporting colosseum.
Major foot and knee injuries meant the left-armer didn’t appear in international cricket at all in 2022 or 2023.
She missed Australia’s triumphant 2022 one-day World Cup campaign, that year’s Commonwealth Games gold medal effort and last year’s T20 crown in South Africa.
Only on Saturday night when Australia takes on Sri Lanka in Sharjah will Molineux be back playing World Cup cricket.
“I wouldn’t change anything that’s sort of happened over the last few years, and it’s probably made me realise why I play the game,” Molineux says.
“And for me I just can’t take it for granted. This time around it’s quite special to be a part of another World Cup, because there’s obviously been times where I didn’t think it’d be a thing again.
“And also, I think the support that I’ve had over the last three or four years, you just see those people now, and family, friends and everything, and that’s just as special for them, which is really cool.
“My parents, my younger sister, Chloe she moved in with me when I was doing my ACL rehab. She moved to Melbourne from Bairnsdale so we spent a lot of time together which was amazing. And I’ve got some incredible mates in cricket, like Tay (Vlaeminck), Wolf (Wareham), Pez (Ellyse Perry), all the support here in Cricket Victoria. There’s people in every corner that I will be forever grateful for.”
Molineux concedes there have been mixed feelings at times watching Australia win without her.
“It was a funny one, because I always watch when you’ve got some of your best mates playing, and it’s hard not to watch, but it’s also quite tricky to watch at times,” she said.
I didn’t do it on my own either. I remember watching a World Cup final with Tay (Vlaeminck) and Wolf (Wareham).
“It was the one-day World Cup in New Zealand. We watched that together. And of course, you want to see your mates do well, but it was something that you want to be a part of as well.”
This time there will be no need for television. Molineux is back and again a first-choice player in the XI.
This tournament was moved at short notice from to the UAE amid political upheaval in Bangladesh. The Emirates have not been a regular venue for women’s cricket, leaving Molineux to seek advice from a fellow Victorian spinning all-rounder: Glenn Maxwell.
“He was saying that it’s pretty similar to Bangladesh, probably a little bit quicker and skiddier, very hot,” Molineux said before the team’s departure.
“I think it won’t be too dissimilar to Bangladesh, and it sounds like it might keep low, might turn a little bit, but some might skid on. So I feel like we’re prepared for that in the lead up to Bangladesh, that hasn’t changed too much.”
Veteran teammate Ellyse Perry said it was not unusual for the men’s and women’s national teams to tap into each other’s intel.
“We’ve done a lot of knowledge sharing with the guys, particularly if one team tours a place in quite close proximity to the other team, and it’s been back and forth,” Perry said.
Originally published as Australia’s Sophie Molineux talks ahead of her long-awaited World Cup return, Glenn Maxwell advice
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