Five key points so far as Australia attempts back-to-back T20 World Cup trophies
It hasn’t been pretty but the Aussies are still in with a shout of defending their women’s T20 World Cup crown, with the clash next Monday against New Zealand looming as the vital showdown.
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Australia’s ICC Women’s T20 World Cup campaign is only two games in, but such is the nature of this tournament that they have already reached the midpoint of the group stages already.
The home side was beaten convincingly by 17 runs at the hands of India in game one and then posted its first win against Sri Lanka in Perth.
But their win didn’t come easy, with captain Meg Lanning and vice-captain Rachael Haynes grinding it out under intense pressure after the Aussie top order slumped to 3-10 at the WACA.
So, where is the team at in their quest for back-to-back T20 World Cup? Here are five things we now know:
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1. Australia can grind out a win
There are two ways you could look at Australia’s five-wicket win over Sri Lanka. On the one hand you could say: wow!, the world’s No. 1 women’s cricket team is looking a bit shaky.
But on the other: well, when their backs are against the wall, this team has the spirit, guts and level-headedness to grind out a win in really tough circumstances.
Aussie vice-captain Rachael Haynes says it was the team’s character that really shone through and you can’t discount that.
2. Batting partnerships are key
Haynes came out to bat on Monday with her team in all sorts of strife. Sri Lanka – a team that has never beaten the Aussies – had the favourites on their knees at 3-10. When Haynes arrived at the crease, she was greeted by captain Lanning and told that their biggest job was to build a partnership. They did, a match-winning 95 runs together.
A batting partnership was what was missing in their loss to India. Healy made a lovely 51, and Ash Gardner hit 34, but they didn’t bat together. The other nine batters in the side made a combined 28.
The 95-run partnership between Lanning and Haynes was the difference between the two games.
3. Batting combinations will continue to change
The Aussies will keep opposition bowlers guessing throughout the campaign. The only certain batting order we’ve seen in the two games is the Alyssa Healy/Beth Mooney opening partnership.
Inside the first five overs, generally Ash Gardner will come in for Healy and Lanning will come in for Mooney, but it’s been the left/right batting combination that shuffles the batters from there.
Against India, Haynes was lifted above Gardner. Against Sri Lanka, Nicola Carey was lifted above Ellyse Perry.
Expect this to continue.
“One of our strengths of our batting order is the depth and the left/right handers within it,” Haynes said.
“We’ve been doing that a long time now, trying to keep those combinations where we can, because it means the bowler has to make an adjustment as well as opposed to just settling in and bowling to just one type of batter.
“It’s a strength of our line-up, so we try to use that.”
4. Bowlers are holding their own
Australia’s bowling this World Cup has not been the problem.
They have restricted India to 132 after they got off to a flying start of 0-40 in four overs. And then despite a courageous half century from Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu, contained them to 122.
Australia hasn’t yet bowled out a side, but in T20 cricket, economy is much more important.
That said, it’s been a relatively low-scoring World Cup.
In the recent WBBL, teams were posting scores above 160, but we’re yet to see scores like that.
India has hit the top two highest scores of the World Cup so far: 132 (v Australia) and then 142 (v Bangladesh).
At this point, Jess Jonassen is Australia’s leading wicket taker for the Aussies so far with three.
5. What are Australia’s chances of making the semi-final?
The top two teams from each pool will progress to the semi-finals, in Sydney on March 5.
Here’s how it sits:
Group A: Australia, India, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
India is on top of the ladder with two wins, no losses having beaten Australia and Bangladesh.
New Zealand is second having beaten Sri Lanka and will play India on Thursday.
Australia sits third with one win (v Sri Lanka) and one loss (v India).
Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are winless.
Australia should easily account for Bangladesh – a team they have never played before – at Canberra’s Manuka Oval on Thursday.
Either NZ or India will record their first loss on Thursday (and assuming NZ will beat Bangladesh on Saturday), Australia will be on level pegging with one of those teams.
Then, it will come down to whether Australia can beat New Zealand in its last game on Monday. If they do, progression through to the semis will come down to the run rate.
It is ruthless and the possibility of T20 World Cup finals series without Australia playing will be worrying the ICC’s organising committee who are hoping for record crowds.