Australia’s women enter World T20 tournament free of baggage

Australia begin their pursuit of the women’s World T20 title free of the stigma surrounding Cricket Australia’s culture review.

Opening batsman and wicketkeeper Alyssa Healy hits out against South Africa during a warm-up game in Guyana. Picture: Getty Images

They’re huddled together in a land far, far away. Posting photographs of idyllic blue water and sun-kissed skies. Glowing with the sort of deep-seated confidence, credibility and sturdy form lines that their stonkered male counterparts could only dream of.

They should be in a beer commercial. The one that says, From Where You’d Rather Be. They’re thousands of miles from Jolimont Street. And a million miles from care.

The T20 World Cup begins today. Meg Lanning’s team enter the fray without a blemish to their increasingly recognisable names. They don’t need a slogan that says they’re elite. It’s written all over them.

The Longstaff review into the Titanic that is Cricket Australia, and the entire men’s set-up, has made it clear that the women’s brand has suffered not a scratch.

While Aaron Finch’s ODI team were facing South Africa at Adelaide Oval yesterday, Lanning’s squad was preparing for its T20 World Cup opener against Pakistan. You’re either watching it right now with your breakfast, or you’ve missed it. The first ball was due at 7am (AEDT). It’s likely to be worth watching a replay. This is a beautiful, freewheeling, hard-nosed cricket team.

Australia won the World Cup in 2010, 2012 and 2014. They were stumped and gazumped by West Indies in 2016.

It’s rare for the Southern Stars to be anything other than the defending champions of a title or trophy but in the Caribbean for the next two weeks, that’s who they are.

They could hardly be in more fine fettle after storming through their warm-up matches, nor could they have been in a more pleasant corner of the earth when a bomb went under Cricket Australia last week. They were part of a gloriously stacked triple-header of matches at Guyana’s National Stadium today.

New Zealand were scheduled to meet India at 2am (AEDT). Australia versus Pakistan was the middle match. West Indies faced Bangladesh at 11am. The entire group phase will be finished in nine days.

In a gloriously compact schedule, the final is slated for November 25 (AEDT) at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua. A fast game’s a good game. Ditto for tournaments of this nature.

While the Longstaff review was producing more bloodletting at Cricket Australia than the shower scene from Psycho, women’s coach Matthew Mott said before the first training session in the Caribbean: “We generally just try to relax and chill out around the beach for two days when we first arrive.

“The players are absolutely chomping at the bit for a hit today. Enough of the pina coladas. It’s a beautiful island. The people have been amazing. It’s been a nice couple of days but we’re very determined now.

“We’re in game mode. We’re ready to play. We’ve got to flick the switch now.”

Fox Sports will broadcast every match of the tournament. The Nine Network will chime in with Australia’s fixtures.

“There’s almost a sense of unfinished business for us over the last couple of years,” Mott said of his No 1-ranked team.

“We’ve played some really good cricket, particularly in the last eight to 10 months, and we’re really ready to get a world crown. I think this group’s in a place where they’re really ready to show the world how well they’re playing.

“It’s important it all comes together in the next couple of weeks.”