‘Suck it up and get on with it’ – Beth Mooney saves Australia’s World Cup blushes on a Sharjah scorcher

Bone-dry pitches that look like something out of the Arabian Desert. Huge boundaries. Outfields slower than a ballad. The Women’s T20 World Cup is like no other and according to Australia’s Megan Schutt, it could be won by anyone.

“Oh, my god,” Alyssa Healy said. “Play a shot, Chamari.”

It was Australia’s opening match of the T20 World Cup at Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Hotter than the ninth circle of hell. Boundaries were bigger than neighbouring Salam Tower. The outfield was slower than a ballad. Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu was poking the ball around when Healy, being an engaging and helpful sort of woman, encouraged her counterpart to consider the deployment of a longer handle.

Alyssa Healy of Australia walks off after being dismissed. Picture: Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC via Getty Images

Athapaththu was all ears. Took the advice on board. Healy knows her stuff, right? Oh, my god, Chamari went for a wild slog and was ruled LBW but, really, she was dismissed hook, line and sinker during Australia’s six-wicket triumph on a barren, bone-dry pitch that looked like something out of the Arabian Desert.

“Good result at the start of the tournament,” Healy said. “We’ll take some confidence out of that. We were decent without being perfect.”

The unlikely hero? Megan Schutt. She began her rhythmical approach to the crease, as always, with a bunny-hop, jumping forward like an L-player trying to get her car started, before hitting full stride and swinging the ball like always, like a boomerang, to become the T20 World Cup’s equal all-time leading wicket-taker. She grabbed 3-12 but the tournament is set to be dominated by slow bowlers.

“It probably helps I’m half a spinner,” Schutt grinned ahead of Australia’s next crucial match against New Zealand on Wednesday (2am AEDT).

Megan Schutt of Australia is presented with the Player Of The Match award after her side’s ICC Women's T20 World Cup victory against Sri Lanka at Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Picture: Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC via Getty Images

Schutt’s 43rd T20 World Cup wicket drew her alongside Pakistan’s Shabnim Ismail on the all-time list but there ain’t no spinners’ paradise like a United Arab Emirates’ spinners’ paradise, and Australian tweakers Ash Gardner (1-14), Georgia Wareham (1-14) and Sophie Molineux (2-20) warmed up nicely as the temperature climbed to 38 degrees Celsius. The spinners are pivotal to Australia’s chances of becoming winners and grinners at a fourth straight T20 World Cup.

“I think the slow pitches bring every single team into the tournament,” Schutt said. “It evens it out really nicely. It will be a tough one throughout. Oue entire pool is a tough one. That’s what we’ve spoken about a lot.”

This bedazzling generation of Australian players are expected to reach the semi-finals of World Cups like the sun is expected to rise over Sharjah’s Fossil Rock every morning. Yet this campaign is a little complicated. The tournament has two pools of five teams. The top two from each pool will qualify for the semis. It was expected to be Australia and India from Pool A, but the Kiwis’ shocked India in their opening fixture. Now one side from Australia, India and NZ will miss out.

“We were training at the time so we missed the game,” Schutt said of NZ’s 58-run stunner over India. “We saw the scorecard, pretty cool. It opens up the tournament completely. It’ll be a great match against New Zealand.”

Beth Mooney cools down with some shade and an ice pack in a drinks break. Picture: Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC via Getty Images

The Australians restricted Sri Lanka to 7-93 before overcoming early blips and yips to reach 4-94 and skip home in the 15th over. They were wobbling at 3-35 only for Beth Mooney to conjure an unbeaten 43 from 38 deliveries. Mooney is notorious for struggling in the heat and so, oh my god, there’s no tougher place for her to play shots than Sharjah. During one drinks break, she had two umbrellas for shade and an ice pack on her head while she sweated bullets and guzzled enough water for a proper desert crossing.

“We were pretty nervous to go out there and play in terms of the heat,” Schutt said. “I think we’ve finally acclimatised because I didn’t feel like I was going to die out there. I think Mooney lost about 16kg, but we’ve played in hot conditions before. The breeze was lifesaving. We play a summer sport. It is what it is. You’ve got to suck it up and get on with it.”