Top Ad
I DIG Radio
www.idigradio.com
Listen live to the best music from around the world!
I DIG Style
www.idigstyle.com
Learn about the latest fashion styles and more...

Mooney's 74* leads clinical Australia to sixth T20 World Cup title

Written by 
Published in Cricket
Sunday, 26 February 2023 09:16

Australia 156 for 6 (Mooney 74*, Ismail 2-26, Kapp 2-35) beat South Africa 137 for 6 (Wolvaardt 61, Tryon 25, Gardner 1-20) by 19 runs

Let no one influence you into believing this was a choke.

Truth be told, this was a game of high-intensity cricket, fitting of a grand finale. The pressure was immense, and Australia, more skilled and adept at handling big-match temperament - this was their seventh straight final - came up triumphs to clinch their sixth T20 World Cup title and their third in a row.

If anyone needed more validation that this is the best women's cricket team in the planet, it couldn't have been delivered at a bigger stage. Australia made 156 seem like 180, before their bowlers stood tall on the face of a late assault from Laura Wolvaardt that threatened to take the game away.

South Africa needed 59 off 30 balls, with Wolvaardt pumping a packed Newlands crowd with some of the most aesthetically-pleasing shots. Then, much to their agony, she swiped across the line to a full delivery from Megan Schutt and was trapped lbw. South African hearts sank, a teary Wolvaardt trudged off slowly, and boisterous applause gave way to stunned silence.

Australia believed and Australia delivered.

For South Africa, it was a case of being so near, yet so far. However, even in defeat, Sune Luus & co had done what no other South African senior team - men or women - had done: compete in a world final. This was as bittersweet as it could get.

Dangerous Healy falls early

Four overs in, this seemed a proper arm-wrestle with neither side catching the game by the scruff of its neck. The first signs of drama, that wouldn't abate for the rest of the evening, came in the fifth over when Alyssa Healy bludgeoned a boundary down the ground, and then saw Marizanne Kapp roar with her wicket to finish the over. That wicket - brought about by spongy bounce that had Healy slicing an attempted cut to cover - laid down a marker: that hit-the-deck stuff was going to be harder to hit than fuller deliveries. Shabnim Ismail then closed off the first six overs with a maiden to have Australia 36 for 1, their slowest powerplay of the tournament.

Ashleigh Gardner revs up

Sent in ahead of Meg Lanning, Ashleigh Gardner offset any pressure there may have been on Australia with a fierce counterattack. Two back-to-back fours off left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba were followed by back-to-back sixes off Nadine de Klerk, shots that were possible courtesy outstanding footwork and a solid hitting base that allowed her to get underneath proper length deliveries. The attack put the pressure right back on South Africa. And just when Australia were beginning to exert their dominance, Chloe Tryon deceived Gardner in flight to have her caught at long-off for a rampaging 21-ball 29. At 82 for 2 in the 12th, Australia were still in control.

Mooney keeps calm, bats through

It didn't take long for Beth Mooney to recalibrate her approach. This wasn't a surface where she could fearlessly belt the ball. Manufacturing shots wasn't easy due to the slowness; this was the same deck on which both semi-finals were played. But she quietly slipped into the role of an accumulator, allowing the others to take charge, without allowing dot-ball pressure to creep up. As her innings progressed, Mooney manipulated the fields expertly. Traps set for the scoop at short fine leg were just traps, as Mooney reverse-scooped over vacant short third in picking crucial boundaries to ensure Australia didn't lose momentum.

Ellyse Perry, Grace Harris and Lanning fed off this confidence, knowing they had insurance in the form of Mooney, to play their shots. While Ismail returned to pick up two wickets in the final over and concede just two off her last four deliveries, Australia had put up a formidable score. Mooney finished with an unbeaten 53-ball 74, her second straight half-century in a world tournament final.

South Africa's slow powerplay

South Africa needed a big powerplay to allay some of their nerves that had been a constant feature, and understandably so, right through the game. They limped to 22 for the loss of Tazmin Brits in the powerplay, and allowed stage fright to gnaw at them slowly. It was a bizarre passage too. South Africa had an lbw reprieve, and there were mis-hits, tight bowling and uncharacteristic misfields. The asking rate jumped past 10 and the heat was on.

The run-out that shouldn't have been

Boundaries had been a rarity in the first six overs, but Wolvaardt's first two were delightful. The hit down the ground off Darcie Brown as she erred on the fuller side was an on-drive out of the top drawer, as was her skip down the pitch while moving leg side of the ball to wallop an inside-out six off Jess Jonassen. But just when South Africa appeared to be wresting back some momentum, they lost Kapp to a slog and Luus to a run-out, with both her and Wolvaardt nearly stranded at the bowler's end. At 54 for 3 in the 11th over, their target seemed many moons away.

South Africa believe through Wolvaardt

Wolvaardt had to now put behind her the run out gaffe, and she did so admirably. Without playing a shot in anger, she kept reeling off boundaries, brought up her half-century off 43 balls with one of the most pleasing cover drives, and brought South Africa to within 59 runs of victory with 30 balls left. In Tryon, she had a batter who could bash the ball. The pair put together 55 in 37 balls to keep South Africa's hopes alive, before they both fell in successive overs to all but extinguish their hopes.

Shashank Kishore is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo

Read 139 times

Soccer

Mudryk, Nkunku help Chelsea stay top of UECL

Mudryk, Nkunku help Chelsea stay top of UECL

Chelsea beat Heidenheim 2-0 on Thursday to extend their perfect record in the Conference League afte...

Sources: Real Madrid bus in crash after UCL loss

Sources: Real Madrid bus in crash after UCL loss

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsReal Madrid's bus was involved in a collision on Thursday on its re...

Sources: Van Nistelrooy set for Leicester job

Sources: Van Nistelrooy set for Leicester job

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsFormer Manchester United forward Ruud van Nistelrooy is in line to...

2026 FIFA


2028 LOS ANGELES OLYMPIC

UEFA

2024 PARIS OLYMPIC


Basketball

Leaks, team meetings, losses: The factors driving the Sixers' dreadful start

Leaks, team meetings, losses: The factors driving the Sixers' dreadful start

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsTHE JULY 6 POST on Daryl Morey's Instagram page is even more perfec...

Injury-plagued Beal hobbles off in loss to Nets

Injury-plagued Beal hobbles off in loss to Nets

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsPHOENIX -- Suns guard Bradley Beal limped off the court in the four...

Baseball

Dodgers minor leaguer suspended for doping

Dodgers minor leaguer suspended for doping

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsNEW YORK -- Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Jose D. Hernandez was sus...

Crawford, 2-time WS champ with Giants, retires

Crawford, 2-time WS champ with Giants, retires

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsSAN FRANCISCO -- Brandon Crawford is retiring after 14 major league...

Sports Leagues

  • FIFA

    Fédération Internationale de Football Association
  • NBA

    National Basketball Association
  • ATP

    Association of Tennis Professionals
  • MLB

    Major League Baseball
  • ITTF

    International Table Tennis Federation
  • NFL

    Nactional Football Leagues
  • FISB

    Federation Internationale de Speedball

About Us

I Dig® is a leading global brand that makes it more enjoyable to surf the internet, conduct transactions and access, share, and create information.  Today I Dig® attracts millions of users every month.r

 

Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: www.idig.com
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Affiliated