Beth Mooney steers Australia to victory over Sri Lanka in Women’s T20 World Cup cricket
Megan Schutt claims three wickets as Sri Lanka fail to post a challenging total in Sharjah
Sharjah: Runs in the bank matter. Sri Lanka didn’t have enough and slipped to a six-wicket defeat to Australia in the Women’s T20 World Cup. Saturday’s loss, the second for the islanders in Group A, has dealt a blow to their chances of making the semifinals.
It was more like a walk in the park for defending champions Australia. They were not at their best, conceding 13 extras (including five no-balls) in a total of 93, yet they cantered home at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium with more than five overs to spare.
Chasing Sri Lanka’s paltry total, Australia were in some discomfort when they lost three wickets (Alyssa Healy, Georgia Wareham and Ellyse Perry) for 35 by the end of the powerplay. But Beth Mooney ensured there were no more alarms, guiding the six-time winners to the target with an unbeaten 43 (38 balls).
Australia captain Alyssa Healy told the official broadcaster they were decent without being perfect. “[We] adapted to the conditions quickly with the ball. They threw heat at us early, but we took our opportunities later.”
Mooney played a dual role. The Australian opener dropped anchor when Perry (17) put the Sri Lankan attack to the sword. After Perry’s departure, Mooney opened her shoulders and crunched a few boundaries to put the result beyond doubt.
The Sri Lankans never really made a match of it after opting to bat. The early dismissals of openers Vismi Gunaratne and Chamari Athapathuthu pushed them on the back foot and they never got into the groove. The intent was missing as the Australians dominated with pace and spin. Mediumpacer Megan Schutt won the Player of the Match award for her three-wicket haul.
Nilakshika Silva (29 off 40 balls) was the pick of the Sri Lankan batters, stringing together partnerships of 31 with Harshitha Samarawickrama (23) and 24 with Anushka Sanjeewani (16). But at no point did they take the fight to the Australian bowlers, and the run rate hovered merely over four an over.
That left the bowlers hardly anything to work with against a ruthless Australian side. Even a brief wobble failed to stall the champions. Runs mattered, and Sri Lankans didn’t have enough.
A disappointed Sri Lanka captain Athapaththu said: “We played good cricket in the last two months, but unfortunately, we lost against Pakistan and Australia. We have struggled a little bit with the bat. But we cannot complain about these things, and we have to adjust and play positive cricket all the time.”