Australia captain Alyssa Healy has opened up about the heartbreaking semi-final defeat against India in the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 in Navi Mumbai, admitting that the loss “will hurt for a little while.”
Speaking on the Willow Talk Cricket Podcast with Brad Haddin, Healy reflected on how Australia fell short despite playing “really incredible cricket” throughout the tournament.
“Look, I’ve been better. I won’t lie to you. But at the same time, it is what it is. End of the day that, after seven weeks of a big long tour, we played some really really incredible cricket but didn’t quite get over a certain Indian hurdle, I suppose you’d say,” Healy said. “So, from that perspective, it was an amazing experience, but obviously sitting here a little bit disappointed, and it’ll haunt me for a little while that one, but that’s ok.”
India chased down a record-breaking 339 runs to eliminate Australia in the semi-final. Reflecting on the team’s overall performance, Healy admitted the defeat hurt even more because of how well her side had played. “That’s probably why it – I know we’ll probably get to it later and you’llprobably make me cry at some point – but that’s probably what makes it hurt more is that we’re playing so well. Everyone was contributing. Everyone was playing out of their skin which I thought was unbelievable and we had sort of half an off night and get done in a knockout game.”
On the batting front, Healy felt Australia could have added more runs despite posting a strong 338-run total. “Actuallythought it was under-par… If we could have pushed up over 350, ultimately it might have made a difference in the end.”
She also explained how the red-soil pitch at DY Patil Stadium behaved differently under lights. “It definitely looked like under lights towards the back end, you know, it was sliding on nicely… We probably weren’t quick enough to adapt to bowling a change of pace,” Healy said.
Despite losing in the semi-final, Healy remains positive about the team’s future. “I’m looking forward to seeing what this team can do over this next cycle because it’s really exciting,” she said.
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