“We want to embarrass the Poms here, not just beat them, we want to thrash them.” These were the words from Australia’s Grace Harris after their second T20I victory over England in the Women’s Ashes series. True to her statement, the Aussies A
With this win, Australia completed a clean sweep in both the ODI and T20I series, leaving England humiliated. Now leading the Ashes points table 12-0, Australia have left England with little hope of making a comeback in the one-off Test.
Australia made just one change for this game, bringing in Darcie Brown, while England shuffled their pack, playing Alice Capsey, Linsey Smith and Lauren Filer. Winning the toss, Tahlia McGrath opted to bat first on a slowish Adelaide Oval pitch.
Australia got off to a solid start with a 56-run opening partnership, but the innings was all about Beth Mooney. Anchoring the innings brilliantly, Mooney smashed an unbeaten 94 off 63 balls, hitting shots across the ground and showcasing immense hunger and determination.
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Her commitment was evident in the final over, where she ran hard and dived full length to secure extra runs. Supported by small contributions from her teammates, Australia posted a competitive total of 162/5. England’s bowlers shared the wickets, but their spinners failed to exploit the slowness of the surface.
Chasing 163, England’s batting line-up faltered miserably. Apart from skipper Heather Knight, who scored 40, no other batter crossed the 20-run mark as the visitors were bowled out for 90 in just 17.3 overs. Georgia Wareham was exceptional with the ball, taking 3/11, while Annabel Sutherland bowled a peach to dismiss Nat Sciver-Brunt for just one.
The Australian fielders were once again outstanding, with Georgia Voll pulling off a stunning catch to dismiss Sophie Ecclestone. Mooney deservedly took home the Player-of-the-Match award for her match-winning knock.
Brief scores: Australia-W 162/5 in 20 overs (Beth Mooney 94 not out, Charlie Dean 1/21) beat England-W, 90/10 in 17.3 overs (Heather Knight 40 off 38 balls, Georgia Wareham 3/11 in four overs) by 72 runs.
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