Australia dominates India to claim fifth Women's T20 World Cup title in front of massive MCG crowd

Updated

Australia has been crowned Women's T20 World Cup champion for the fifth time, completing a dominant 85-run victory over India in style at a packed MCG.

Key points: Alyssa Healy (75), Beth Mooney (78*) and Megan Schutt (4-18) starred as Australia thumped India in the T20 World Cup final

After Katy Perry got the party started, Australia dominated India from start to finish in front of a crowd of 86,174

It is Australia's fifth Women's T20 World Cup championship

No fewer than 86,174 people — the highest crowd ever at a women's sport event in Australia but just short of the world record of 90,186 — saw an Australian side led by Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney obliterate India en route to an historic win.

Katy Perry may have been the pre-match star, but player of the match Healy's 75 and player of the tournament Mooney's 78* were the headline acts as the pair steered Australia to 4-184 from its 20 overs, a target well beyond India as the visiting team lost early wickets and never recovered.

After winning the toss and quickly choosing to bat, Australia raced out of the blocks with both openers getting off to imperious starts.

Healy and Mooney wasted no time taking the game to India, racing to 0-47 after the first five overs. Healy often took the aerial route, while Mooney was generally more circumspect but just as effective.

There was good fortune for Australia though, with India's fielding costing it in those first five overs. Both openers were dropped off simple chances, and misfields cost India more runs than it could afford to cede in the early stages.

But Healy more than made the most of her opportunity. Having taken Australia past 50 in the seventh over, she put her foot on the accelerator, taking Rajeshwari Gaykwad for consecutive sixes in the following over.

With Mooney in support, Healy kept up the aggression and brought up her half-century with a boundary down the ground in the 10th over. Turns out she was just getting started.

Healy soon brought up Australia's 100 with the first of three consecutive sixes, the last of which an impeccable shot over cover off the front foot. By the end of the 23-run 11th over, India already looked just about shot.

But the party couldn't go on forever, and Healy eventually holed to Veda Krishnamurthy at long on off the bowling of Radha Yadav for a breathless 75.

Meg Lanning came to the crease and immediately began finding the rope herself, while Mooney hardly missed a beat while moving to her 50 off 41 balls.

Lanning was caught at square leg off the bowling of Deepti Sharma for 16 before Ash Gardiner ran past one three balls later, out stumped for 2.

But if India thought those wickets would bring it back into the game, Mooney quickly shattered those illusions. She played some incredible shots, varying from inverted ramps behind the wicket to reverse and slog sweeps.

Poonam Yadav (1-30), the leg spinner that tore Australia apart in the tournament opener, had little impact this time around until Rachael Haynes (4) hit one of her deliveries back onto her own leg stump.

Some late swinging from Nicola Carey (5) and Mooney took Australia to 4-184, the third highest total of the tournament.

To make a game of it, India needed to make a good start. Shafali's first shot was a glorious shot down the ground for two, but only two balls later she feathered an edge off the bowling of Megan Schutt through to Healy, who took a smart catch up to the stumps.

The news soon got worse when Taniya Bhatia was hit in the head while trying to sweep the spin bowling of Jess Jonassen and was forced to retire hurt. Jemimah Rodrigues was then out for a duck when she chipped Jonassen to Carey at mid off.

Smriti Mandhana briefly threatened to give India some momentum, but fell to Sophie Molineux's first ball, lobbing another catch to Carey for 11.

Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur's poor tournament continued right to the last, falling for 4 when she was well caught on the boundary by Gardiner off a flighted Jonassen delivery.

From there, the match descended into a slow march towards an inevitable Australian victory. Veda Krishnamurthy stuck around for a while but was undone by a Delissa Kimmince off-cutter, and was caught by Jonassen for 19.

Schutt picked up a couple more scalps to ensure she finished on top of the wicket-taking charts at the end of the tournament, while Australia's fielding remained top notch as Carey and Mooney completed good catches.

Jonassen got in the act late, picking up the wicket of Radha Yadav before Schutt closed it out — Gardner took a fine catch in the deep to dismiss Poonam and spark wild celebrations around the 'G.

Australia's turbulent World Cup ended in the grandest of fashions, on a night that will live long in the memory and could prove transformational for women's sport in this country.

See how the action unfolded in our live blog.

Topics: cricket, sport, melbourne-3000, vic, australia

First posted