They have lost a home series for the first time since 2017 and there’re questions confronting the Australian women’s team ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup in June. It also puts the hosts 2-4 behind India in the multi-format series, going into the ODI leg that begins in Brisbane on Tuesday.
Skipper Sophie Molineux put up a brave front, saying that the series was their first T20s in about 11 months and first matches in any format since the ODI World Cup, where they lost to the Harmanpreet Kaur-led team in the semifinals. But the perennial favourites in women’s cricket need some soul-searching.
“I think firstly, just getting back together as a group again, it’s been three or four months … and we’ve got a massive tournament on the horizon, which we’ve had one eye on,” Molineux said after the 17-run series-deciding defeat in Adelaide.
She said the team backed itself to overhaul the target but lost wickets at inopportune moments.
“With the bat, we looked good early, and players got going but we just lost key wickets at really big times, which can happen in T20 cricket,” Molineux said. “We were probably a few short at the 10-over mark, and had to push on. But all in all, there were plenty of positives.”
The Aussies now need to draw a line under the setback. Their next game will be a rematch with the team that ended their reign as 50-over world champions.
“That’s first and foremost our priority, to get to Brisbane, reassess and park these T20s,” Molineux said. “Games against India in that format are always exciting, and we have to play really well to beat them.”
“I think there’s a lot of lessons learned that we can bring back when we’re in the West Indies and prep for that T20 World Cup. But we’ve got to park that and move on to one-day cricket, which is really cool.”
The upcoming games will also be the international swansong for former skipper Alyssa Healy, who has announced her retirement after the India series. She will be leading the team in the ODIs and the one-off Test.
“There’s an extra incentive there to send her (Healy) off on the best note possible as well,” Molineaux said. “Playing in Australia, on our home grounds, it’s going to be a really good series, that one-day component.
“Our last format was that one-day World Cup as well, so there’s plenty there that we want to bounce back from. Very much looking forward to getting into that format.”
The second and third ODIs will be played in Hobart (February 27 and March 1), with the Test match at the WACA ground in Perth (March 6-9).
