Beth Mooney was rock solid in sweltering heat to steer Australia to a comfortable win over Sri Lanka after Megan Schutt led a strong bowling display
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Australia have overcome an early batting wobble and the extreme Sharjah heat to start their T20 World Cup campaign with a six-wicket win over Sri Lanka.
Asked to bowl first, Megan Schutt (3-12) and Ashleigh Gardner (1-14) set the tone in the power play and Sophie Molineux (2-20) kept the pressure on during the middle overs to restrict a sluggish Sri Lanka to 7-93, with Nilakshi de Silva (29no off 40) their highest contributor.
Beth Mooney (43no from 38) then battled through obvious discomfort under the baking sun in temperatures in the high 30s Celsius at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium to steer Australia to their target in 14.2 overs, sharing in a 43-run stand with Ashleigh Gardner (12 off 15).
Beth Mooney batted brilliantly in trying conditions // Getty
The pair came together with Australia 3-35 after 5.3 overs and comfortably navigated Sri Lanka’s spin-heavy attack to put their team within 16 runs of victory before Gardner was caught looking to finish things off with a flourish.
The heat took its toll on Mooney, but despite crouching down on her haunches between deliveries – and seeking ice packs between overs – the left-hander was still able to dispatch the loose balls in a knock that featured four boundaries - as many as Sri Lanka hit in their entire innings.
"We were decent without being perfect," Alyssa Healy said after the game.
"We adapted to the conditions really quickly with the ball.
"To start the tournament 1-0 is a good result for us. Some confidence out of that."
Earlier, opener Healy (4) got off the mark with a boundary in the opening over but was knocked over by Udeshika Prabodani next ball.
Georgia Wareham (3) was again elevated to three but had to depart after a mix-up with Mooney and a direct hit from Kavisha Dilhari that caught her short of her ground.
Ellyse Perry (17 off 15) then became the third wicket to fall in the power play after a solid start that saw her hit three fours before she was bowled by Sugandika Kumari to leave Australia 3-35.
Earlier, after Chamari Athapaththu elected to bat Schutt and Gardner immediately had the Sri Lankans under pressure, delivering twin maidens to start the match.
That paid off when Vishmi Gunaratne, having faced nine dot balls, was trapped lbw by Schutt, claiming an unwanted record for the longest women’s T20 World Cup duck.
Australia celebrate a wicket // Getty
At the other end Athapaththu had faced 11 deliveries for just three runs, and the stump mic picked up a typically cheeky Healy politely enquiring as to where the boundaries were.
The Sri Lanka skipper responded by going after Gardner next ball, but her almighty heave missed everything and she was instead trapped on the pads – and while on-field umpire Sue Redfern was initially unmoved, Healy called for a review and ball-tracking confirmed Athapaththu’s cheap departure.
Just 11 runs were scored from the first five overs, but the introduction of Darcie Brown provided a brief pressure release. In an over the 21-year-old would no doubt want to banish from memory, Brown sent down three no balls and a wide, with 12 runs in total coming from it.
It was only a temporary reprieve, however, and Australia’s spinners turned the screws through the middle overs as the Sri Lankan’s struggled to find momentum, with Molineux then Wareham striking to have their rivals 5-65.
Wareham’s wicket, via a full toss and a brilliant running catch from Gardner on the boundary, saw the use of the new waist-high technology come into play. Each player was measured prior to the tournament, and an – albeit lengthy – ball-tracking review showed the delivery was fair.
Schutt claimed consecutive wickets in the final over to restrict Sri Lanka to 7-93.
It was an innings that featured just four boundaries, although Australia would not be entirely satisfied in an effort that included a dropped catch and 13 extras, including five no balls.
Australia will be back at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Tuesday evening (1am Wednesday AEDT) to play New Zealand, whose confidence will be buoyed after snapping a 10-game losing streak with a 58-run win over India.
Sri Lanka’s next engagement is with India in Dubai on Wednesday (1am Thursday AEDT), with their finals hopes dangling by a thread after back-to-back defeats in the first three days of the tournament.
