Kaur possibly is having the worst birthday ever. Blame this massive loss against the home team. However, the Indian team has a lot of positive to take from the tournament. Chasing a mammoth total, India lost early wickets and never recovered as they could make only 99 before losing all the wickets.
WHAT A MOMENT FOR THE HOME TEAM.
A HUGE VICTORY FOR AUSSIES AS THEY DEFEAT INDIA BY 85 RUNS.
This is it. AUSTRALIA HAVE DONE IT. WORLD CHAMPIONS. FIFTH TIME T20 WINNERS
One wicket away now. Australia doing it in style here.
Jonassen takes another a Mooney bags it. India 97/9
Here’s the official crowd count for today. 86174. What a spectacle it has been!
Poonam slogs as it falls short of Mooney. She survives. But does it really matter? 97/8 after 18.
What a tournament the hosts have had. After losing their first match against India, they have made a statement today.
Richa goes now. India loses their eighth wicket. Aussies all the way here.
A consolation boundary for Richa. Edged and runs to the ropes.
Indian fans would already want this agony to end now. This seems like lasting forever.
This time it carries a Mooney runs back to take the catch. What a day for Mooney! Shikha goes. 92/7 now.
Shikha goes hard. Due to lack of pace, it falls short twice. 92/6 after 17.
Shikha Pandey joins Richa. This match gives very similar vibes to that of the 2003 men’s World Cup final now.
88/6 with 23 balls to go, India need 97 runs here.
Deepti falls. It was coming. There was no point in running singles here. Caught by Mooney at Long-on.
Seven runs from Jonassen over. 88/5 after 16.
The Aussie spinners have been too good today. How significant was Healey standing up to Shafali in the first over?
Need 104 from 30 balls. 81/5 after 15 overs.
Indians not getting boundaries here. It is becoming more and more one-sided a the Indians scramble for singles throughout.
Look who’s tweeting about today’s match.
Edged and boundary. 76/5 after 14 overs.
Another excellent fielding effort from Jonassen as Deepti lofts one over mid-off.
Both Richa and Deepti trying to hit boundaries here. However, the Australian fielding has been brilliant. 68/5 after 12.
Irrespective of today’s result, this has been an absolutely brilliant exhibition of Women sport.
Speaking of Richa, she is another 16-year-old and that makes four teenagers in India’s playing eleven today.
Richa Ghose comes in as concussion substitute here. 58/5 now after 12.
128 runs off 53 balls required here. and another wicket goes. Veda falls trying to hit over mid-off.
56/4 after 11. Aussies using India’s tactics by not giving any pace to the Indian batters.
Here is some news about Taniya’s replacement.
A close run-out chance missed there. Deepti survives.
Molineux continues to keep it tight with just five runs in the over. 51/4 after 10. Singles not of any use for India here.
It seems like yet another story of what it could have been. Knowing how to win big games has come extremely handy for Australia.
Just seven from it. 46/4 India after 9. Required run rate above 13 now.
Deepti continues to rotate strike a Veda picks up a boundary with a late dab off Kimmince
India tries to run for delicate touches here. Good sign. In a way.
India must try to score twos every delivery if not the boundary
Carey comes in.
Almost 12 runs needed per over now.
Veda is finding the fielders everywhere. This is not good as she normally goes crazy if this happens.
33 for 4 now. What can these two players do?
Australia steps up at the big stage. No wonder why they are the champions.
Veda tries to push things towards her legside, she has no idea where the ball was. Thanks to the extra bounce.
Veda comes in. Too early perhaps.
AUSTRALIA RIGHT ON TOP. FOUR WICKETS NOW.
26 for 3 in 5 overs. India needs something big. Things are going out of hands.
Importance of spending time in the middle a good point explained by Anjum Chopra.
Pitch is making a good difference here as well. The extra bounce.
Above 10 an over already. India must do something.
All eyes on Kaur now.
Australia picking up catches is the difference between both the teams.
Deepti Sharma in. Starts off with a boundary.
MANDHANA GOES. 18 FOR 3 NOW.
Elegance from Mandhana for another four
Short ball already?
First four from Mandhana. We need more of that.
Kaur is in. Mandhana and Kaur must do something for the team
GONE. JEMIMAH GOES FOR A DOT. 8 for 2 now.
Taniya Bhatia goes off after she gets hit on her helmet. More trouble.
Bhatia sweeps, misses and the ball hits her helmet. Quick check-up from Tracy.
Scoreboard pressure here. However, Bhatia has all the talent to do so. Extra bounce is the problem.
Bhatia tries to clear the field but couldn’t.
Nerves. Bhatia almost got out. Will Mandhana stand up today? 3 for 1 after 1.
Taniya Bhatia comes in.
GONE. SHAFALI IS OUT. 2 FOR 1.
Shafali starts with a beautiful shot.
No Perry in the side. Indian openers are out. No pressure on their faces. I remind you Shafali Verma is the number one player in the T20Is.
INDIA NEEDS A BIG START HERE.
I want her to go out and score the runs, I don’t want to put responsibility on her, says Mithali Raj about Shafali Verma.
On a good batting surface, Lanning won the toss and batted first. Healy and Mooney opened the batting and the team had luck early on with both the openers got a chance. Both the players then went berserk. Healy’s 75 off 39 gave the platform for Mooney to play her knock as well. She stood unbeaten at 78. India then came back in the final overs to restrict the team to 184, thanks to that one over from Deepti Sharma which had two wickets. Other than that, nothing worked well for the Indian bowlers. India needs big stuff from their openers to stay in the game.
WELL. AUSTRALIA END WITH 184 FOR 4 IN THE WORLD CUP FINAL.
Schutt is getting ready to bowl already.
Good over so far with a boundary alone.
Above 80000 people in the audience, says Harsha Bhogle.
176 with an over left. Radha to bowl it.
Most importantly, it’s a dot. India can try to reduce at least ten runs from the total now with new batter taking the strike.
Poonam gets rid of Haynes once again.
4-0-52-1: Shikha Pandey’s most expensive T20I figures. And what an occasion to have those.
Around the wicket for Poonam. Australia won it here already.
Mooney welcomes Poonam with a boundary.
Predicting a 187 kind of finish here.
Australia converting ones to twos should be the talking point of the match. 167 with two to go.
Mooney tries to be cheeky here. Wide delivery, she tries to push it to the leg side, she puts her bat and still gets four.
Three singles in three now.
Pandey tries to keep things nice and tight here.
Shikha to bowl her next.
157 with three more overs to go.
Gardner walks back, thanks to Deepti-Bhatia work.
Once again beautiful running from the Australian players.
Clever bowling from Deepti and there is a tiny smile in the face of WV Raman. Tense faces though.
Gardner is in and everyone knows what she can do.
Deepti comes for her fourth and removes Lanning who was targetting the leg side for a while now.
Radha goes for 12. Australia 154/1 with four overs to go.
Mooney at it again. Back-to-back boundaries. Absolutely brilliant.
Fifty for Mooney. Quietly, she has been the consistent star for them throughout 142/1 after 15.
Poonam is back. Yet to get a wicket. Kerr showed everyone how to play Poonam the other day. Wonder what Aussies will do here.
Mooney- Lanning keeps up with the run rate post-Healey dismissal. 2 fours in that over. 135/1 after 14.
Cracking shot from Lanning through point. Spinners have been found guilty of bowling too short and too full often.
After 13 overs Australia 123/1. Deepti brought into the attack now.
Jemimah’s excellent fielding effort goes in vain without back up. Rajeshwari starts with a short ball to Lanning.
And that brings in captain Meg Lanning. A lot will ride on her to bat through. Excellent comeback from India with a three-run over. 117/2.
BREAKTHROUGH: Radha removes the big fish. Healey goes for another biggie down the ground and Veda Krishnamurthy doesn’t drop them.
If you guys remember Starc heroics in the 2015 World Cup final:
An extra-ordinary shot by Healey over cover for a six. HAT-TRICK of ’em. 23 runs off Pandey’s over. 114/0 after 11.
Mooney caresses Pandey for a boundary through point. Too good. Class. On the other end, Healey FORCE continues. 100 comes up with a huge six.
Meanwhile, a fun fact. India is the first team to pick more than one teen player for the final of the Women’s world cup the team has three.
Radha’s first over goes for 12. Australia 91/0 after 10 overs. Badly need a break-through.
Alyssa Healey brings up her half-century with a boundary. COMETH THE DAY. COMETH THE WOMAN. Explosive from the Australian WK so far. Starc would not regret missing the SA series.
Beth Mooney playing a handy second-fiddle to Healey here. Nine off the Poonam over. 79 for no loss.
The bat swing is just too good from Healey . 16 from the over. 70 for no loss in 8.
Another six. What a shot. 75M now.
Gayakwad is here and Australia is trying to hit her. However, her pace isn’t helping. So, Healy goes berserk, clears it for 83 M.
Just 5 from it, 54 for no loss.
Still, Australia is keeping quiet against Poonam. Stepping up, nudging it and runs.
Both the players are stepping out. Chances of stumpings are getting higher.
50 COMES UP FOR AUSTRALIA. 10TH 50 PARTNERSHIP FOR THIS PAIR.
Right. POONAM IS HERE. KAUR TURNED TO HER.
Some good stuff from Gayakwad here. Only two off it in the end. 49 for 0 in 6 overs now.
Three dot balls, pressure and Healy takes a quick single.
Gayakwad starts her next and a beautiful delivery to start with. Wondering how it missed the off stump.
47 for 0 in five overs now.
A good over spoiled by under effort from Poonam Yadav and the ball reached the boundary. Mooney comes good with a glorious drive. I want to marry her inside-out shot.
2.2 million people watching the match at the Hotstar now.
Good fielding from Smriti Mandhana that stopped the four.
Shikha to bowl her next now.
37 for 0 in 4 overs. Gayakwad’s went for just five.
Looks like another drop here. This time Gayakwad herself. Two catches in inside the powerplay, both dropped. This is finals. India cannot do that.
And Mooney takes her on with her inside out shot.
Rajeshwari Gayakwad is here for the next over.
Mooney has faced just four deliveries and made sure to pick up single all the time to give the strike to Healy.
ANOTHER EXPENSIVE OVER HERE. 32 FOR 0. AUSTRALIA IS ENTERTAINING THE CROWD HERE.
Something all the teams must learn from Australia is how quick they run between the wickets. Delicate touch and run.
Pitch is too good for batting and Healy is making full use of it.
2 deliveries so far. Both of them stumps to stumps so far.
Deepti Sharma continues. After some long chat with Kaur, she is back.
Some good fielding from Jemimah Rodrigues at the point saves a certain boundary. 23 for 0 in 2 overs now.
Australia and Healy dealing in boundaries. Just so beautiful to watch from her.
2000 runs in T20I for HEALY! She does it with a four.
Shikha Pandey opens the second over.
14 from the first over. Healy is doing what she normally does at the big stage. 1 OVER 14 RUNS.
DROPPED. SHAFALI VERMA DROPS HEALY. THE LATTER RESPONDS WITH A BEAUTIFUL FOUR. NERVES. NERVES.
Deepti Sharma is opening the bowling and is crucial for both the team as Australia is looking to attack right away.
Australian Openers are walking out, it is a big day for them as well. In front of the home crowd with more than 75000 people. There is going to be noise.
Hello everyone. Welcome to the live coverage of the T20 World Cup final from Melbourne where India takes on Australia.
Look who just performed at the G!
Teams:
India: Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Taniya Bhatia (wk), Veda Krishnamurthy, Shikha Pandey, Radha Yadav, Poonam Yadav, Rajashwari Gayakwad
Australia: Alyssa Healy (wk), Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning (c), Ashleigh Gardner, Rachael Haynes, Jess Jonassen, Sophie Molineux, Nicola Carey, Delissa Kimmince, Georgia Wareham, Megan Schutt
While there’s little time left for liv action, read our Preview here: https://penbugs.com/t20-wc-final-india-v-australia-the-big-dance-is-here/
The Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur said that she would also want to have bat first. “We also wanted to bat first but we are quite confident chasing so if our bowlers do a job it will be good for us.”
Here’s what Australian captain Meg Lanning had to say: “It looks like a really good wicket. The crowd is amazing. We’re looking forward to it. We’re as ready as we can be today. We’ve gone with the same team tonight.”
Meanwhile, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia has won the Toss and elected to bat first.
Good afternoon and we wish you all a Happy International Womens day. We are here to witness what could be the biggest women’s sporting event broadcasted to date.
