Key events
2nd over: India 18-0 (Smriti o, Shafali 17)
Darcie Brown opens the bowling from the other end and Shafali starts with a crisp cut shot, but it can’t pierce the field and it’s a dot. There’s a play and miss on the second ball that Shafali will be relieved didn’t catch the edge. But Brown then loses her line and Shafali works it fine to the boundary to keep the score ticking over. It’s a good battle here between Brown and Shafali – four dots in the over, but three times Brown loses her line, leading to a wide and two fours.
1st over: India 9-0 (Smriti o, Shafali 9)
Gardner opens the bowling for Australia and Shafali starts aggressively, sending the ball up into the air and it looks like it could be a catching opportunity, but with the field up for the powerplay, it falls safely and Shafali picks up two runs. A great first over from India to get this run chase underway.
Australia 163-5
The innings started incredibly well for Australia – a great recovery after a forgettable performance in Sydney on Sunday. Georgia Voll was a standout – while she didn’t look particularly in control at the start of her innings, she built into it with extreme determination and muscled her way to 88 at a strike rate of 154.
Mooney played a great supporting role for her 46, but once the two openers were out, there wasn’t a lot write home about for Australia. They still ended up with a much better score than they managed in the first T20, but Manuka Oval is known for being a great batting wicket and they certainly would have been hoping for a higher total for their bowlers to defend.
Arundhati Reddy was the pick of the bowlers for India, finishing with figures of 2-30. She could have had a third wicket, but Amanjot couldn’t hold on to the catch.
It’s certainly a score that has this match poised – anything could happen from here. India will feel very confident they can chase this down, but Australia will know if they bowl well, they can take wickets and keep the scoring rate down.
Not long until we find out which team has the edge tonight – stay with me for the second innings!
20th over: Australia 163-5 (Gardner 10)
Charani comes on to bowl the final over, which starts with a single to Gardner and then a near run out on the second. Gardner and Perry are doing their best to finish with a bang and add some much-needed runs to the total, but they can’t seem to find the middle of the bat or the gaps in the field. The over finishes with two run outs and what seems like a below par score.
WICKET! Wareham run out (Charani) 0 (Australia 163-5)
Wareham looks to dash down for a run after Gardner can only defend it back to the bowler and she’s run out for a diamond duck to finish the innings.
WICKET! Perry run out (Kranti, Charani) 7 (Australia 163-4)
It looks like Perry made her ground, but the third umpire reveals that she didn’t have her bat grounded and she has to go.
19th over: Australia 158-3 (Perry 6, Gardner 6)
Arundhati bowls her fourth and final over for the night and Perry kicks off the over by nutmegging herself and the ball goes through to the boundary for a valuable four leg byes. Arundhati follows up with two dot balls and then turns Perry inside out – it’s a wide, but Perry is very nearly out stumped. It’s a good over from Arundhati that nearly finishes with a wicket, but it’s dropped in the outfield by Amanjot.
18th over: Australia 151-3 (Perry 5, Gardner 5)
Renuka comes in for her final over of the match and quickly dismisses Litchfield. India have done a good job to swing things back in their favour after Australia got out to a flyer. However, Gardner then gets off the mark with a thick outside edge that dashes fortuitously to the boundary to give the scoring rate an uptick and brings up the 150 runs for Australia on the next ball.
WICKET! Litchfield c Smriti b Renuka 6 (Australia 145-3)
Litchfield looks to cut one through the field and a diving Smriti picks up the catch. At first no one is really convinved it’s a wicket except Smriti and soon she is proved right by the third umpire.
17th over: Australia 144-2 (Perry 3, Litchfield 6)
Arundhati continues after getting the breakthrough in her last over and after a quick two on the first ball, she dots Voll up and then takes her wicket. Perry comes to the crease in her disturbingly old helmet – I do always think that you wouldn’t want to be hit in the head while wearing a helmet that old. A good over for Arundhati and India.
WICKET! Voll c Amanjot b Arundhati 88 (Australia 141-2)
Voll looked certain to get her first T20I century, but she can’t get the ball up and over the field and Amanjot takes a simple catch.
16th over: Australia 139-1 (Voll 86, Litchfield 6)
Deepti teases a little Mankad on her first ball, but it doesn’t put Litchfield off and she sweeps the first ball for four, looking very strong and confident. The next ball is flat batted down field for one and then Voll decides she wants in on the sweeping action and plays it to the boundary as well. Some dangerous running on the last ball, but they make it in safely.
15th over: Australia 129-1 (Voll 81, Litchfield 1)
Arundhati bowls her second over of the night and Mooney puts up a catching opportunity early in the over, but once again it lands safely, before hitting a wide one for four to really rub salt into the wound for India. However before long she has to go, caught by Shafali and Litchfield comes to the crease after a long wait in the dugout.
WICKET! Mooney c Shafali b Arundhati 46 (Australia 128-1)
Just as Mooney is really hitting her stride and upping her strike rate, she slaps one back quite innocuously into the waiting hands of Shafali and India have their first wicket.
14th over: Australia 120-0 (Voll 81, Mooney 38)
Shafali Verma comes on for her first over of the night with her offspin. A few singles come from her first few balls as the batters take a watchful stance while they figure out what she’s all about. Voll and Mooney bring up Australia’s highest ever opening stance against India, surpassing the partnership by Mooney and Healy at the 2020 T20 World Cup Final.
13th over: Australia 114-0 (Voll 78, Mooney 35)
Voll starts this over from Charani by hitting the ball directly vertical and it looks for all money that she’s going to be out, but it lands with no fielders anywhere near it, despite having what seems like a full five minutes to get there. Voll is then almost run out on the same ball but is just safe. She taunts India for not managing to get her out from two opportunities in one ball by sweeping the next ball away for four. Voll reaches her highest score for Australia.
12th over: Australia 103-0 (Voll 68, Mooney 34)
Another over from Deepti and Voll moves to 67, presumably to the delight of the primary school kids in the crowd. Nice of her to not hit a boundary and skip that number for them. A speedy two midway through the over brings up the 100 run partnership with no wickets lost. Voll offers us her own innovative shot with a reverse sweep, but only manages a single from it.
11th over: Australia 96-0 (Voll 66, Mooney 29)
Amanjot returns and Mooney starts with a speedy two, hoping to get the runs flowing again. It’s a fairly strong over from Amanjot until Mooney pulls out a scoop on the final ball of the over to make it more expensive than India would have liked.
10th over: Australia 86-0 (Voll 65, Mooney 20)
Renuka returns to the attack and Voll plays a lovely cut shot to start the over, but there’s a well-placed fielder at the boundary, so it’s just a single. It’s a tighter over from Renuka, she’s done the job that Harmanpreet wanted her to do and slowed the flow of runs. Drinks are on the field now
9th over: Australia 81-0 (Voll 63, Mooney 18)
Sree Charani comes into the attack with her left arm orthodox spin. Mooney takes a single and Voll decides it’s time for another slog sweep, this time for the first six of the match. There’s an appeal for lbw next ball, but there’s a clear inside edge from Voll. Australia are applying some serious pressure to India here – it’s much improved batting from Sunday’s match.
8th over: Australia 69-0 (Voll 55, Mooney 14)
Our first look at spin tonight with Deepti Sharma coming into the attack. Voll uses her footwork and plays the first one fairly cautiously for a single. Mooney gets down sweeping and Deepti makes a pretty optimistic appeal for lbw, but the umpire isn’t interested. She gives the strike back to Voll who brings up her first 50 on Australian soil with a well run two, before bringing out a big slog sweep for four to finish the over.
7th over: Australia 61-0 (Voll 48, Mooney 13)
Arundhati Reddy comes on for her first over tonight after a strong performance on Sunday. Voll finds a boundary from her first ball and then some speedy and clever running gets her two from the next ball. She hands Mooney the strike, but Mooney is content to play a supporting role at the moment and rotates it straight back to Voll. Arundhati loses her line and length and Voll absolutely smacks another one to the boundary – she is looking better and better tonight.
6th over: Australia 48-0 (Voll 36, Mooney 12)
Kranti bowls her third consecutive over and Voll finds a boundary from her immediately. Voll hasn’t always looked confident or in control tonight, but she has certainly looked determined and she is really muscling her way to a strong score here tonight. Mooney gets her first look at the strike in quite a while, she’s been waiting patiently at the non-striker’s end for a couple of overs. The wait seems to have made her a little nervous, with a couple of plays and misses and a near edge to the keeper, but it sneaks past to the boundary. And that’s the end of the powerplay!
5th over: Australia 35-0 (Voll 27, Mooney 8)
Amanjot Kaur bowls her first over, coming into the team for the first time this series. Voll misjudges the length first up and plays it up in the air, but it’s well short of the field. The next ball is right in her zone and she joyfully slaps it over the field for four, before getting a leading edge and nearly ending up caught and bowled. That’s followed by a powerful straight drive for four – it’s like she’s a different player every second ball in this over!
4th over: Australia 26-0 (Voll 18, Mooney 8)
Kranti comes back for her second over and her first ball is a good one, full and straight and Mooney can only defend it. Mooney tries to be more aggressive on the second ball, with a straight drive, but it can’t beat the field. She finds a single next ball to release the pressure somewhat, but it’s good bowling from Kranti. Voll manages to get around a full ball to pull it to the boundary for four, but Kranti tightens up her line in a good comeback ball.
3rd over: Australia 20-0 (Voll 13, Mooney 7)
Renuka resumes and immediately Voll finds the first boundary of the night, opening the face of the bat and working it to the boundary for four. A single next ball that she doesn’t quite middle, but it goes over the field and falls safely to bring Mooney back on strike. She gets in on the fun, coming down the pitch to meet the ball and driving it past long off for four. Next ball she pulls away aggressively, but there’s a fielder on the boundary to restrict her to a single. Voll flirts with the field again, but lifts it high enough to come away with two runs – a great over for Australia.
2nd over: Australia 8-0 (Voll 6, Mooney 2)
Kranti begins her first over with two dots to Voll, before catching the edge, but it falls safely and Voll scampers through for one. Mooney keeps the momentum going with another single, but boundaries are not easy to come by for the openers just yet. Voll lifts one up and over the field for the first two of the match and finishes the over with a single.
1st over: Australia 3-0 (Voll 2, Mooney 1)
Renuka Singh gets us underway and Voll immediately finds a single to rotate the strike and get herself off the mark. Mooney plays her first ball very cautiously, showing the full face of the bat and defending it back to the bowler, before a more flamboyant drive to deep point for a single. Voll again rotates the strike and Mooney finishes with caution to make a strong first over for Renuka.
The teams are on the field now and we’re just about ready to get underway!
If you missed Sunday’s rain-affected match and want a quick catch up before we begin, you can find the live blog of that match right here:
Australia brings an unchanged line up into this match, obviously wanting to give the team a chance to bounce back after a shortened match the other night. India have made one change, with Amanjot Kaur coming in for Shreyanka Patil. However, the Fox commentary team have Patil listed in an unchanged line up, so there may be some confusion here. I’m bringing you the team as listed by Cricket Australia, but will update you if I become aware of any changes!
India XI
1. Smriti Mandhana
2. Shafali Verma
3. Jemimah Rodrigues
4. Harmanpreet Kaur
5. Richa Ghosh
6. Deepti Sharma
7. Arundhati Reddy
8. Kranti Gaud
9. Sree Charani
10. Renuka Singh Thakur
11. Amanjot Kaur
Australia XI
1. Beth Mooney (wk)
2. Georgia Voll
3. Phoebe Litchfield
4. Ellyse Perry
5. Ash Gardner (vc)
6. Georgia Wareham
7. Annabel Sutherland
8. Nicola Carey
9. Sophie Molineux (c)
10. Kim Garth
11. Darcie Brown
India won the toss and elected to field
Clearly India liked the way things played out for them after fielding first in the first T20, so they’re going to do it again!
Preamble
Megan Maurice
Hello and welcome to the second T20 of the series and the second match of the “Sophie Molineux era” for Australia. You may remember that the first match didn’t go swimmingly for the new captain (though swimming was certainly on the cards after a huge downpour cut the match short).
Australia could not manage to build a partnership and lost wickets with alarming regularity, putting on a total well short of par and without batting their full complement of overs. As a result, India were easily able to steer themselves ahead of DLS par before the rain hit and walked away with the first win of the series.
In contrast, today’s weather in our nation’s capital, where we lay our scene, is bright and rain-free, so both teams will need to be prepared to play a full match. For India, it will simply be about continuing their momentum – their bowling and fielding were excellent on Sunday – as well as getting the time to bat out a full innings and see what kind of total they are capable of amassing.
Australia will be looking to bounce back, and with a long line up of batters who all ended up with uncharacteristically low scores on Sunday, they are certainly capable of doing so.
Whatever happens, it’s sure to be a cracker of a match, so let’s get into it!