Pace star Megan Schutt equalled a record before opener Beth Mooney produced a steadying knock as Australia opened their T20 World Cup title defence with a six-wicket win over Sri Lanka. Schutt snared 3-12 off four overs to restrict Sri Lanka to 7-93 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in the United Arab Emirates on Saturday. In reply, Australia slumped to 2-14 and then 3-35 as captain Alyssa Healy (4), Georgia Wareham (3) and Ellyse Perry (17) all departed.
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today But Mooney helped settle the ship with an unbeaten 43 off 38 balls, guiding Australia to victory with 34 deliveries to spare. “We were decent without being perfect,” Healy said. “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.” After winning the toss and electing to bat, Sri Lanka slumped to 2-6 in the fourth over and never recovered as Australia’s star-studded attack turned the screws.
Spinner Sophie Molineux finished with 2-20 from her four overs, but it was Schutt who proved the trickiest to handle. Schutt snared the scalp of opener Vishmi Gunaratne for a duck in the third over to kick-start Australia’s dominant display. The 31-year-old claimed another two wickets in the final over, lifting her overall wicket tally in T20 World Cups to 43.
That equals the mark set by South African Shabnim Ismail, who retired from international cricket last year. The temperature soared in.
