MELBOURNE, Sunday: A rampant Australia emphatically swept to their fifth women’s Twenty20 World Cup title Sunday, crushing India by 85 runs in front of more than 86,000 fans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Alyssa Healy smashed a quick-fire 75 and Beth Mooney an unbeaten 78 as the defending champions plundered an ominous 184 for four -- the highest score ever in a women’s T20 final.
India could only manage 99 all out in reply to end a 17-day tournament that reinforced Australia’s dominance, having now won five of the seven World Cups held.
“I’m just really proud of this group of players,” said Australian skipper Meg Lanning.
“There was a lot of expectation on us, inside and out. Definitely some tough times in there, but we stuck with each other, had each other’s backs.
“It’s been massive, 86,000 people at the MCG, I’ve never seen it before and didn’t think I’d be part of it in the middle,” she added.
The blockbuster showdown between the world’s top-ranked team and fast-improving India was billed as the biggest in women’s cricket history.
Australia came into their sixth successive final as heavy favourites, in contrast to India who were playing their first decider.
India had upset Lanning’s team in the opening game of the tournament, but they never got a look in on Sunday.
“I still have a lot of faith in my team,” said disappointed Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur.
“We need to focus, especially in fielding. But I trust this team. It’s part of the game, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. You have to keep learning.”
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