Sune Luus: “I think the way Tazmin Brits and Laura Wolvaadt started the game, I think we were almost up to 7s at the 10 over mark. We lost wickets consecutively which hurt us on the back end. They have a very deep batting order. We used Kappie a lot in the first six but unfortunately, we didn’t have enough runs on the board. That’s just a fact. But I don’t think it was for lack of trying. They were just very very good with the bat. It was emotional today. It was the first time I had tears in my eyes for the national anthem. I had goosebumps as well. It’s great to see the crowds coming out and I don’t think we’ve ever had the support we’ve had. It’s incredibly humbling and I just hope it continues whether we play a World Cup or not. We still have one game and we’re still gonna give it our all. It’s not ideal to depend on other teams and net run rate and all that, but we’re certainly going to leave everything on the field.”
Meg Lanning: “I thought Tahlia was excellent, Ash as well. They summed up conditions really quickly and put the pressure back on South Africa. We actually felt like we were doing okay [after 10 overs in the field]. It felt like they were going better than they were. The crowd was into it and the atmosphere created some energy. But we just need to drag the length back a touch and the fightback was excellent. We just had to stay calm and focused on what we were trying to do. It was great that the atmosphere was electric but sometimes you can get caught up in it. It did feel like they were going really well, but once you look at the scoreboard and you realize it was a good wicket, once we got some wickets we felt like we were back in control. Getting through the group stage was the first step and very important but we’re very excited to play in a semifinal.”
Tahlia McGrath has been named Player of the Match: “I’ve been a bit light on a time in the middle so I just wanted to play straight early, get a few out of the middle, and then go on from there. Once I got out and got into it, it was a really nice wicket to bat on. The atmosphere tonight was incredible and I love playing in front of crowds like this. Bowlers did a great job. A few early wickets aren’t always ideal but the way Ash and I consolidated, I was really happy with that. I’ve been loving watching the top order do their thing but it’s always nice to go out there and score some runs. Everyone is batting really well at the moment and we go into the semifinals full of confidence.”
AUS WMN vs IND WMN Highlights today, Saturday 18-2-2023. 15th Match, Group 1 (N), St George’s Park, Gqeberha, ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023.
Toss: AUS WMN chose to field.
Australia Women team: 1 Beth Mooney (wk), 2 Ellyse Perry, 3 Meg Lanning (capt.), 4 Ashleigh Gardner, 5 Tahlia McGrath, 6 Grace Harris, 7 Georgia Wareham, 8 Annabel Sutherland, 9 Alana King, 10 Megan Schutt, 11 Darcie Brown.
South Africa Women team: 1 Laura Wolvaardt, 2 Tazmin Brits, 3 Marizanne Kapp, 4 Sune Luus (capt.), 5 Chloe Tryon, 6 Delmi Tucker, 7 Nadine de Klerk, 8 Sinalo Jafta (wk), 9 Shabnam Ismail, 10 Masabata Klaas, 11 Nonkululeko Mlaba.
Head to Head In T20I’s: 5
Australia Women Won: 5
South Africa Women Won: 0
Australia Women T20I Rankings: 1st
South Africa Women T20I Rankings: 5th
Form guide
(last five completed T20I’s, most recent first)
Australia Women WWW-
South Africa Women WLWNRW
Match Timings: 5:00 PM GMT | 7:00 PM Local
Umpires – Jacqueline Williams, Nimali Perera
TV Umpire – Anna Harris
Match Referee – Michell Pereira
Reserve Umpire – Kim Cotton
Match number – WT20I no. 1370
