Australia lifted the T20 World Cup trophy for the sixth time as they defeated hosts South Africa by 19 runs in the summit clash of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 at Newlands in Cape Town on Sunday (February 26). This was the third consecutive title victory for the Aussie team, and they celebrated the feat in style.
Electing to bat first, the defending champions posted a competitive total of 156/6 courtesy of Beth Mooney‘s blistering knock of 74 runs. Ashleigh Gardner also added valuable 29 runs to the team’s total. Meanwhile, Shabnim Ismail and Marizanne Kapp picked two wickets each for the hosts.
In reply, South Africa got off to a slow start as they lost few quick early wickets in the first ten overs. However, Laura Wolvaardt (61) and Chloe Tryon (25) kept the team’s hopes alive with a 50-run partnership for the fourth wicket. But eventually the Proteas side fell 19 runs short of the set target and could manage only 137 for the loss of six wickets in the allotted 20 overs.
On the other hand, Megan Schutt and Garder took a scalp each for Australia and guided their team to their third consecutive and overall sixth T20 World cup title. For her magnificent knock in the final, Mooney was adjudged ‘Player of the Match’, while Gardner bagged the ‘Player of the Tournament’ award for her sensational performance throughout the event.
Soon after the win, the Australian team was seen celebrating the triumph by spraying champagne, clicking pictures and seizing the moment. One of Australia’s players, Annabel Sutherland, was even spotted pouring ice on head coach Shelley Nitschke who seemed to be avoiding the fun after the team’s monumental victory.
Here’s the video:
Speaking about Australia’s streak of championships, Schutt said: “I mean, people keep having digs at us that winning is boring – but it’s not boring for us.”
Gardner also spoke about her being adjudged Player of the Tournament and stated: “Personal accolades are great, but what I’m most excited about is that we have won the tournament. We are World Cup Champions.”
