Key events
28th over: Australia 91-7 (Garth 3, Mooney 45)
As is customary, Mooney is very bright red in the face, but she continues to hold this batting innings together. Fatima brings herself back into the attack for the first fast bowling we’ve seen in a while. That’s good news for me, because all these overs of spin have meant I have to type very fast indeed. Nice of Fatima to think of me with her decisions. It turns out to also be a pretty good tactical decision as she starts the over with four dots before Mooney plays one off her hip for two. There’s very nearly a run out on the second run, but Fatima isn’t in a good position to take the ball and she is too far away to effect the run out in time.
27th over: Australia 89-7 (Garth 3, Mooney 43)
A very determined pull shot from Mooney delivers the first boundary in nine overs. She looks like finding the boundary on the other side next ball, but a diving effort from the skipper Fatima makes it a dot instead.
26th over: Australia 84-7 (Garth 3, Mooney 38)
Mooney starts with a very quick single to Sadia’s bowling after driving the ball straight to the fielder and manages to put the pressure back on Pakistan, forcing a misfield. Garth doesn’t find it quite as easy to get off strike and can only play defensively for the rest of the over. The final ball catches the edge of her bat, but it falls safely due to her soft hands coming through the ball.
25th over: Australia 83-7 (Garth 3, Mooney 37)
Nashra continues and Mooney again turns the strike over with a nice cut shot. The second ball looks like a dot, but Nashra lets it get past her and Garth can get off strike straight away, rather than building the pressure on her. Pakistan need to stop every run they can to give themselves the best chance to win this game and beat Australia for the first time ever.
24th over: Australia 80-7 (Garth 2, Mooney 35)
Sadia returns for her second spell, replacing Shamim. She immediately gets Garth cramped right up, hitting the toe of her bat – for some reason Pakistan appeal for LBW, maybe just to keep the umpires on their toes? Garth doesn’t look overly comfortable out there, but Australia will need her to hold on and go with Mooney to help them compile a defendable total. A maiden from Sadia, very well bowled.
23rd over: Australia 80-7 (Garth 2, Mooney 35)
Mooney plays a beautiful cut shot to Nashra to start the over. She is still looking relatively calm and in control, but she’s not going at a particularly quick rate either. Finally Pakistan have the umpire interested in an LBW. Garth reviews it immediately and it turns out she got an inside edge on it, so Australia have a reprieve. Mooney sprinted down to the boundary to take a message from sub Heather Graham while the review took place. Another good over from Nashra.
22nd over: Australia 78-7 (Garth 1, Mooney 34)
Shamim resumes to Mooney, who is finding singles easily enough at the moment – it will be interesting to see how she responds as the pressure increases and more runs are needed. Wareham can’t manage the same and she just prods the ball back to Shamim when she really needed to stay with Mooney. Garth comes to the middle with a lot of work to do.
WICKET! Wareham c&b Shamim 0 (Australia 76-7)
An incredible diving catch from Shamim off her own bowling sends Wareham back to the sheds without troubling the scorers. This is a sensational bowling (and fielding) peformance from Pakistan against the reigning world champions.
21st over: Australia 75-6 (Wareham 0, Mooney 32)
Nashra bowls her fifth over and Mooney gets off strike with a nice back foot shot. McGrath loses her wicket and Wareham comes to the middle.
WICKET! McGrath c Diana b Nashra 5 (Australia 75-6)
What a spell from Nashra – she has her third now, drawing McGrath in with a very slow delivery, just 62km/hr. A diving catch from Diana at short extra cover seals the wicket.
20th over: Australia 74-5 (McGrath 5, Mooney 31)
After a frustrating over, McGrath looks more comfortable against Shamim and immediately comes down the pitch to turn the ball into a full toss and runs a quick single. There is work to be done to rebuild this innings, but Australia will be confident in their bowling and will know that every run they score here gives them a better target to bowl at, so they will just continue to try to rack up some runs without panicking.
19th over: Australia 70-5 (McGrath 3, Mooney 29)
A long spell from Nashra in the context of this game, but she is continuing to deliver. McGrath can’t seem to get her away and Mooney comes down the pitch to chat to her. Finally she sweeps one on the last ball of the over – it doesn’t look fully controlled, but it lands safely and she runs one.
18th over: Australia 69-5 (McGrath 2, Mooney 29)
Shamim appeals for an LBW on McGrath early in the over, but that is one mode of dismissal they’re not having much luck with so far today. Mooney is starting to look more comfortable now after a decent amount of time in the middle and she’s managing to accumulate some runs.
17th over: Australia 66-5 (McGrath 1, Mooney 27)
Another over from Nashra now. Mooney is able to turn the strike over thanks to a misfield from Pakistan that releases a little of the pressure. But Nashra turns it back on with some good line and length bowling. McGrath is able to get off the mark with a single and Mooney comes very close to chopping on, but the ball just misses the stumps and then another misfield the next ball gives Mooney a much-needed boundary.
16th over: Australia 60-5 (McGrath 0, Mooney 22)
Shamim continues with her offspin and Gardner tries to cut the first ball, but it’s a swing and a miss. She looks frustrated and then she throws her wicket away with a mis-timed shot that is an easy catch for Fatima. A great over from Shamim – a wicket maiden.
WICKET! Gardner c Fatima b Shamim 1 (Australia 60-5)
Gardner can’t pull off the rescue mission today. After trying to smash the first ball of the over and missing, she gets back on ball but can only lob it straight to Fatima. Pakistan are well on top of the batting here.
15th over: Australia 60-4 (Gardner 1, Mooney 22)
Another over from Nashra after she got that big wicket of Perry last over. Mooney plays it uppishly, but not near a fielder and she scampers away for a single. Sutherland tries to defend, but the ball goes straight through the gap between bat and pad and takes out middle stump. Gardner is in now – can she pull off another rescue mission? She gets off the mark with a single to end the over.
WICKET! Sutherland b Nashra 1 (Australia 59-4)
What a ball from Nashra – it goes straight through Sutherland and takes out middle stump. Sutherland looks bemused as she walks off. An excellent bowling performance so far from Pakistan – can they keep it up? Drinks are on the field now.
14th over: Australia 58-3 (Sutherland 1, Mooney 21)
Shamim continues and Mooney drives it nicely for a single to start the over. Sutherland remains cautious as she settles into her innings and gets off the mark with a straight drive past the bowler for a single. Pakistan appeal for an LBW on Mooney, but the umpire doesn’t feel the need to respond to that one.
13th over: Australia 55-3 (Sutherland 0, Mooney 19)
Nashra comes on to replace Sadia and Mooney likes the look of her bowling straight away, sending a ball that is slightly too full and too wide for four. She follows it up with a single and there’s a lot of work in getting the field adjusted for the right-handed Perry. Nashra gets the big wicket of Perry, but that only brings Sutherland to the crease. She starts defensively against the turn that Nashra is getting.
WICKET! Perry st Sidra b Nashra 5 (Australia 55-3)
A huge moment in the match – Nashra got Perry all caught up and completely lost. Sidra with the quick reflexes behind the stumps caught her out of her crease.
12th over: Australia 48-2 (Perry 4, Mooney 13)
Some great fielding from Diana to start the over, cutting off two Mooney cut shots in a row to restrict her scoring. It takes Mooney four balls to get off strike and she looks a little frustrated, but resists the urge to slash at the ball unnecessarily and eventually gets her opportunity.
11th over: Australia 45-2 (Perry 3, Mooney 11)
Sadia resumes her spell, giving us spin from both ends. She bowls a wide early – just drifting slightly down leg side. Mooney gives us a little scoop down to fine leg, fielded well on the boundary by Shamas to keep it to two. It’s a more productive over from the batters, but they’re not completely on top of this bowling yet.
10th over: Australia 40-2 (Perry 2, Mooney 8)
Shamim comes on for her first over, replacing Fatima. It definitely seems like Pakistan is trying to use these shorter spells to good effect. Her off spin bowling is finding its mark and she flies through her over, not giving the batters much time to settle.
9th over: Australia 38-2 (Perry 1, Mooney 7)
Another strong over from Sadia, who is bowling very well to her field. Perry and Mooney play her cautiously as they try to rebuild this innings.
8th over: Australia 36-2 (Perry 0, Mooney 6)
Two wickets in quick succession, with Litchfield losing hers on the third ball of the over. It’s great bowling from Pakistan, but things don’t get easier for them with Perry and Mooney at the crease. There’s a big appeal for LBW on Mooney, but it appears she got a little inside edge on it before it hit her pads. Mooney then gets off the mark with a two and follows it up with a boundary.
WICKET! Litchfield c&b Fatima 10 (Australia 30-2)
Now it’s Litchfield who gets frustrated and slashes across the line. The ball is straight up in the air and Fatima is strong underneath it to hold the catch.
7th over: Australia 30-0 (Perry 0, Litchfield 10)
Sadia continues her spell and the batters start rotating the strike more freely after being cramped up in the previous over. Sadia bowls some very good length balls, but then loses her length and offers up a low full toss that Healy gleefully drives past deep cover for four. But the next ball she loses her wicket and the Australians are one down.
WICKET! Healy c Diana b Sadia 20 (Australia 30-1)
Healy gets impatient and loses her form with a flick to midwicket that’s easily caught by Diana. Healy shakes her head as she walks off, disappointed with her mistake.
6th over: Australia 24-0 (Healy 15, Litchfield 9)
A big appeal on the first bowl of Fatima’s over for a stumping on Litchfield. The umpire shakes her head and Pakistan make a polite enquiry about whether she wants to check with the third umpire, but she declines. The replay shows Litchfield was well in her crease. It’s very good bowling from Fatima, who is hitting a line and length that Litchfield is finding uncomfortable. A maiden from her – the first of the match.
5th over: Australia 24-0 (Healy 15, Litchfield 9)
Sadia Iqbal bowls her first over – a very early bowling change from Pakistan, perhaps looking to keep Australia on their toes, or keeping their bowlers fresh in this heat with shorter spells. It almost pays off, when Sadia catches the edge of Healy’s bat, but it sails just wide of the slips for four. Late in the over, Litchfield gives us the first reverse sweep of the match – it’s just a single, but it’s a bit of a warning to the Pakistani bowlers about what she can do.
4th over: Australia 17-0 (Healy 10, Litchfield 7)
Another over from Fatima and Litchfield again starts it watchfully. She turns the strike over on the next ball and then there’s a big appeal for LBW on Healy, but the umpire isn’t interested and Pakistan decide not to review. It turns out to be a good decision, as the ball tracking technology shows the ball would have missed the stumps. A good over from Pakistan, just one run from it.
3rd over: Australia 16-0 (Healy 10, Litchfield 6)
Diana continues her spell and Healy starts the over defensively once again. It looks like Australia’s game plan is to take a few overs to work their way in, take their opportunities when they arise and build a good platform to launch from. Both Healy and Litchfield are playing good shots, but they aren’t launching anything out of the ground as yet. When the ball is on their pads, both are enjoying that length and scoring quite freely.
2nd over: Australia 10-0 (Healy 5, Litchfield 5)
Captain Fatima Sana Khan opens the bowling from the other end, with Healy on strike to start the over. Healy flicks the first ball off her pads down towards fine leg for a single. Litchfield turns the strike over immediately – both players are looking comfortable, but are paying respect to the bowling. They run a rare three midway through the over when Healy sends a delivery out to the longest part of the boundary.
1st over: Australia 5-0 (Healy 1, Litchfield 4)
I’m so pleased to see Colombo in the sunshine – it looks like a cracking day for cricket out there. Diana is bowling the first over for Pakistan and she starts with a good line and length and Healy is forced to defend the first couple of balls, before a wider one down the leg side appeals to Healy and she flicks it to deep backward square for a single, to give Litchfield her first look at Diana’s bowling. She also plays defensively for the first two balls she faces, then gets her footwork going and drives the last ball of the over to the boundary for four.
The teams are on the field for the anthems now, not too long to go until the first ball is bowled.
Just two changes to Australia’s team from their first match. Georgia Wareham comes in for Sophie Molineux, which captain Alyssa Healy notes is partly due to Molineux being managed in her return from injury. Megan Schutt coming for Darcie Brown was a change many predicted, after Brown struggled against New Zealand.
Pakistan have made just one change from their match against India, with Eyman Fatima coming in for Aliya Riaz. Fatima Sana Khan said that was just about trying to get the best match ups against their opponent.
Pakistan XI
1. Muneeba Ali
2. Sidra Amin
3. Natalia Parvaiz
4. Sadaf Shamas
5. Eyman Fatima
6. Sidra Nawaz (wk)
7. Fatima Sana Khan (c)
8. Rameen Shamim
9. Sadia Iqbal
10. Nashra Sundhu
11. Diana Baig
Australia XI
1. Alyssa Healy (c, wk)
2. Phoebe Litchfield
3. Ellyse Perry
4. Beth Mooney
5. Annabel Sutherland
6. Ash Gardner
7. Tahlia McGrath
8. Georgia Wareham
9. Alana King
10. Kim Garth
11. Megan Schutt
Pakistan win the toss and choose to bowl
Pakistan captain Fatima Sana Khan believes the conditions are right for bowling today. After their batting performances in the past two games, it makes sense they would want to start with their strength as well.
Ooh an email! This one comes from friend of the OBO Maddy.
Hey Megan,
Cool to see there’s an email for you!
What’s the weather looking like today?
Because of course… multitasking netball & cricket tonight. Why are they always on at the same time?!
Very good questions Maddy! The weather forecast is looking great – sunny skies and a dry outfield, which is very good news indeed. As for the cricket and netball scheduling, I am as baffled and annoyed as you are! My attention is all on the cricket, so any netball updates from multiscreeners would be much appreciated.
If you want to know more about Australia’s last match, please enjoy three hours of rain updates and a chronicle of my slow descent into madness.
If you’re looking to learn a bit more about how Pakistan fared in their last match, you can check out this match report – featuring unscheduled insect breaks and pitch fumigation.
Preamble
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Megan Maurice
Hello and welcome to Match 9 of the Cricket World Cup! Today we’ve got Australia taking on Pakistan, which should be an interesting match up.
Pakistan are yet to win a game, but they bowled admirably against India. Their batting hasn’t yet really fired at this tournament, which left them with a big defeat to India and unable to match it with Bangladesh. Against a very strong Australian bowling attack, they will need a hugely improved batting performance if they want to be in the game today.
Australia will be feeling a little uncomfortable with we’re they’re sitting on the ladder at the moment, after their match against Sri Lanka on the weekend was washed out. Had they had a good win and boosted their net run rate, they might have been prepared to experiment a little more with their team make up today, but that washout has created a little more pressure for the defending champs and I’d expect to see a pretty similar line up to the one they used in their opening match against New Zealand.
Their is plenty on the line for both teams, so let’s get into it. If you have any thoughts on the match, or just feel like a chat, my email link is at the top of the page, so feel free to drop me a line!
