MELBOURNE (Australia): Australia take on a confident India in the seventh ICC Women’s T20 World Cup final at the MCG here on Sunday.
The hosts are making their sixth successive final appearance while India will be playing in their first-ever final.
India progressed as the top-ranked team in Group A following a semifinal washout and their unbeaten run in this year’s tournament makes the finale tough to call.
Australia edged out South Africa in a tight semi-final but when it comes to history in the T20 experience, the two battling it out couldn’t be further apart.
For the hosts, it will be their sixth successive appearance in the T20 World Cup Final, having made the showpiece in every edition since 2010.
And this time, they’re bidding for a record-extending fifth T20 World Cup title.
The teams may take centre stage but the captains will certainly be under the spotlight, with Meg Lanning and Harmanpreet Kaur both standing on the brink of history.
Kaur will be the first woman to captain India in a T20 World Cup Final, while Lanning could become the third Australian to lift a global trophy on home soil after Lyn Larsen and Michael Clarke.
The hosts will go in as favourites, but with India having stunned them on the opening night in Sydney, we could be in for the most electric Final yet.
The match sees the return of familiar faces, with the likes of Lanning, Kaur, Alyssa Healy and Smriti Mandhana all regulars on the global circuit.
But it also presents fans with the chances to witness cricket’s newest stars with India’s teenagers Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues likely to be at centre stage.
Verma has lit up the tournament with her performances at the top of the order, having already hit 161 runs in her four innings.
Australia’s batters have also caught the eye, with Beth Mooney and Healy scoring 341 runs between them at the top of the order.
The two leading wicket takers in the tournament will also be in show with Megan Schutt and Poonam Yadav both having nine to their name.
But no matter who is celebrating on Sunday, history beckons in more ways than one. (Source: ICC-Media)
