Mooney batters ‘dodgy sashimi’
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A “dodgy sashimi” was nearly enough to prevent Beth Mooney’s brilliant matchwinning effort in Hobart that came hours after she was confirmed as the best T20 batter in the world again.
Australian captain Alyssa Healy revealed Mooney was so ill, due to food poisoning, that a response from the skipper asking how her opening batter was feeling just hours before the game was met with a “selfie of her lying in bed”.
Mooney wasn’t going to play in a match Australia had to win to ward off a series defeat, having gone down to South Africa for the first time in 25 encounters in Canberra last Sunday and with questions being asked about the allconquering side.
As she lay in a hotel bed contemplating whether to bat on, the ICC confirmed Mooney was again on top of the T20 batter rankings, with teammate Tahlia McGrath in second, illustrating the talent available to Healy and the national selectors.
Mooney said she didn’t feel well until about 3pm on Tuesday, four hours before start time, then went out and belted a match-high 82 off just 55 balls to secure a series win for her team.
“I’ve heard (it was) maybe a dodgy sashimi,” Healy said of her teammate’s illness.
“I messaged her this afternoon probably about one o’clock and said, ‘Are you all right?’, and she sent me back a selfie of her lying in bed. There was a real possibility that she wouldn’t play and we had a plan in place if she didn’t...”
The two teams will now prepare for three ODIs, which begin on Saturday, before a one-off Test in Perth to conclude the multi-format series.