Mooney: No need to panic
AUSTRALIAN opener Beth Mooney is confident it won’t be long until she’s starring with the bat again, and her happy ground in Canberra looms as the perfect place to start.
Australia’s batting has been wobbly during the early stages of the T20 World Cup, with the weight of expectation appearing to affect some players.
The tournament favourites were dismissed for 115 in their loss to India last week, and they were in all sorts of trouble at 3-10 against Sri Lanka on Monday before pulling through for the win.
Mooney entered the tournament in strong form after posting scores of 65, 6, 16, 50, and 71 not out in the recent trinations T20 series against India and England.
But she is yet to fire at the World Cup, with the left-hander dismissed for six in both matches so far. Mooney will be aiming to turn things around in today’s clash with Bangladesh in Canberra.
The 26-year-old averages 78 in her five T20s at Manuka Oval – the best international record of any player, male or female, at the venue.
That run includes an unbeaten 117 off 70 balls against England in 2017. Mooney said although it was nice playing at a ground where she has enjoyed a lot of success, it wouldn’t change her mindset.
And she’s confident a good score is just around the corner.
“The nature of T20, it’s pretty fickle. When you play a certain brand of cricket, it’s either going to come off or it’s not,” Mooney said. “You’ve just got to live with the days that it doesn’t. I’m pretty comfortable with where I’m at with my game.”