SHOCK TO SYSTEM
ASHOCK pre-tournament defeat to Ireland has thrown open the gates of expectation that, just maybe, Australia is not the unbeatable T20 World Cup juggernaut we all thought.
The Aussies are near-unbackable favourites to lift their sixth T20 World Cup trophy in South Africa this month but the fighting Irish have at least made things interesting for neutrals.
Winners of five of the past six World Cups and finalists in all but the first tournament, the reigning champions again profile as the clear team to beat.
Australia boasts five players in the ICC T20I batting rankings top 10 – including three in the top five – with Tahlia McGrath and Beth Mooney at No.1 and No.2 respectively.
But as Ireland displayed in Stellenbosch on Wednesday, y, the short format favours upsets, and the depth of talent at this year’s tournament is strong.
So who can challenge Australia for the title? We need not look too far down the ICC rankings to find the answer.
NEW ZEALAND
The Kiwis went 11 games unbeaten in the short format before the pre-tournament warmup defeat to England on February 8 and despite the loss, are one of the form sides in South Africa.
Theirs is a tough pool, given Australia is the top seed, but New Zealand will welcome the first-up challenge of facing their trans-tasman rivals.
Sunday morning’s clash in Paarl looms as a banana peel in Australia’s title defence and the Kiwis will see this as a free hit, knowing they will likely have to meet again g later in the tournament, should the two teams progress to the knockout stages.
Key bats Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates are again headline acts for the No.3-seeded Kiwis and the experienced duo know what it takes to win World Cup matches against the best.
Veteran seamer Lea Tahuhu does her best work against Australia and will lead the pace attack for the Kiwis.
INDIA
The 2020 runners-up were easily handled by Australia in their warm-up game on Monday but responded against Bangladesh to take strong form into the World Cup proper.
Harmanpreet Kaur sat out the Bangladesh bout but India still surged to 5-183 off the back of an impressive 91 not out from 19-year-old Richa Ghosh, who could be one of the most exciting gy young g talents on show in South Africa this month.
If young Ghosh can rise to the challenge alongside standout bats Kaur and Smriti Mandhana, India’s batting depth will trouble most sides.
ENGLAND
The Poms flexed their muscles with an impressive victory over New Zealand in the final warm-up game this week, having piled on 246 runs in a slogfest against hosts South Africa two days earlier.
Without skipper Heather Knight, England cruised to a five-wicket win against the inform Kiwis.
Sophia Dunkley smashed 60 not out off 38 and Sophie Ecclestone starred with three wickets and 15 dot balls. Both will have to excel if England is to go all the way in South Africa.