ICC Women’s T20 World Cup kicked off on 3 October, with the match between Bangladesh and Scotland opening the tournament. Originally planned to be held in Bangladesh, this biennial international championship had to be relocated to the United Arab Emirates for political reasons. However, Bangladesh Cricket Board retained its hosting rights.
On 5 October the current champion Australia will meet Sri Lanka in the group stage. For Australia, this is the first match in the tournament. Their last game in T20 took place on 26 February, 2023 in the final against the South African team. Australia won by 19 runs.
Sri Lanka will be playing their second game in the current tournament. The first one was on the opening day of the championship against Pakistan where Sri Lanka lost by 31 runs.
Australia Women’s Cricket Team: Squad Analysis
The defending champions announced their 15-member squad on 26 August. Alyssa Healy was appointed as the captain. An experienced right-handed batter and wicketkeeper with an international career going back to 2010, this will be the first time Healy will captain the team for a World Cup tournament.
Pacer Darcie Brown and Tayla Vlaeminck will both make a comeback after they had to stay away due to injuries. Unfortunately, the veteran player, left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen, won’t be joining the team for this tournament.
Overall, the squad of the six-time champions of T20 represents a balance of young blood and mature experience.
Squad
Alyssa Healy (captain, wicketkeeper), Tahlia McGrath, Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney (wicketkeeper), Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham, Tayla Vlaeminck.
Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Team: Squad Analysis
One of the major developments for the Sri Lankan women’s squad in the championship was the return of the left-arm spinner Inoka Ranaweera who had been sidelined in the Women’s Asia Cup. This, however, means that seamer Kawya Kavindi will not be joining the team.
With the current squad composition, they can be proud of their spinning and batting departments that include players like the captain Chamari Athapaththu and Vishmi Gunaratne who made her T20 international debut just two years prior.
The triumphant winners of the 2024 Asia Cup will now push to make it past the group stage at the ICC T20 Championship for the first time.
Squad
Chamari Athapaththu (captain), Anushka Sanjeewani (wicketkeeper), Harshitha Madhavi Samarawickrama, Nilakshika de Silva, Inoka Ranaweera, Hasini Perera, Kavisha Dilhari, Sachini Nisansala, Vishmi Gunaratne, Udeshika Prabodhani, Achini Kulasuriya, Sugandika Kumari, Inoshi Priyadharshani, Shashini Gimhani, Ama Kanchana.
Australia vs Sri Lanka: Head-to-Head
Australian and Sri Lankan women’s cricket teams have played against each other at the ICC Women’s T20 International seven times. Out of these, three games were at the World Cup. The first face off happened during the 2016 World Cup in India, with Australia winning by 9 wickets. In the second game in 2020, Australia scored a home win by 5 wickets. The third match took place in 2023 South Africa, where Australia won again, this time by 10 wickets.
Head-to-Head at a Glance
| Australia | Sri Lanka | |
| 7 | Wins | 0 |
| 136.3 | Average Runs Total | 110 |
| 221.5 | Average Runs Batting First | 100 |
| 102.2 | Average Runs Batting Second | 135 |
| Megan Schutt (10) | Most Wickets | Chamari Athapaththu (4) |
| Alyssa Healy (278) | Most Runs | Chamari Athapaththu (267) |
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