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Opinion
After a composed win over New Zealand in Monday’s quasi quarter-final, questions now turn to whether the Aussies can cover the injury of star all-rounder Ellyse Perry ahead of Thursday’s semi-final.
Perry’s injury slightly took the gloss off what was a high-stakes, brilliant win. Despite claiming they were ‘enjoying’ the extra pressure on them as hosts and favourites, relief among the Aussie players was palpable post-game.
Player of the match Georgia Wareham (3/17 off 4) admitted the nerves were ‘very high’ before the White Ferns clash, while Megan Schutt (3/28) said her ‘heart was still racing’ in a post-game interview after the four-run win. Asked if she’d ever been under more pressure, she said ‘I don’t think so’.
The hamstring strain to Perry, though, is a significant factor in Australia’s bid for a fifth T20 World Cup title. While there was no confirmation on Monday evening whether she had been ruled out of the tournament, the fresh soft-tissue injury – in addition to the hip complaint that left her in doubt for the Monday’s game – renders her hopes unlikely.
Should that transpire, it leaves Australia approaching the knockout stages adopting a wholly different approach to what they went into this World Cup with.
So how do you replace the world’s number one ranked all-rounder, and the most experienced player T20 player in the world? Well, the injury to Perry and fellow quick Tayla Vlaeminck (ruled out on the eve of the tournament) has left coach Matthew Mott now relying heavily on spin.
While Perry’s batting at one-day and Test level is her key asset, in the shortest format (at international level) it is arguably now her bowling, especially given a recent slide down the batting order.
Captain Meg Lanning leans heavily on her with the ball and has, on average, bowled her 3.2 overs per game since the start of the tri-series a month ago.
She has also been the side’s most economical seamer this World Cup. With Vlaeminck out of the squad and Perry now seemingly following her onto the sidelines, the Aussies are left without an out-and-out quick.
Of course, Schutt remains the side’s number one seamer but for raw pace they are now thin on the ground.
But that might not be such a bad thing after all. This World Cup has seen wickets far more conducive to spin and off-pace deliveries than what we’re used to on these shores.
New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine touched on this after her side’s loss on Monday. “The pitch conditions certainly haven’t been what we expected when we first came over to Australia,” she said.
“As soon as we knew the World Cup was here, we thought we’d get nice, fast, bouncy wickets and probably haven’t had those…spin has played a massive part throughout the tournament and it will continue to do so moving into the finals series.”
Ellyse Perry might be out injured for some time. (AAP Image/Scott Barbour)
Wareham’s performance not only signalled that Australia’s depth is strong, but that Lanning and Mott should back spin to take them all the way. With Wareham, Jess Jonassen and the part-time spin of Ash Gardner, the Aussies have strong slow-bowling options. They could even opt for off-spinner Molly Strano to replace Perry in the semi-final XI, although that might prove too spin-heavy.
Whatever the case, the Aussies are peaking at just the right time – exactly as Lanning had hoped for pre-tournament. The skipper was back to her steely best on Monday, and when asked by Nasser Hussain in the post-match interview whether the win over New Zealand was a ‘statement’, she said indeed it had been.
“Today’s performance was our best of the tournament so far,” Lanning went on. “I don’t think we could be better placed for the semi-finals.” With or without Perry, their confidence has seemingly returned, and they’re exactly where they want to be.