From start to finish in this tournament, Lanning’s team was ruthless. There is no better word to describe the way they have followed for their business. The competition for a place in the starting lineup was much more intense than the competition they have faced on the field. From established stars such as Lanning, Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy to the younger faces of Alana King, Darcie Brown and Tahlia McGrath, there was no exploitation, no ray of hope in which an opposition could cling. England were brave in the defeat in the final, but had little chance to stop this jagger. Australia has long had impressive cricket players on its team. Throughout the history of women’s play, there has never been a time when they lacked world-class players. The team that failed to reach the final of the World Cup in 2017 burst with talent. The biggest change from that tournament has nothing to do with the abilities of the individual players and how they work as a team. There is responsibility and accountability throughout the team – Lanning and coach Matthew Mott have recognized the contribution each player can make in terms of team leadership and culture, and it has been to everyone’s advantage. The depth of Australian women’s cricket offers a wealth of embarrassment The team no longer takes victory for granted – the wicket celebrations were happy and authentic regardless of the opposition and the phase of the tournament. This joy is transferred to other areas of their game. On rare occasions when an opportunity was missed or an opportunity was missed, players offered a sad smile, an apology and an oath to do better next time. There was no accusation or anger, no negative body language on the pitch. Darcy Brown is the leader of Australia’s thriving next generation. Photo: Sanka Vidanagama / AFP / Getty Images Off the field, they also looked like a team at the top of the world. Although Grace Harris did not manage to get into the team by force, her mood was clearly high and the sight of her teammates on the bench escaping was a feature of every game. There is a sense of camaraderie that united these highly skilled individuals and made them an unstoppable team. With the debut of the T20 women’s cricket at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this year and a T20 World Cup in South Africa next year, there are many opportunities for this relentless force to continue to build momentum. While many of the team’s senior players are now in their 30s and the distant glow of leaving is getting brighter, the depths of Australian women’s cricket offer a wealth of embarrassment. From Darcie Brown, who already has a world championship in her name at 19, to those waiting on the wings – Hannah Darlington (20), Stella Campbell (19) and Maitlan Brown (24) with the ball, to Georgia Voll (18), Phoebe Litchfield (18) and Ruth Johnston (19) with the bat, the next generation is already fully equipped to play international cricket. If they represented any other nation, they would be in this tournament. It’s not just a special team of players at the top right now, but a seemingly endless talent factory, emerging ready-made stars on a conveyor belt of excellence with the ability to dominate for the next decade or so. With the plan now for a strong team culture, these young stars will take their place when the time comes, knowing that they will not be thrown to the wolves, but will be wrapped in the glowing embrace of a team playing for each other. at any time. While the almost rustic atmosphere of Christchurch’s Hagley Oval, gently filled with polite New Zealanders at socially isolated times, was far from a screaming, full Melbourne Cricket Ground on World Women’s Day 2020, the atmosphere that prevailed Sunday was almost the same. As different as it was, those involved are likely to appreciate this victory as well. It is this rare combination of toughness and joy that unites these two different moments and shows how special this team is and will continue to be, for a long time to come.
