Fast starts the key to glory

The last time the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars met the West Indies women in an ICC World T20 was at the same stage of the 2012 tournament in Sri Lanka.

I remember that day very clearly, everyone was extremely nervous waiting to leave for the ground, but the mood in Bangladesh was different. The players were relaxed and were confident in their abilities and their plans. Many of them have been in this situation before and as the team has played the West Indies a number of times in recent years, they are no longer an unknown.

As soon as the ‘Conquest to Paradise’ song started to fill Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium ahead of the national anthems, it brought back so many nice memories for me of the last three ICC World Cup events, but the difference this time was that I was sitting on the bench.

Alex Blackwell, who I played with in the national side for 10 years, has asked how I have felt being here as part of the coaching staff instead of a player, which has made me reflect on my decision to retire from the game 12 months ago. I genuinely believe that I retired at the right time for me and being back around the group hasn’t made me want to pull on the pads again.

I have gained an insight into how the other side of the bench copes during matches and I can say that the support staff are a nervous wreck. It makes me laugh because there is nothing, and I mean nothing, that they can do to influence the game once the first ball is bowled. I like to keep myself busy while watching the match so I keep myself occupied with the score sheets, a role that I used to take on in my playing days.

But, I digress. The first six overs occupy most of the discussion before and after matches as getting off to a solid start is crucial to winning the match. Against the West Indies the Australians decided to change the top of the order by making a direct swap with Jess Jonassen and Alyssa Healy.

The four West Indies spinners put the squeeze on in the middle of the Stars’ innings and managed to pick up regular wickets to prevent the Australian side from building any partnerships. Healy came to the crease with the score at 92 and worked well with Blackwell by rotating the strike to increase the run-rate and push the Australians to a total of 140. 

Healy’s unbeaten 30 proved crucial in the context of the innings. She played with a freedom that allowed her to show off her the variety of shots that she has in her repertoire, which saw her find the boundary on four occasions.

I am very proud to say that the spinners were outstanding in the semi-final. Erin Osborne and Jonassen have been working hard in the nets on subtle variations and different angles and it was great to see them execute their plans well. Even though the wicket is providing a little more turn than Sylhet, it’s important to keep subtly changing speed and flight to keep the batters guessing.

The team song was sung loud and proud in the change rooms as the Australians booked themselves into a third straight WT20 final.

The Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars will now face old foe England in the final. Both teams are very familiar with each other’s line-up following back-to-back Women’s Ashes series. Most recently, the Southern Stars had the wood over England in Australia when they won the T20 component of the series 2-1. 

The two teams have been here before – they faced off in the final of the last edition of this tournament in Sri Lanka in 2012. The psychological edge that such victories have given the Stars could be enough to get them over the line again.