Healy fires as Aussies cap off India tour with T20 series win

Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney have hit half-centuries to steer Australia to a seven-wicket win over India in the third and final T20I, sealing a 2-1 series victory.

After restricting India to 6-147 at DY Patil Stadium, Healy smacked 55 from 38 balls to put the tourists well on track, while opening partner Mooney (52no off 45) anchored the chase.

There was a stutter when Pooja Vastrakar removed Tahlia McGrath (20 from 15) and Ellyse Perry (0) with consecutive balls, but the in-form Phoebe Litchfield struck a smart 17no from 13 to ensure Australia got home with eight balls to spare.

Earlier, Annabel Sutherland again led the way with the ball taking 2-12 from her four overs including the key wickets of Jemimah Rodrigues and Harmanpreet Kaur, backed up by Georgia Wareham (2-24).

Australia will return home having followed up their defeat in the one-off Test with a 3-0 ODI series win and a 2-1 victory in the T20Is.

Healy, who became the first Australian and fourth player overall to reach 150 T20Is, was superb in posting her first half-century of the T20I series and her second of the all-format tour.

India burned a review when Healy on was one, when wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh was convinced a delivery down the leg side from Titas Sadhu had clipped the right-hander’s bat.

An exuberant Harmanpreet Kaur took little convincing in going upstairs, only for replays to confirm it flicked Healy’s pad.

The Australian captain made a watchful start, scoring four of the first 10 balls she faced, but then unleashed in the fourth over, scoring 27 off her next nine.

Healy then got a reprieve on 38, after Jemimah Rodrigues took what appeared to be a low catch point.

She was already on her way back to the dugout when the umpires went upstairs to check the catch was clean, but with limited replays and no conclusive evidence, the television umpire declared it not out.

Healy went on to bring up a half-century from 34 balls, before India’s second attempt at deploying the DRS to remove Healy was successful in overturning a not-out lbw decision, breaking the 85-run opening stand.

India lost their second review two balls later, going upstairs after Mooney, on 27, was trapped on the pads by Shreyanka Patil, with ball tracking confirming it was missing the stumps.

McGrath (20 off 15) picked up where Healy had left off, but a double strike from Vastrakar then breathed life into the Indian fielders and the crowd, as she had McGrath caught at mid-on then trapped Perry lbw for a duck next ball.

With Australia 3-117 and needing 30 off the final four overs, the in-form Litchfield arrived and immediately eased the pressure with a trio of boundaries, before Mooney smacked back-to-back fours to bring up a 45-ball fifty and seal victory with eight balls to spare.

Earlier, the coin fell in Healy’s favour – the Aussie skipper switching it up in calling ‘heads’ instead of her usual ‘tails' – and she did not hesitate in declaring she would have a bowl first, with conditions at the ground historically favouring chasing sides.

India opener Shafali Verma got off to a rollicking start, hitting six boundaries to race to 26 from 16 balls before Megan Schutt got the first breakthrough, Healy taking a sharp catch up to the stumps after the swing bowler caught the edge of the right-hander’s bat.

Australia’s catchers were on song in the outfield and a solid grab from Wareham forced Rodrigues (2) to depart cheaply, triggering a mini-collapse of 3-6 in 12 balls.

Smriti Mandhana (29 off 28) had been more sedate in her start – one booming six aside – but was next to fall, well caught by Ashleigh Gardner in the deep off the bowling of Wareham, before Kaur’s lean run continued when she was bowled by Sutherland for three, leaving the hosts 4-66.

The India captain ended the multi-format tour with scores of 0, 9, 5, 3, 6 and 3.

Wareham got a second when Deepti Sharma (14 off 18) was caught by McGrath at long on, but a handy 36-run stand between top-scorer Richa Ghosh (34 off 28) and Amanjot Kaur (17no off 14) added vital runs before Vastrakar ended the innings with an enormous six into the packed crowd.

Australia's CommBank Tour of India

Test match: India won by eight wickets

First ODI: Australia won by six wickets

Second ODI: Australia won by three runs

Third ODI: Australia won by 190 runs

First T20I: India won by nine wickets

Second T20I: Australia won by six wickets

Third T20I: Australia won by seven wickets

Australia squad: Alyssa Healy (c), Tahlia McGrath (vc), Darcie Brown, Heather Graham, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham

India T20 squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Jemimah Rodrigues, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Yastika Bhatia, Richa Ghosh, Amanjot Kaur, Shreyanka Patil, Mannat Kashyap, Saika Ishaque, Renuka Singh, Titas Sadhu, Pooja Vastrakar, Kanika Ahuja, Minnu Mani