No fixed position: Aussie bats embracing change

Australia vice-captain Rachael Haynes says the defending champions will continue taking a flexible approach to their batting order, despite wobbles in their two T20 World Cup group matches to date.

While their opening partnership of Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney has remained stable since the 2017 Ashes, the Australian brains trust have maintained the order in which those behind them come to the crease will be based on the game situation.

The floating approach has been used in Australia's two outings this tournament; when Healy thrived in the opening game and Mooney fell early, it was captain Meg Lanning who came in at No.3.

When Healy was dismissed in the first over of the run chase against Sri Lanka, she was replaced by Ashleigh Gardner – believed to be a like-for-like replacement in terms of aggressive stroke play.

And when Mooney followed soon after, it was Haynes who was promoted above Perry to take her place, as a fellow left-hander.

When Haynes fell for a superb 60 with just 18 runs required, it was allrounder Nicola Carey, another left-hander, who went in ahead of Perry, whose chance finally came at No.7 when Carey fell in the penultimate over, five runs shy of victory.

"We don't look at it in a traditional sense like, 'You're opening the batting today, you're batting at two, three, four, five, six'," Haynes explained.

"It sometimes comes down more to the situation and as we've shown, left/right-hand combinations.

"So sometimes Ellyse Perry will go in ahead of me, sometimes I'll go in ahead of Ash Gardner, it just comes down to the balance of the match.

"That's been something we've thrived on over the last couple of years – people knowing their roles – so it's more about having clarity on your role than getting fixated on a number you bat in the line-up."

The floating order is a ploy aimed at keeping opponents guessing and ensuring the right players are used at the right times, while also making the most of Australia's incredibly deep batting order.

That batting order has yet to fully fire in this tournament – or in the tri-series that preceded it – with Australia bowled out for 115 against India on Friday evening, and then scraping home on Monday against the Sri Lankans by five wickets after slipping to 3-10 early in a pursuit of 123.

Perry's place down the order in particular has been the cause of discussion among commentators and fans, given her prolific performances as an opener for the Sydney Sixers in the Rebel WBBL.

She set a record runs tally of 777 in WBBL|04 and averaged 93.80 in the most recent edition before a shoulder injury cut short her season.

"It's our team strategy and from our point of view it's team first," Haynes said.

"It doesn't matter if you're one of the best players in the world, which obviously Ellyse is, she's a great player and we think she's really valuable with the bat within our team.

"But I got out at that stage (on Monday) and (coach) Matthew Mott wanted to keep that left-right combination going, and so Nic came in.

"I think we saw today she's capable of finding the boundary and doing what needed to be done, so I imagine they would keep that (system)."

Haynes' ability to produce late-innings cameos or dig in and anchor a difficult chase in equal measure means her role requires particular adaptability, but the left-hander said she relishes that challenge.

"I actually don't mind it," she said. "One of the strengths of our batting order is our depth and the (mixture of) left- and right-handers within it.

"We've been doing that for a long time now, making sure we keep those combinations where we can because it means the bowler has to make an adjustment as well, just settling in and bowling to one type of batter.

"It's a strength of our line-up so we just have to try and use it."

Australia are facing a fight to reach the tournament semi-finals, and need to win their remaining two group matches against Bangladesh and New Zealand to give themselves the best chance at advancing.

The 15-player squad are flying to Canberra on Tuesday, where they will prepare to play Bangladesh under lights at Manuka Oval on Thursday.

2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Australia squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Erin Burns, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy (wk), Jess Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Molly Strano, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham

February 21:India won by 17 runs

February 24: Australia won by five wickets

February 27: Australia v Bangladesh, Manuka Oval 

March 2: Australia v New Zealand, Junction Oval

March 5: Semi-final 1 & Semi-final 2, SCG

March 8: Final, MCG

For a full list of all World Cup fixtures, click HERE

* All matches will be broadcast on Fox Cricket and Kayo, while Australia’s matches will also be broadcast on the Nine Network