CAPE TOWN: It's ten minutes past 11 on Sunday night. The Newlands Stadium that was buzzing a few hours ago has gone back to its serene element, with a pristine view. Amidst the silence that had engulfed the stadium in Cape Town for a while now, one could hear some laughter coming from the centre of the pitch. Sitting in a circle, celebrating their sixth T20 World Cup title was the Australian team and their support staff.
At this point, it was a familiar sight. In fact, it has become a tradition of sorts in every Women's World Cup, across formats, since 2018 with Australia winning all four of them. So much so that jokes were being made as to there should be two World Cups one trophy for Australia and the other for the rest of the teams.
This Australian team has lost four T20Is since 2020 in a period where they have secured two T20 WCs and a Commonwealth Games gold. They haven't been defeated even once in their last 28 T20Is. In one of those post-match press conferences during the World Cup, New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine whilst talking about the growth of the women's game said, "Australia are still winning, that's pretty boring," causing a laughter riot.
Ask the Australian team, they would beg to differ. "As many as there are out there, I think," said Beth Mooney, Player of the Match in the final when asked how many more titles this team is going to win. "We don't get tired of it. There are teams around the world getting better and better as the years go on and we know that we're being hunted. People look at us for what we do and how we go about it. So, certainly, it won't last forever but we'll enjoy it for as long as we can."
Jeez. Is it as simple as easy as Mooney puts it? Often the success of this Australian team is attributed to the investment, infrastructure, and consistency in domestic structure, and rightly so. The team is filled with individual stars, people who are products of the system that prepares them to thrive under pressure and be ruthless at the highest level. But there is more to it. Every individual in this squad has had their own journeys and stories that make them who they are as people and cricketers.
Ellyse Perry has been in the limelight since she was 16. The bonafide 'GOAT' was all but out of the T20 squad last year. However, she adapted and evolved as she always does to force her way back into the team. Tahlia McGrath made her debut in 2016 before falling through the cracks. She went back and worked with Belinda Clark to become one of the clutch players in the team.
Captain Meg Lanning after CWG, she walked away. She was climbing mountains, waiting tables at a cafe in Melbourne, and whatnot. Having won everything there is to win and with the challenges of the pandemic, she needed the time away from cricket. And from the moment she set foot back on the field again, it was like she never left.
Then there is Ashleigh Gardner an aboriginal woman, proud of her Muruwari heritage who has never shied away from standing up for her identity. The 25-year-old’s statement on 'Australia Day' and the cricket match that was scheduled to be played on January 26 received a lot of backlash and online abuse. She stood by it and so did her teammates as they rallied around her. It is not just the aforementioned people; Mooney, Jess Jonassen and Georgia Wareham. The list goes on.
Building a team filled with strong individuals who are not just superstars, but leaders in their own right is no mean feat. And it did not happen overnight. When Lanning took over in 2014, she was just 21 — the youngest Australian captain ever. While she had taken over a good team with experienced stars, how Lanning, along with former head coach Matthew Mott and her former deputy Rachael Haynes, has built this team into a winning machine is nothing short of remarkable.
Every time they faced a hurdle – 2016 T20 WC or 2017 ODI WC they only came back stronger. "I think Morty, Meg and Rach as well did a tremendous job making sure that we got on the right path after a couple of bad losses in ICC events a few years ago. We've kept the core group of players the same," said Mooney.
However, it is not just about stability. Shelly Nitschke, who took over as head coach from Mott and is only the second woman to win a World Cup both as coach and player, said that having an eye on the future is important. "We're always looking to develop other leaders within the group and even though they might not be the captain or the vice-captain, we're always looking at different ways where we can develop people through different things that we do. Whether it's training or in meetings, at camps, or whatever. So, we're always looking to develop that next core of leaders. So, we know that when the time does come that we need them, they're ready to go," Nitschke summed it up.
On Sunday, the celebrations at the Newlands centre pitch went well past midnight, soaking in every bit of the triumph together as a group. They know that they will be pushed hard in the coming years, and they know this ridiculous streak might not last forever — especially with an ICC event to play every year.
That said, for now, how on earth does anyone beat this Australian team? To quote Mooney — Just don't turn up; it's too hard, don't bother going.