Summary: 1st T20 – Elyse Villani and Sammy-Jo Johnson give Australia ‘A’ dominant win over India ‘A’
The Australia ‘A’ women’s side had a dominant win over their Indian counterparts, courtesy gutsy knocks from Elyse Villani and Sammy-Jo Johnson. Both of them plundered India ‘A’ bowling line-up, hitting frequent boundaries. Australia ‘A’ comfortably chased the target set by India ‘A’ with 53 balls to spare.
The first unofficial T20 of the tour was held at Bill Pippen Oval, Gold Coast. Australia ‘A’ Women won the toss and decided to field first.
Batting first, India never looked in good shape as they lost wickets at frequent intervals. They lost 9 wickets in total setting a target of 113 for the hosts. Opener Shafali Verma departed after making 11 runs. Wicketkeeper Nuzhat Parween was the highest scorer from their side, hitting 44 runs off 43 balls. Dayalan Hemalatha 20(29) and Arundhati Reddy 12*(17) also added few runs to their team’s total. India finished on 112/9 as Molly Strano and Tahlia McGrath took 2 wickets apiece.
Although Australia lost captain McGrath on 2 earlier in the innings, it didn’t cost them much as the other opener Elyse Villani and number 3 bat Sammy-Jo Johnson accelerated the chase. Villani rushed to her half-century, making 62 runs in 36 balls, hitting at a strike rate of 172.22. Her innings also comprised of 9 fours and 3 sixes. At the other end, Johnson was equally explosive. She scored 48 off 24 at a strike rate of 200 hitting 5 boundaries and 3 maximums. Both of them remained not out to see their team through in 11.1 overs. Australia ‘A’ Women won the match by 9 wickets and thus go up 1-0 in the 3-match T20 series against India.
India ‘A’ Women: 112/9 in 20 overs
Australia ‘A’ Women: 117/1 in 11.1 overs
Result: Australia ‘A’ Women won by 9 wickets
Player of the Match: Elyse Villani (62* off 36)
Series Status: Australia ‘A’ Women 1-0 India ‘A’ Women
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