Australia all-rounder Ellyse Perry says her side must rediscover its ability to perform under pressure if it wants to return to the top of women’s world cricket at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 in England and Wales.
For a team that dominated the global game for more than a decade, Australia’s recent exits from major ICC tournaments have left an unfamiliar feeling within the group. The six-time champions suffered a shock semi-final defeat to South Africa at the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup before another painful exit followed at the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup in India, where they again fell in the last four.
The back-to-back disappointments have become a major talking point heading into the new tournament, especially given Australia’s continued dominance in bilateral cricket over the past two years. Since the start of 2024, Australia has won multiple white-ball series against India, England, New Zealand and South Africa, continuing to look like one of the strongest teams in the world outside ICC knockout matches.
Perry admitted the side has openly discussed those semifinal losses and the need to deliver in decisive moments once the World Cup begins. “It’s certainly a discussion we’ve had about the past two World Cups we’ve been involved in, in terms of losing the semi-finals in those events, and it presents a really great opportunity,” Perry said ahead of the tournament.
The upcoming World Cup also marks the beginning of a new chapter for Australia following Alyssa Healy’s retirement earlier this year. Spin-bowling all-rounder Sophie Molineux has since taken over the captaincy, leading a squad that is balancing experienced stars with several younger faces beginning to establish themselves at international level.
Australia’s transition has unfolded gradually over the last 12 months, with the team experimenting with combinations and roles while trying to maintain the standards that made them the dominant force in women’s cricket. Perry believes the tournament in England and Wales will provide the clearest test yet of how well the side has adapted to that change. “Certainly, over the past 12 months we’ve had a fair bit of change and evolution within the group, probably none more so than new leadership, and that’s presented a really great opportunity for the group, and the fresh faces among the team as well,” Perry said.
Australia still enters the tournament with enormous experience. Perry herself remains one of the game’s most influential cricketers and earlier this year became the first Australian woman to reach 350 international appearances. Alongside her, players like Beth Mooney, Ashleigh Gardner, Megan Schutt and Tahlia McGrath continue to form the core of the squad.
However, despite the consistency Australia has shown across bilateral cricket, Perry acknowledged that success for a team of this stature is ultimately measured by performances in knockout matches and global tournaments. “We’ve been really consistent with the way we’ve played over the past 24 months, across lots of tournaments and series, and won a lot of matches, but you always really want to win the biggest games, so for us that’ll be a really cool challenge,” Perry said.
A major focus heading into the tournament will also be the leadership of Molineux, who steps into one of the most high-pressure roles in women’s cricket following Healy’s departure. Perry praised the new captain’s approach and said the group had responded strongly to her energy and leadership style. “Sophie has taken on the challenge with huge amounts of energy and motivation for the whole group. Her impact and willingness to give all of herself to the role is super obvious. The group’s responded to that exceptionally well. She’s a wonderful person,” Perry said.
Australia will begin the World Cup among the favourites once again, but this time the challenge feels different. After years of dominating world cricket, the team now heads into a major tournament carrying the pressure of proving it can still rise to the occasion when the stakes are highest.
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