Australia captain Sophie Molineux says a final decision on Ellyse Perry’s fitness will be taken on Sunday as Australia prepare to face England in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 Final at Lord’s.
The two unbeaten teams will meet in what promises to be a thrilling final. England topped Group 2 before beating South Africa by 40 runs in the semi-final, while Australia finished first in Group 1 and defeated West Indies by eight wickets to book their place in another World Cup final.
Australia’s biggest concern before the title clash is the fitness of experienced all-rounder Ellyse Perry. She retired hurt during the semi-final against West Indies after feeling discomfort in her quad while batting. She has been working hard to recover, and Australia are hopeful she will be available for the final.
Speaking on Saturday, Molineux said Perry had trained well but the team would wait until match day before making a final decision. “She (Perry) went through a bit of a testing for the final. She trained really well today, had a bat, had a bowl. We’ll assess tomorrow and see how she pulls up,” Molineux said.
Perry has been one of Australia’s best players during this tournament. She has scored important runs throughout the competition and played a major role in helping Australia reach the final. Even if Perry is not fit enough to bowl, Molineux believes her batting alone would still be a huge boost for the team.
“It’d be great if she could bowl for us, but at the same time with our bowling depth we feel like we’ve got a bit of cover there. Her T20 World Cup so far with the bat has been incredible, she’s won a couple of games for us. I think her with the bat even if she’s not bowling, it’ll still be a massive positive for us.”
Australia are back in the Women’s T20 World Cup final after missing out on the title match in 2024. The six-time champions have once again shown why they are one of the strongest teams in world cricket.
Although Australia have several star players, Molineux believes the team’s success has come from everyone making contributions throughout the tournament.
She said the group has grown a lot since their semi-final defeat to India in the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup and feels the team is now playing with much more freedom and confidence.
“The group has been able to grow over the last three-four months,” she added. “Releasing the shackles a little bit and just allowing ourselves to play freely, to use our class, use our skill. It’s a very smart cricket team.”
Australia now face an England side that has also remained unbeaten. The hosts will have the support of around 30,000 fans at Lord’s, but Molineux is excited about the challenge.
“They’ve played some really brilliant cricket over the last few weeks, they’ve got the team in a really good place, and they seem to be full of confidence, and you add onto that 30,000, English fans here at Lord’s,” said Molineux, who grew up watching Test cricket with her father and dreaming of playing at Lord’s.
“We know it’s going be an incredible challenge, but it’s also going be a really special day. We match up well against them.”
The two teams have already met seven times in Women’s T20 World Cup history, with Australia winning five of those matches. Australia have also won all three Women’s T20 World Cup finals they have played against England.
England, however, have an impressive record at home. They have never lost a Women’s World Cup, either ODI or T20, while hosting the tournament. With both unbeaten teams bringing outstanding records into Sunday’s final, one remarkable run will come to an end when the Women’s T20 World Cup trophy is lifted at the Home of Cricket.
Loves all things female cricket