Mooney eyes major impact in one-day internationals

Australia star Beth Mooney has recovered from the quadriceps strain that kept her out of two Queensland matches earlier this month as she pinpoints the area she believes will take her game to the next level.

The T20I opener was fresh from scoring 163 for Queensland in the one-day competition when the mild strain occurred, but Mooney is confident her brief stint on the sidelines will not stop her taking the momentum from that innings into the trans-Tasman matches.

"I'm all good, it was just a minor stress. It was essentially just being really conservative and making sure I was right for this series," Mooney told cricket.com.au.

"I've kicked off some high-speed running which was the last piece of the puzzle.

"It was a bit (frustrating to miss those matches), everyone knows when you get on a bit of a roll you want to stay in it as much as possible, but unfortunately I had to miss those couple of games.

"But form… I don't believe in it too much in cricket, whatever happens on the day when you walk out there is how it's supposed to be.

"So hopefully I can take a bit of confidence from that innings against WA into the series over here."

Mooney has been a force to be reckoned with in T20 cricket across the past two years, taking the WBBL by storm and named Player of the Tournament when Australia took out last year's T20 World Cup.

Recently crowned the Belinda Clark award winner, Mooney is the country's top ranked T20I batter, currently second overall after being dethroned at No.1 by India's Shafali Verma earlier this week.

But with Australia set to play more 50-over cricket this year in the lead-up to the ODI World Cup next March and April – they played just three 50-over games in 2020 – Mooney is determined to make the same impact on the longer limited-overs format.

Unlike the T20 game, where she partners Alyssa Healy at the top of the order, Mooney occupies a place in the middle-order in the one-day game.

"I want to maintain the same level of consistency I have in the T20 game and transfer that to the one-day format," Mooney said.

"I play a slightly different role in that format in this team, but it's about ensuring I am as consistent as I can be.

"I don't mind batting in the middle order, I think it's a really good opportunity for me to finish off games and lead from the front in that regard, and adapting to whatever situation is in front of me and being the person that can get the team into a winning position.

"It's a tough place to bat at times, you never know what situation you'll walk into."

If Mooney's form across four WNCL matches this year is anything to do by, she is in a prime position to achieve exactly that.

Her blazing 163 from 139 deliveries at Allan Border Field was the highest score by a Queenslander in the WNCL's history, and the fourth highest individual score in the competition's history.

The left-hander's four matches in maroon reaped 297 runs at 74.25, with two half-centuries to accompany the record-breaking ton.

For the 28-year-old, breaking through for her first triple-figure score in List A matches in several seasons was particularly satisfying.

"I don't know much about my WNCL stats but I feel like I'm the sort of player who gets out on 70 or 80 a lot, so I had a mindset of trying to go on and get past that 70 or 80 and make sure it was a big one," Mooney explained.

"It was pretty warm that day, and it was just one of those days that no matter where you hit it, it wasn't to a fielder.

"It was nice to see some of the things I'd been working on in the nets with (Australia assistant coach) Shelley Nitschke and (Queensland state talent manager) Mark Sorrell come to fruition out in the middle, and hopefully they got a bit out of watching that too."

Returning to the country where she scored her first, and to date only, ODI century in 2017 Mooney says her game has dramatically evolved in the years since.

"Looking at the wagon wheel from that ton, probably 100 per cent of my runs went behind point and not anywhere else," Mooney remarked.

"I think four years is a long time not just in your life but in your cricket career. I feel like I've got a lot more confident with my game."

CommBank tour of New Zealand 2021

Australia ODI & T20I Squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Darcie Brown, Nicola Carey, Hannah Darlington, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Molly Strano, Georgia Wareham, Belinda Vakarewa, Tayla Vlaeminck

T20I squad: Sophie Devine (capt), Amy Satterthwaite (vice-capt), Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Hayley Jensen, Fran Jonas, Amelia Kerr, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Frances Mackay, Katey Martin (wk), Thamsyn Newton, Hannah Rowe

ODI squad: Sophie Devine (capt), Amy Satterthwaite (vice-capt), Lauren Down, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Hayley Jensen, Leigh Kasperek - (games 2 & 3 only), Amelia Kerr, Jess Kerr, Frances Mackay, Rosemary Mair, Katey Martin (wk), Hannah Rowe (game 1 only), Lea Tahuhu

1st T20: March 28, Seddon Park, Hamilton, 5.10pm AEDT

2nd T20: March 30, McLean Park, Napier, 1pm AEDT

3rd T20: April 1, Eden Park, Auckland, 1pm AEDT

1st ODI: April 4, Bay Oval, Tauranga, 9am AEDT

2nd ODI: April 7, Bay Oval, Tauranga, 12noon AEDT

3rd ODI: April 10, Bay Oval, Tauranga, 12noon AEDT

All matches will be shown live in Australia on Fox Cricket and Kayo