Warrior Mooney rises from sick bed to lead Aussie charge

Beth Mooney’s first few days in India were, in her own words, "pretty grim".

Struck down by illness less than 24 hours after landing in Mumbai, the opener missed Australia’s first two training sessions and until Friday morning, was not even convinced she would be well enough to take the field for the opening T20I later the same day.

It speaks volumes of the mental and physical fortitude of the left-hander that she not only played, but struck a brilliant unbeaten 89 off 57 balls to steer Australia to their biggest ever run chase in the format.

Her efforts sealed a nine-wicket win and bolstered her reputation as one of the best, if not the best, T20I batter in the world.

"I mean, we don't need to go into the gory details, but there was a needle in my butt at 3am on Monday night, so I wasn't in a good way," Mooney said of her stomach-related illness and the efforts of the Aussie medical team to provide some relief.

"Thankfully, we've got a really good (medical) team here ... and they looked after me for a couple of days there when it was pretty grim."

Mooney finally made it out to DY Patil Stadium on Thursday night for a hit under lights on the eve of the match.

"I actually (still) wasn't sure if I was going to be able to play tonight (but) I turned the corner in the morning and came good," Mooney continued.

"So it wasn't a great introduction back to India, but being out in the middle today was really nice."

Satisfied she was in the clear, Mooney ventured out for a spot of sightseeing on Friday morning, visiting the Gate of India, before making herself at home at the university stadium in eastern Mumbai, silencing a boisterous local crowd of more than 25,000 people.

She shared in a 100-run stand with Tahlia McGrath, who returned to form with an unbeaten 40 of her own, as Australia reeled in their target of 173 with 11 balls to spare.

"I didn't anticipate being out there for the whole 40 overs, but I managed to get enough sustenance in me today for the first time in a while and I think that really helped," she said.

"I was sort of flagging towards the end there, I was begging TMac to hit a few boundaries, but I had just enough in the tank to get us over the line."

Mooney has made a habit of rising to the challenge when below her best physically, notably with her match-winning 65 that sealed Brisbane Heat’s first WBBL title in 2019.

She had also made a habit of feasting on Indian bowling attacks; she averages 49.76 against the subcontinent side and strikes at 126.

Since her debut in 2016 she has hit 647 runs in 16 T20I innings against India, more than any other Australian across that period – the next highest on the list is Ashleigh Gardner with 308.

"I think they're a highly competitive outfit, they're world class outfit and when we come up against them, we know it's going to be a really tough fight and that gets me into the contest a little bit more," Mooney said.

"But pulling on the Australian shirt is a pretty big draw card to wanting to get in the contest, so it's definitely not (just) India, I wish I could score runs against everyone.

"The wicket tonight was nice and they threw a few different plans at me as well, which I wasn't really expecting, and I got away with a few as well."

While Australia’s chase of 173 was their biggest ever in T20Is, the record they beat – 170 – was only set in January, during the multi-format Ashes.

Mooney said it was a sign of the times, as scoring rates and averages totals increase in the women’s game, and also a reflection of the outstanding batting conditions at DY Patil Stadium.

"I think the stats tell us that 185 is about a winning score on this wicket, so we didn't think they were quite at par at the halfway mark and we knew good cricket shots and a couple of big partnerships were going to win the game," she said.

"And batting in the second innings with a bit more dew in the outfield as well meant that the ball skipped on a bit nicer too.

Image Id: C173E17E5B3B4AB7A3C416279C03C5AD Image Caption: Beth Mooney and captain Alyssa Healy in the middle at DY Patil Stadium // Getty

"Chasing 170, or trying to get 10 an over, maybe three or four years ago seemed almost unattainable.

"But I think the landscape of the game is really changing … gone are the days where 10 runs an over seems out of reach.

"That just goes to show whether the game has gone globally in the last couple of years.

"These days, as long as you've got the belief within your dressing room, which we undoubtedly have in ours, I think nothing's too out of reach."

Australia and India will meet at the same venue on Sunday (12.30am Monday AEDT) in the second match of the five-game series.

Australia's T20I tour of India 

1st T20I: Australia won by 9 wickets

2nd T20I: December 11, D.Y. Patil Stadium, Mumbai (Dec 12, 12.30am AEDT) 

3rd T20I: December 14, Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai (Dec 15, 12.30am AEDT) 

4th T20I: December 17, Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai (Dec 18, 12.30am AEDT) 

5th T20I: December 20, Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai (Dec 21, 12.30am AEDT) 

Australia squad: Alyssa Healy (c), Tahlia McGrath (vc), Darcie Brown, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Heather Graham, Grace Harris, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland

India squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Radha Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Renuka Singh Thakur, Meghna Singh, Anjali Sarvani, Devika Vaidya, S Meghana, Richa Ghosh, Harleen Deol