Two weeks after they kicked things off in Sydney, we are left with the two sides who will battle it out for the title at ICC Women’s T20 World Cup at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground – history beckons for Australia and India.
India progressed as the top-ranked team in Group A following a semi-final washout and their unbeaten run in this year’s tournament makes the finale tough to call.
Australia edged out South Africa in a tight semi-final but when it comes to history in the T20 experience, the two battling it out couldn’t be further apart.
For the hosts, it will be their sixth successive appearance in the T20 World Cup Final, having made the showpiece in every edition since 2010.
And this time, they’re bidding for a record-extending fifth T20 World Cup title.
As for India, they have never previously made it to the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Final, looking to become just the fourth side – after Australia, England and West Indies – to be T20 world champions.
The teams may take centre stage but the captains will certainly be under the spotlight, with Meg Lanning and Harmanpreet Kaur both standing on the brink of history.
Kaur will be the first woman to captain India in a T20 World Cup Final, while Lanning could become the third Australian to lift a global trophy on home soil after Lyn Larsen and Michael Clarke.
The hosts will go in as favourites, but with India having stunned them on the opening night in Sydney
Head-to-head between India & Australia in T20Is
| Matches | Australia won | India won | Tie / No Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 19 | 13 | 6 | 0 |
| In Australia | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| At T20 World Cup | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Here are the key stats ahead of the big final:
- This will be the fifth meeting between India and Australia at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup; Australia won their first two clashes in 2010 and 2012, though India have been successful in their two most recent encounters (2018, 2020).
- India are set to make their first appearance in the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, while Australia have qualified for the game for a sixth consecutive time – they’ve won four of their last five.
- India have won eight of their last nine games at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, including their last four on the bounce; they will be aiming to reach five consecutive wins at the tournament for the first time.
- India’s only previous women’s T20I fixture at the Melbourne Cricket Ground ended in a 10-wicket win against Australia (January 2016); Mithali Raj (37*) and Smriti Mandhana (22*) successfully chasing down the target set for them.
- Australia have lost the toss in three of their five games at the 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup; they’ve lost only one of their last 17 games at the tournament when they’ve lost the toss (W15, T1).
- Australia have won four of their last five women’s T20Is at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (L1); however, their only defeat in that period came against India in 2016.
- Shafali Verma has scored 46 and 47 runs in her last two innings at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, and has top-scored for India in each of their last three games; should she scored 48 runs or more in the final, she would break Mithali Raj’s record of 208 runs in a single edition for India (2014).
- Poonam Yadav (nine in 2020) is one wicket away from recording the most outright for India at an ICC Women’s T20 World Cup (currently level with Diana David’s nine in 2010).
- Rachael Haynes (Australia) has a dot ball rate of just 24% at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020, the lowest of any player to have faced at least 50 deliveries in this campaign.
- Jess Jonassen (Australia) has recorded four yorker-length deliveries at ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 but has managed to record two wickets from those balls; she is the only bowler to register multiple wickets from yorkers.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!