These multi-format series are becoming quite the thing in women’s cricket. Our visiting Indians took the T20 series 2-1, but Australia won the 50-over contests with maximal comfort. And the final event on the card was a day-night pink-ball Test match in Perth: a prospect likely to chill the blood of most visitors. In her farewell to arms Healy won the toss and inserted the Indians. It was a largely flawless performance, indicating a deep knowledge of the game and excellent execution of the plan. In Perth you need four seamers, including at least one left-armer, so Lucy Hamilton was brought in for her debut. She did not have to wait long for success, when in her third over she swung the ball late in towards Mandhana and castled her.
The trick hereabouts is that you pitch the ball up and attack the stumps with a multitude of slips and gullies. You will get hit for a lot of boundaries and you ignore that entirely and keep on pressing. Despite a splendid 52 from Jemmy Rodrigues the innings subsided for 198. There was little or no respite from the assault, and aside from Shafali Verma’s belligerent 35 and a spirited unbeaten 34 from Kashvee, nobody else could manage to stay in for long. Sutherland took four, Hamilton three and Brown two, with Gardner picking up the remainder.
This early success however meant that Australia were obliged to bat under lights. Voll, Litchfield and Healy succumbed early, but the tide turned when Perry was joined by Sutherland. If Perry’s elbow was any higher she might have tipped off her helmet. She played straight, waited for half-volleys and put them all away. Sutherland meanwhile reminded us all how much she loves Test matches. Her last two innings have been centuries in this format, and she set about the business of adding a third. By stumps the home side were 3/96, with far easier conditions to come on the morrow. By the time Perry was unexpectedly trapped leg before by Deepti (for a crucial 76) Sutherland had already overtaken her.
To India’s credit their bowlers persisted. Sayale Satghare is a new face to this writer, but her four wickets were hard-earned and well-merited. Deepti finally removed Sutherland to an agricultural hoick for 129, and India could dream of batting in the comparative calm of the late afternoon. But it was not to be. King and Hamilton each made useful 20s, and lasted until the final session. As the long evening wore on, a blood-red gibbous moon arose in the east, seemingly a portent of doom of some description. Hamilton and Sutherland tore the Indian top order to shreds with some hostile late movement and aggressive catching. By stumps India had collapsed to 6/105, and the contest was all but over. Only a defiant stand by Pratika Rawal prolonged the match into a third day.
Australia began with King, whose first four deliveries on day one had been despatched to the boundary by Rodrigues. By now however there was turn available, and the diminutive leggie was in her element. Her figures of 2/23 from ten overs do scant justice to the brilliance of her bowling. There were the Shane Warne balls swinging down leg and turning past the bat and off-stump. There were top-spinners which exploded like hand grenades. And at the other end Gardner finished the innings. Last to fall was Pratika for a brilliant 63. She fell to a wild swipe, but cannot be blamed for that. She had come in first wicket down and held the fort while the team collapsed around her. With only 25 to make Voll and Litchfield concluded matters in short order. It was a crushing victory by an all-round champion side constantly in search of self-improvement. Hurrah for the green and gold!