A magnificent century from Beth Mooney dragged defending champions Australia back from the brink of disaster before completing a crushing 107-run victory over Pakistan in the ICC Women’s World Cup clash in Colombo on Wednesday.
The Australians were looking down at 76-7 and then 115-8 after being asked to bat first with the Pakistan players causing chaos, left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu finishing with 3-37 from her 10 overs.
But a record ninth wicket stand between Mooney, who was dismissed on the last ball of the innings for 109, and Alana King, who made 51 not out, turned the tide.
The pair brought their team out of the crisis to a competitive 221-9 and that proved enough as Pakistan’s fragile batting meekly retired for 114 all out in 36.3 overs.
A magnificent century from Beth Mooney dragged defending champions Australia to the brink of disaster before completing a crushing 107-run victory over Pakistan in a Women’s World Cup clash in Colombo on Wednesday.
The Australians were looking down at 76-7 and then 115-8 after being asked to bat first with the Pakistan players causing chaos, left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu finishing with 3-37 from her 10 overs.
But a record ninth wicket stand between Mooney, who was dismissed on the last ball of the innings for 109, and Alana King, who made 51 not out, turned the tide.
The pair brought their team out of the crisis to a competitive 221-9 and that proved enough as Pakistan’s fragile batting meekly retired for 114 all out in 36.3 overs.
Sidra Amin was the only Pakistan batsman to bat for 35, while bowler Kim Garth, who used to compete for Ireland, was the pick of the Australian attack with 3-14.
In the end it was a comfortable victory for the Australians, but it hadn’t seemed that way before.
After a high-profile collapse that stunned the dugout, Australia needed a savior and along came the ever-reliable Mooney.
The left-hander produced her fifth ODI hundred as King played the perfect foil, combining grit with guts in a 97-ball 106-run partnership that breathed new life into the innings.
It wasn’t just an act of rescue, it was a record. The partnership eclipsed Australia’s previous best for ninth wicket (77 between Garth and Ashleigh Gardner) and also set a new Women’s World Cup benchmark, surpassing South Africa’s 66-run effort by Yulandi van der Merwe and Kim Price in 2000.
Mooney’s innings was a masterclass in temperament, a classic back-to-the-wall slam. She cultivated the stroke intelligently, ran fast between the wickets and only played the big shots towards the end.
“It was a pretty complicated situation. We wanted to start a partnership and we really had to push ourselves to get to 221,” Mooney said.
“Alana King was amazing tonight. We’ve seen her do it before and it was nice to share that pose with her.”
Having rebuilt brick by brick, Mooney raised her century with a push at mid-wicket off Fatima Sana, while King capped her maiden fifty in style, lifting the Pakistan captain by six as Australia plundered 21 runs in the final over.
Mooney’s 109 off 114 deliveries, combined with 11 boundaries, ended when he holed out to cover the last ball of the innings.
King remained unbeaten on 51 off 49, peppered with three fours and as many sixes, the highest score ever scored by a number 10 or below in women’s ODIs.
Pakistan never found their footing in response, undone by Australia’s relentless discipline with the ball.
The seven-time world champions once again climbed to the top of the points table, while Pakistan’s third consecutive defeat leaves their knockout hopes hanging by a thread.
