(Reuters) – Australia will likely be sturdy favourites to win the Women’s World Cup for a seventh time in Christchurch on Sunday however reigning champions England have hit their stride on the enterprise finish of the event and won’t surrender the trophy simply.
While the highest ranked Australians have romped by way of the event with eight straight wins, four-times champions England have been in disaster administration since dropping their first three contests.
They certified for the semi-finals with a thumping win over Bangladesh, nevertheless, and had been at their easiest once they crushed second-ranked South Africa by 137 runs on Thursday to succeed in the final for the sixth time.
Danni Wyatt smashed 129 runs from 125 deliveries to assist set the South Africans an imposing victory goal and spinner Sophie Ecclestone completed the job with 6-36.
The English know they must hit related peaks once they return to Hagley Oval on Sunday to face Australia, who they haven’t crushed in their final seven conferences in one-dayers.
“We’ve taken a number of batterings during the last couple of months, however the truth we’re right here in a World Cup final is nice,” skipper Heather Knight advised the BBC.
“We’ll go in as underdogs, which is actually honest (however) what a narrative has been written for us if we go and beat them on Sunday.
“We go in as equals. There’s a clean slate. There’s no stress on us in any respect to do nicely.”
The similar can’t be mentioned of Australia, who nonetheless ceaselessly reference the gorgeous loss to India in the 2017 World Cup semi-finals in England.
The world’s finest all-rounder, Ellyse Perry, is an damage doubt for the Australians after she suffered again spasms in their penultimate spherical robin recreation in opposition to South Africa.
With the likes of Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning and Alyssa Healy main the batting, and Jess Jonassen and Megan Schutt wielding the ball, nevertheless, Australia will likely be onerous to beat.
The prospect of taking part in their fiercest rivals, who they blanked in the multi-format Ashes collection earlier this 12 months, is bound so as to add an additional edge to the final.
“It’s the Ashes in one thing that is, I assume, much more prestigious,” spinner Jonassen, who sits behind solely Ecclestone in the world bowling rankings, mentioned on Friday.
“A World Cup final in opposition to England, it would not get a lot greater.”
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney, Editing by Peter Rutherford)
