Gardner completes historic first as Australia extend domination in the ICC Women’s Championship

Australia v India, Scorecard

Ash Gardner became the first Australian player - male or female - to have completed a five-wicket haul in all formats as Australia clinched a series sweep over India in Perth.

Smriti Mandhana’s counter-attacking century - her ninth in ODIs - provided a glimmer of hope for India, but Gardner’s five-wicket haul (5/30) dismantled India’s chase, sealing an 83-run victory for the reigning world champions.

India seemed poised to overhaul the target at 189/3, but Gardner’s magical spell triggered a dramatic collapse, bundling out the visitors for 215.

It was Gardner's first five-wicket haul in ODI cricket for Australia, with the star all-rounder having already completed the feat in Test cricket (8/66 v England in Nottingham in 2023) and in a T20I contest against New Zealand (5/12) at the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Paarl in 2023.

Earlier, Australia faced early trouble after a stellar spell from Arundhati Reddy that left the home side reeling at 78/4. This, following a superb start from Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll.

Sutherland and Gardner then paved the way for a remarkable recovery, putting together a 96-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

Gardner reached her sixth ODI half-century before falling to Deepti Sharma, but her efforts, combined with Tahlia McGrath’s unbeaten 56, helped Australia post a formidable total of 298/6.

Sutherland was the standout performer with the bat, crafting a composed 110 off 95 balls to anchor the innings. Her innings was composed of nine fours and four maximums.

Alongside Tahlia McGrath, the 23-year-old stitched together a 122-run stand for the sixth wicket. One that turned out to be enough to clean sweep the three-match series.

With this win, Australia have cemented their place at the top of the ICC Women’s Championship standings, sitting comfortably on 34 points. They will now face New Zealand in their final three games of the ongoing cycle and look on course to securing their third straight crown.

ICC Women's Championship Standings

India remain third in the standings with six ODIs left to play - three each against West Indies and Ireland. To claim their maiden ICC Women’s Championship title, India not only need to win most of their remaining matches but also hope for favorable results from other fixtures.