Healy: Opportunity for youngsters to carry Australian legacy at T20WC 2024
Australia's captain puts faith in younger group ahead of new UAE challenge at T20 World Cup 2024.
Alyssa Healy believes the younger members of Australia's all-conquering women's team can continue the team's legacy as one of the best in sport at the upcoming ICC Women's T20 World Cup in UAE.
Leading the side in a major tournament for the first time having taken over legend Meg Lanning who retired from international cricket last year, Healy leads a group ready to defend the crown they have held in their clutches since 2018, and kept across three tournaments.
Penning a column for ICC Media Zone, Healy reflected on tournament highlights, underlining her pride of representing her country on the big stage.
Watch Australia lift the 2023 Women's T20 World Cup trophy
Australian captain Meg Lanning and her team celebrated in style as they lifted the trophy at Newlands in Cape Town after beating South Africa in the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
"Representing your country in (a World Cup) means a lot and we have created some treasured memories in this competition.
"In particular, winning the T20 World Cup at home in 2020 was a huge highlight for a lot of our group. To have the final at the MCG in front of 86,174 spectators was an amazing experience.
"T20 World Cups are really hard to win – it’s the best against the best and whoever can be most consistent or win those little moments along the way can get the job done."
Watch Beth Mooney's match-winning innings at the MCG in front of over 86,000 people
Australia's challenges this time around, gunning for a seventh T20 World Cup title and a fourth in a row, are twofold. A new tournament location with different conditions in UAE will pose its own questions, while the side must press on and evolve with a younger group shouldering more responsibility.
Australia have seemingly always been a step ahead however. Five members of the 14-player squad are 25 years of age or younger, though all boast extensive international experience, a testament to a group always willing to improve on what had already been a world champion group.
Looking ahead to the challenges, Healy says there are "no real expectations" on the group, but feel prepared for the other nine sides ready to knock them off their perch.
"All 10 teams have a shot to win it and with some foreign conditions for a lot of the teams, it will be really interesting to watch unfold.
"Playing in the UAE is a new experience for our group. Only a few of us have gone over and trained or played practice games over there so it’s a new place to see, which is exciting.
"The conditions are slightly unknown; however, I feel we are well equipped to handle whatever is thrown our way."
Boasting a batting order of admirable quality and depth, there will be no respite for opposition across the 20 overs of Australia's innings, with the likes of all-rounders Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham and Sophie Molineux potentially batting as low down as No.7 to No.9.
Sutherland already boasts 34 T20I caps for her country, and Healy earmarked both the 22-year-old and 21-year-old batting phenomenon Phoebe Litchfield as players to watch in UAE.
"I am looking forward to our group now coming together for this competition and an exciting thing about our squad this tournament is our young players.
"They are super exciting to watch and have had some experience on the international stage over the past few seasons so are ready to go.
"It obviously helps having some old, experienced heads around them to steer us in the right direction but watching the next generation play the game is pretty fun to watch.
"I would suggest keeping an eye on Annabel Sutherland and Phoebe Litchfield, in particular, during this tournament."
Sharpening up ahead of the tournament with a 3-0 lead-in series win against New Zealand on home soil, Healy had given herself some downtime in the winter, watching on as several teammates competed in various domestic T20 leagues held overseas during the Australian winter.
Reflecting on the progress of the women's game since her international debut in 2010, the wicket-keeper/batter says the freedom to
"The opportunities to now play cricket all year round, or choose not to, is amazing and allows players to individually prepare how they want.
"It’s great to see so many of our players enjoying their cricket and primed for the World Cup."
"We go into this World Cup with a really well-rounded group and strong squad of players. I can’t wait to be a part of it."
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