Alyssa Healy marked the beginning of her farewell series with a composed half-century as Australia defeated India by six wickets in the opening one-day international in Brisbane on Tuesday.
Healy, leading the Australian side for the first time since the recent T20 series, scored 50 runs from 70 deliveries, anchoring the chase of a target of 214. Australia reached the winning score in 38.2 overs at Allan Border Field. Beth Mooney continued her strong form, contributing a fluent 76 off 79 balls, and all-rounder Annabel Sutherland sealed the victory with a six off Deepti Sharma, finishing with an unbeaten 48.
The match saw Healy return to the top of the order, partnering with Phoebe Litchfield, who scored 32. Mooney reached a significant milestone during her innings, bringing up 3000 runs in ODI cricket and becoming the fourth Australian woman to surpass 7000 international runs, joining Meg Lanning, Ellyse Perry, and Healy herself on that list.
Earlier, Australia’s bowlers had restricted India to 214 all out. The hosts were without Ellyse Perry and Kim Garth due to injury before the match, but still managed a dominant performance.
“It was pretty emphatic ” Mooney said after the match. “I was disappointed to get out with 12 runs to get and sending someone else out there, but that’s the sort of (aggressive) style of cricket we want to play moving forward.”
The victory gives Australia four competition points in the multi-format series, following India’s 2-1 triumph in the preceding T20 series. The remaining two matches of the ODI series are scheduled to be played in Hobart on Friday and Sunday.
This series marks a significant moment for both teams. For India, it is their first appearance as World Cup champions in ODI format, following their recent T20 World Cup win. For Healy, the series represents her final white-ball campaign before retirement, adding an emotional dimension to the contest.
Australia’s decision to retain Beth Mooney as wicketkeeper throughout Healy’s farewell series was made with continuity in mind, after Mooney performed the role in the recent T20 matches. Healy, who holds the record for the most dismissals by an Australian wicketkeeper with 275, had not kept wicket since the end of Weber WBBL|11.
