India beat Australia by 21 runs via DLS method in the first women’s T20I at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday.
India had bowled out Australia for 133 runs and was 50/1 in 5.1 overs while chasing before rain stopped play.
Opting to chase at the iconic venue, India’s bowling arsenal was effective in keeping the host subdued, Arundhati Reddy leading the charge with a four-wicket haul. Australia was packed off with two overs to spare.
Beth Mooney fell early to Renuka Singh Thakur but Australia started with intent, quickly getting to 22 in 2.2 overs. Georgia Voll fell soon after however, unable to capitalise on a promising start.
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Ellyse Perry, playing international cricket for the 20th calendar year of her career, stitched a crucial 41-run partnership with Phoebe Litchfield only for an athletic Harmanpreet Kaur catch at cover off Arundhati’s bowling to blow it all away.
At the halfway mark, Australia’s big-hitters were back in the hut with 80 runs on the board.
Georgia Wareham and Nicola Carey also stitched a 41-run stand for the sixth wicket to ask India some tough questions, but Arundhati struck once more, accounting for Wareham’s important scalp.
Richa Ghosh’s quick stumping of Annabel Sutherland left new captain Sophie Molineux scratching her head, running out of ways to break the Aussie innings out of the rut.
In response, Shafali Verma made it clear that she wanted to get the job done and done fast when she slammed her way to a 11-ball 21 before Molineux got the better of her. Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues had taken India to 50/1 when the heavens opened up, with India well ahead in the DLS calculations.
Published on Feb 15, 2026
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