Australia’s captain, Alyssa Healy, showered praise on the remarkable Phoebe Litchfield, expressing hopes for her long and successful international cricket career after Australia clinched a 2-1 triumph in the T20I series against India. Litchfield emerged as the standout performer, scoring 266 runs in three innings, including her second international century, and securing the Player of the Series award in the 3-0 ODI series victory.
Alyssa Healy, impressed by Litchfield’s fearless approach, remarked, “Unbelievable talent, but at the same time, she has a good head on her shoulders and has fitted in beautifully in our squad. She will play a key role for us in the Bangladesh T20 World Cup (2024) the ODI World Cup (India 2025) and in these conditions in the next 18 months. Hopefully, she will have a long and successful career in Australia.”
Reflecting on the overall performance, Healy expressed pride in how the team rebounded to win the white-ball series after a one-off Test loss to India at the Wankhede Stadium. She commended the team’s positive attitude, stating, “I’m just really, really proud of this group of people. We’re here in India for over a month that we’re traditionally at home spending time with our families, and it’s the first time we’ve been away at this time of year.”
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Acknowledging the team’s adaptability and camaraderie, Healy added, “I didn’t hear one complaint, I didn’t hear one whinge, they just genuinely enjoyed one another’s company and enjoy being here in India. I think the month that we’ve been here, we played two-and-a-half bad days of cricket, that was it – one-and-a-half days in the Test cricket and one T20. I’m proud of the group for that, and hopefully, we can have a successful 2024 off the back of it.”
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Looking ahead, Healy emphasized the valuable insights gained about subcontinent conditions, providing the team with areas to improve as they prepare for the upcoming World Cups. “I think we’ve gained some valuable information. At the same time, there’s probably some areas where we can improve and some areas that we’re nailing at the moment, which I’m proud of.”
Healy stressed the importance of refining plans and shot selection, stating, “It’s pretty cutthroat when you come into a World Cup; you’ve got to win games and you’ve got to get yourselves over the line. I think we’re going to have a squad to do it; it’s just nailing down our plans and our shot selection, more importantly, over here.”
–IANS
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