Women’s T20 WC: Unchanged Australia opt to bowl against England in final

London, July 5 (IANS) Australia won the toss and elected to bowl first against England in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 final at Lord’s Cricket Stadium on Sunday. Both teams have not made any changes to their playing XI.

The high-stakes encounter marks the fourth time these two cricketing powerhouses will contest the tournament’s summit clash, having previously met in the 2012, 2014, and 2018 finals – all won by Australia.

Six-time champions Australia enter the title decider as firm favourites after maintaining a flawless tournament record with six consecutive victories. Led by Sophie Molineux, who took over the captaincy following Alyssa Healy’s retirement in March, Australia entered the final with a commanding eight-wicket win over the West Indies at The Oval.

The Nat Sciver-Brunt-led side are aiming to capture their second T20 World Cup crown, and repeat their historic triumph from the inaugural edition at this very venue back in 2009. Under a revamped coaching setup led by Charlotte Edwards, this refreshed England lineup looks to break a three-year jinx against Australia, who have dominated recent head-to-head encounters with eight successive wins across formats.

After winning the toss, Australia skipper Sophie Molineux said, “We’re going to have a bowl. Beautiful day, want to put pressure on them early. Don’t think the pitch will change too much. No changes. Pez (Perry) pulled up well after the training yesterday. Special day. The girls got a couple of days off. Started training the last couple of days.”

After losing the toss, England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt said, “Was going to bowl as well. It’s a fresh wicket – runs on the board in the final is no bad thing. We’re unchanged. Will be silly on me not to lean on that experience. One more run than the opposition, I suppose.”

Playing XIs:

England: Amy Jones(wk), Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Nat Sciver-Brunt(c), Alice Capsey, Heather Knight, Freya Kemp, Danielle Gibson, Charlotte Dean, Sophie Ecclestone, Linsey Smith, Lauren Bell

Australia: Georgia Voll, Beth Mooney(wk), Phoebe Litchfield, Ellyse Perry, Ashleigh Gardner, Georgia Wareham, Annabel Sutherland, Nicola Carey, Sophie Molineux(c), Kim Garth, Lucy Hamilton

–IANS

sds/