Adelaide, Feb 21 (IANS) Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry became the first female cricketer from her nation to play 350 international matches, when she took the field against India at the Adelaide Oval in the final and decider T20I of the three-game series on Saturday.

Perry made history as the first Australian woman to reach 350 games, celebrating her 20th year at the highest level. Only two women have played more international matches: Harmanpreet Kaur, India’s captain, who extended her record to 357 after the third T20I, and New Zealand’s Suzie Bates with 355, making Perry the most capped Aussie.

Australia’s most-capped players after Perry are current ODI and Test captain Alyssa Healy with 295 appearances, and former vice-captain Alex Blackwell with 252 appearances.

Healy, however, has announced that she will retire from international cricket after next month’s day-night Test against India, which begins on March 6. Meanwhile, Megan Schutt has yet to make any long-term commitments, focusing solely on the upcoming T20 World Cup. In contrast, Perry, speaking to reporters ahead of the Adelaide T20I, said she doesn’t have a set timeline for her future in international cricket.

“(I’ve got) no particular landmarks really on my radar. I just want to keep experiencing what this team is doing, and for as long as I’m contributing to that, and find fulfillment in that, then I’d love to be around, but I don’t really have an end point. There’s always exciting things on the horizon, but we’ll just see where it gets to,” Perry was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

Speaking of the series so far, the visitors dismissed the Aussies for 133 at the SCG in the first match, then quickly reached 50/1 in 5.1 overs before rain interrupted. India were significantly ahead of the DLS par score and managed to seal a win to take a 1-0 lead in the series.

Australia made a strong comeback at the Manuka Oval in Canberra. Sent in to bat again, they achieved a higher-than-average total, thanks to Georgia Voll’s aggressive 88. They faltered slightly near the end of their innings, but India responded with a quick start. Nevertheless, the Australian bowlers changed their pace effectively, causing a collapse that allowed the hosts to defend their total convincingly and level the series.

–IANS

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