New Delhi, June 1 (IANS) Australia’s narrow defeat to South Africa in an unofficial Women’s T20 World Cup warm-up fixture may have denied them a winning start to their preparations, but the return of captain Sophie Molineux provided a significant positive ahead of the global showpiece, and for vice-captain Tahlia McGrath, the performance was a timely reminder of the value the skipper brings to the Australian side.

Playing her first match since February after recovering from a back injury, Molineux wasted little time making an impact. The left-arm spinner struck with her very first delivery, dismissing Sune Luus, before removing Dane van Niekerk two balls later, finishing with figures of 2/17 from three overs.

“First of all, it’s nice to have her bowling. Not bowling in (Australia’s recent white-ball series in) the West Indies, it was awesome to see her with ball in hand as she takes wickets for fun,” McGrath said after the game.

The Australian vice-captain also highlighted the often-underappreciated work Molineux does for the team by taking on difficult overs across different stages of an innings and believes versatility makes her one of the most influential bowlers in the squad, particularly in pressure situations.

“She’s a game changer and she can bowl in any phase. She proved that again today. I think she took a wicket with her first ball. She gets all the tough overs and doesn’t really get the credit she deserves. She always puts her hand up and always seems to get the job done,” she said.

Despite Molineux’s encouraging return, Australia fell seven runs short while chasing South Africa’s 163/7. The Proteas recovered strongly after early setbacks thanks to an 88-run stand between Marizanne Kapp and youngster Kayla Reyneke, before Shabnim Ismail’s fiery spell of 4/39 helped close out the contest.

McGrath felt the game provided exactly the sort of competitive challenge Australia was seeking before the World Cup. “It was a pretty high-quality game and it was really close. It came down to the last over and some individual brilliance from both teams.”

She pinpointed the Kapp-Reyneke partnership as the turning point of the match after Australia had initially gained the upper hand.

“I thought the partnership between Kapp and Reyneke, we were on top and that swung the momentum back to them and sort of proved to be the difference in the end. They batted really well,” the all-rounder stated.

While disappointed with the result, McGrath believes there were enough positives for Australia to build on before the tournament begins on June 12.

“And then we showed glimpses, but just not able to get the job done today.”

With two more matches against South Africa still to come at Arundel Castle, Australia will have further opportunities to fine-tune their preparations and, perhaps most importantly, continue building momentum around the return of their captain before the World Cup kicks off on June 12.

–IANS

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