Georgia Voll stars with career-best knock to force T20 series decider against India
Rising star Georgia Voll anchored Australia's 19-run win over India at Manuka Oval on Thursday night, squaring the three-match series with a clinical 88.
In just her eighth T20 international match, Voll looked every bit the top-order protege selectors envisioned to fill the void left by Alyssa Healy, as her standout performance levelled the series and set the stage for a high-stakes decider.
Opening with clinical precision, Voll (88 off 57) anchored a 128-run stand with Beth Mooney (46).
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Georgia Voll in action at Manuka Oval, where her clinical 88 steered Australia to a series-squaring win over India. Mark Nolan via Getty Images
The 22-year-old's career-best knock was a masterclass in placement, featuring 11 boundaries and a massive slog-sweep into the dugouts.
"We were looking to really dominate this game, so it was nice to put that performance on," Voll said.
While the partnership set the foundation for a total of 5-163, the innings finished on a stutter.
Mooney struggled to find her usual gear and accelerate, and her departure, a mistimed shot to mid-on, triggered a late-innings stall.
The rest of the order managed just two boundaries from 24 balls as Australia lost four wickets in a messy final five overs.
The final two balls perfectly captured the lost momentum: Ellyse Perry was run out after a desperate dive fell short, followed by a bizarre sequence where Ash Gardner's miscued drive was snapped up to run out a stranded Georgia Wareham for a diamond duck.
Australia ultimately limped to the finish, adding just 5-35 from the final 31 balls.
What looked like a record total suddenly required serious defending, but the attack delivered.
India's response started fast as Smriti Mandhana (31) and Shafali Verma (29) punished some erratic new-ball bowling to put on 57.
However, the momentum shifted once newly appointed skipper Sophie Molineux (2-37) broke the stand with a timely lbw.
Australia captain Sophie Molineux celebrates a breakthrough against India. Mark Nolan via Getty Images
Molineux rotated her attack with enough poise to keep the chase under control.
Garth, Gardner (3-22) and Annabel Sutherland (2-18) tightened the screws. Despite a 55-run stand between Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh, the Australians absorbed the pressure to trigger a 6-7 collapse as the required rate spiralled out of reach.
With the series now level, a decider will be played at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night, before the multi-format tour shifts to Perth for three ODIs and a one-off Test.
