Fresh off lifting the T20 World Cup trophy, an emotional Sophie Molineux admitted she had early moments of doubt about whether she had been the right appointment as Australian captain.
The allrounder, who has a torrid history of injuries including shoulder surgery, stress fractures in her foot and multiple knee issues, was only three matches into her tenure in February when she was diagnosed with a back problem and forced out of the multi-format series against India.
Five months on, any qualms that once existed – either within Molineux or in the broader cricket community – were firmly extinguished at Lord’s on Sunday as Australia steamrolled England by seven wickets to win their seventh title.
“It’s been a whirlwind since I took over, I was a bit messy at the start, to be fair – captaining a couple of games and getting injured, shock,” Molineux reflected shortly after she was presented with the trophy.
“I suppose there were a few doubts internally, a few doubts externally, but I think what I’ve learned over my journey so far is that you just have to keep believing. I’m incredibly lucky that people believed in me, and I suppose I believe in this team and group more than anything as well, so it’s really satisfying.
“I think when I did miss those games at the start of the summer, after just being made captain, it probably made me feel like it might not work out.
“But I just think I’m lucky with the support I’ve had not only just the last six months, but it’s been 10 years in this team for Australia.
“I think the group has just been incredible in terms of being open to anything, and being flexible, and we’ve grown and evolved in the last six months more than I’ve ever seen (before), so I’m extremely proud.”
Heading into the tournament, while Australia were still viewed among the favourites there was no shortage of pundits insisting they had lost their edge, that the gap had closed, that their star-power was fading in a post Meg Lanning and Alyssa Healy era.
Equally, there was the lingering spotlight on the decision to name Molineux captain that had hovered since her appointment in January.
There were reasonable concerns around her significant injury history, which were only exacerbated by that recent back injury, alongside the more ill-informed takes about whether Molineux – who had not missed selection when fit and available for more than two years – warranted a place in Australia’s best XI without the ‘c’ next to her name.
In response, Australia produced their most dominant run ever at a T20 World Cup, with Molineux their leading wicket-taker.
It was their third undefeated campaign alongside their 2010 and 2023 wins, but where they edged home in a thriller in the final against New Zealand in 2010, and survived a serious scare in the 2023 semi-final against India in Cape Town, they were scarcely pressured at any point through this tournament.
Now, Molineux believes the sky is the limit for her team, who brought a new swashbuckling brand to this T20 World Cup and walked away with their seventh title.
“We’re always in the business of trying to get better,” Molineux said.
“We don’t think we’ve reached any ceilings yet, and this team has got generational talent from young girls like Lucy Hamilton right to the other end of the spectrum with Ellyse Perry, Beth Mooney.
“I think we’re in this really beautiful spot where everyone wants to play for each other, and they’re committing to how we want to play.
“So long may that live.”
Molineux, meanwhile, was broadly praised for her first World Cup campaign as skipper, with the chorus from outside the team joining those inside the Australian camp, who had been extolling her virtues since their arrival on English soil in late May.
“I think Soph has been an amazing leader in Australian cricket for a number of years,” Mooney told reporters following the final.
“For those of us in the thick of it, we’ve seen that externally at the Melbourne Renegades.
“There were some concerns about her taking over the leadership of this team, but internally we all knew it was the right call.
“She’s got a great temperament about her, a great tactical nous, and good with people. I think there’s only a handful of players I’ve played under that have the skill, the temperament, and their tactical side of the game that can make it work.
“I think Soph’s done amazingly.”
ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026
Australia squad: Sophie Molineux (c), Ashleigh Gardner (vc), Tahlia McGrath (vc), Nicola Carey, Kim Garth, Lucy Hamilton, Grace Harris, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham. Travelling reserve: Tahlia Wilson
Australia’s fixtures
June 13: beat South Africa by 65 runs
June 17: beat Bangladesh by nine wickets
June 20: beat Netherlands by 98 runs
June 24: beat Pakistan by 113 runs
June 28: beat India by six wickets
Semi-final 1: Australia beat West Indies by eight wickets
(Semi-final 2: England beat South Africa by 40 runs)
Final: Australia beat England by seven wickets
Click here for the full tournament schedule
All matches available to replay on Amazon’s Prime Video
