Last time England hosted the women’s T20 World Cup, it was the inaugural tournament in 2009, arriving two years after the first men’s event in 2007.
Ellyse Perry was 18 years old at the time, just two years into her international career and playing as a specialist quick – and as a Matilda – with her emergence as the game’s greatest ever allrounder still some years away.
Then named the ‘World T20’, the men’s and women’s World Cups were held concurrently in 2009, with the eight women’s teams playing all of their group matches at Taunton’s county ground before venturing to the bigger stages of Trent Bridge, Lord’s and The Oval for double-header finals alongside the men.
Ellyse Perry at T20 World Cups
Titles: 6 | Matches: 47 | Runs: 503| HS: 42 | Ave: 27.94 | SR: 113.8 | 50s: 0
Wkts: 40 | Ave: 17.67 | Econ: 5.79 | BBI: 3-12 | 4w: 0
In 2026, the women are taking center stage in a standalone World Cup held across England’s most iconic venues – Lord’s, The Oval, Edgbaston and Old Trafford among the host grounds – and Perry is one of just seven women to have featured in all 10 editions of the T20 tournament.
The legend of Perry has grown alongside those nine T20 World Cups, helping Australia lift the trophy six times.
From the moment her right boot secured Australia’s first title in 2010, to the heartbreak of her torn hamstring on home soil in 2020, here’s a look back at Perry’s T20 World Cup history.
2009: England
Matches: 4 | Wkts: 2 | Ave: 43.5 | Econ: 7.56 | BBI: 1-13 | 4w: 0
Runs: 4 | HS: 4* | Ave: – | SR: 25 | 50s: 0
Perry was just 18 years old when the first Women’s T20 World Cup was held in England in 2009 and juggling her cricket commitments with playing international soccer for the Matildas.
She was still very much in her specialist quick era at the inaugural tournament and picked up two wickets across the four matches she played. Her highlight was capturing the key wicket of England captain Charlotte Edwards in what was ultimately a narrow semi-final defeat to the hosts.
2010: West Indies
Matches: 5 | Wkts: 8 | Ave: 10.75 | Econ: 5.21 | BBI: 3-18
Runs: 6 | HS: 5 | Ave: 3 | SR: 46.15
Twelve months on from that first tournament in the UK, Perry had rapidly grown in stature. She ended up being Australia’s leading wicket-taker as they claimed their first title in the Caribbean, taking eight wickets ahead of Lisa Sthalekar’s six.
That final in Barbados produced one of the most iconic moments of Perry’s career, as she thwarted New Zealand’s Sophie Devine in the final over to seal the trophy.
Perry had already picked up the crucial wickets of Suzie Bates and Amy Satterthwaite in the first eight overs, then returned to again halt the White Ferns’ momentum when she had Nicola Brown caught behind on 20 in the 18th.
With Perry bowling the final over, Devine needed five runs to win, or four to force a Super Over. The Kiwi hammered a powerful straight drive – a shot that should have rocketed down the ground to the boundary – but Perry reacted quickly and stuck out her right foot and deflect the ball to mid-on, conceding just a single.
2012: Sri Lanka
Matches: 5 | Wkts: 6 | Ave: 20.66 | Econ: 6.2 | BBI: 2-19
Runs: DNB
Perry’s services with the bat were not required at all as Australia sealed a second-straight title, but she made her impact with the ball, finishing as Australia’s second highest wicket-taker behind Julie Hunter.
After going wicketless in their opening game against India, Perry picked up as least one wicket through each of Australia’s remaining matches, including 2-19 in their semi-final win against the West Indies – taking the key wickets of Stafanie Taylor and Deandra Dottin. In the final, she claimed the scalp of England star Sarah Taylor to help seal a thrilling four-run win.
2014: Bangladesh
Matches: 6 | Runs: 106 | HS: 41* | Ave: 53 | SR: 116.48
Wkts: 8 | Ave: 12.87 | Econ: 5.15 | BBI: 3-12
By the time Australia claimed a third consecutive title in Bangladesh in 2014, Perry was emerging as a key allrounder.
She was Australia’s second highest wicket-taker at the tournament behind Sarah Coyte, picking up eight wickets across six matches including 3-12 against Pakistan in Sylhet.
Perry was also Australia’s third highest run scorer, finishing unbeaten in three of her five innings and scoring 41 not out from 29 deliveries in a group stage game against South Africa.
Australia once again met England in the final, with Perry’s all-round display of 31no and 2-13 from four overs helping seal a six-wicket win.
2016: India
Matches: 6 | Runs: 109 | HS: 42 | Ave: 27.25 | SR: 90.08
Wkts: 3 | Ave: 36.33 | Econ: 5.89 | BBI: 2-13
Perry’s 2016 campaign in India was a quieter one with the ball as she took three wickets across six matches.
With the bat, she produced a tournament-best 42 from 48 deliveries in a group stage loss to New Zealand in Nagpur, at an event where Australia finished runners-up to West Indies to miss out on a shot at four consecutive titles.
2018: West Indies
Matches: 6 | Runs: 60 | HS: 39* | Ave: 60 | SR: 122.44
Wkts: 9 | Ave: 9.88 | Econ: 5.56 | BBI: 3-16
The dominance of Australia’s top-order batters meant Perry’s time in the middle was limited in the Caribbean, facing a total of 49 balls across five innings during the group stage and semi-final and finishing unbeaten on four occasions. Her services with the bat were not required as Australia claimed an emphatic win against England in the final.
With the ball she made her presence known, however, finishing as Australia’s third most prolific wicket-taker behind Ashleigh Gardner and Megan Schutt, who took 10 apiece.
In the semi-final against West Indies in Antigua she took 2-2 from two overs, including a maiden, capturing the prized wicket of Deandra Dottin.
In the final, she removed England’s best player Natalie Sciver-Brunt to help secure a fourth title.
2020: Australia
Matches: 4 | Runs: 26 | HS: 21 | Ave: 13 | SR: 130
Wkts: 1 | Ave: 65 | Econ: 5.41 | BBI: 1-15
Perry’s home World Cup campaign started with a golden duck in Sydney as Australia went down to India in the opening game of the tournament.
She helped see Australia home alongside Meg Lanning in a nervy match against Sri Lanka in Perth and chipped in with a 15-ball 21 against Bangladesh in Canberra.
Her best showing with the bat came against New Zealand in a must-win match in Melbourne, scoring 23no from 16, but that match ended in disaster for Perry, who suffered a severe hamstring injury during Australia’s fielding innings and subsequently missed both the semi-final and the final.
2023: South Africa
Matches: 6 | Runs: 60 | HS: 40 | Ave: 20 | SR: 162.16
Wkts: 3 | Ave: 16.33 | Econ: 6.12 | BBI: 1-4
Perry entered the 2023 World Cup in South Africa on a hot streak with the bat, having transformed herself after being dropped from the T20I XI just 12 months earlier due to her flagging strike rate.
While she did not show the best of those performances across her six matches, she did hit a handy 22-ball 40 against New Zealand in Paarl and ended the tournament with a strike rate of 162.16, underlining her reinvention and new-found power game.
With the ball, Perry bowled in every game but was sparsely used, never sending down more than two overs.
2024: United Arab Emirates
Matches: 5 | Runs: 132 | HS: 32 | Ave: 33 | SR: 122.22 | Wkts: DNB
Deployed in the middle order throughout the tournament in the UAE, Perry made a series of starts as Australia got through the group stage unscathed, with her top score of 32 from 23 coming against India in Sharjah.
She was the standout as Australia posted a below-par 134 in the semi-final, hitting 31 off 23 in what was ultimately a heartbreaking defeat to South Africa. Perry did not bowl at any stage throughout the tournament.
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 Group 1 fixtures
June 13: v South Africa, Old Trafford, Manchester, 11:30pm AEST
June 17: v Bangladesh, Headingley, Leeds, 7:30pm AEST
June 20: v Netherlands, Rose Bowl, Hampshire, 7:30pm AEST
June 24: v Pakistan, Headingley, Leeds, 3:30am AEST
June 28: v India, Lord’s, London, 11:30pm AEST
Semi-final 1: The Oval, London, June 30, 11:30pm AEST
Semi-final 2: The Oval, London, July 2 (3:30am July 3 AEST)
Final: Lord’s, London, July 5, 11:30pm AEST
Click here for the full tournament schedule
All matches will be broadcast on Amazon’s Prime Video
