Allrounder hopes her middle-order display can be a blueprint for the rest of the tournament
Having brushed off an ill-timed ankle sprain, Ashleigh Gardner hopes her rapid half-century against the Netherlands can be a launching pad for the remainder of her T20 World Cup with the bat.
Gardner returned after one match on the sidelines to take on the Dutch team in Southampton, smashing a 32-ball 58 coming in at No.4.
She shared in a 101-run partnership with Beth Mooney, who hammered a 42-ball 74 of her own before retiring due to back spasms.
While the game was a mismatch against the world’s top-ranked team and their 14th-ranked opposition, the allrounder said her innings was a solid base for the rest of the tournament.
“My ankle’s good – I’d made a full recovery to be able to be confident enough to play today,” Gardner said.
“It’s certainly still bruised … but all is good.
“I’m taking a lot of confidence out of that, being able to spend some time out in the middle with ‘Moons’.
“We’ve had plenty of partnerships, probably more so in the ODI format, but being able to bounce ideas off her – she’s spent so much time out in the middle and really leads from the front.
“For me, it’s just taking a lot of confidence out of spending time out there.
“It was a missed opportunity in that first game for me and then I missed the second game, but I guess being able to take confidence going into the back end of this tournament is hopefully going to do me the world of good.”
Australia posted a women’s T20 World Cup equal-record high total of 6-219 against the Netherlands, with Georgia Wareham (41 off 18) the other major contributor alongside Gardner and Mooney.
With the ball, however, there was a degree of frustration for the Australians, who took two Netherlands wickets in the Powerplay but were then denied for 15.1 overs as Babette de Leede and Sterre Kalis dug in with a 96-run stand that was only broken in the 20th over.
“From our team’s perspective, there’s plenty of positives to take out of that,” Gardner said of the batting innings.
“I felt like when people got in, they really went big – I guess our method is making sure that, if you’re out there and you’re spending a lot of time out in the middle, making sure that you’re making 50 to 70.
“Putting 200 on the board gives our team a lot of confidence going forward into the back end of the tournament.
“One of those things that (we’ll) need to focus on is what we could have done better going out onto the field.
“We were well-equipped about where they score, but we probably didn’t adapt fast enough … Sterre (Kalis) hit plenty of shots through point, and we leaked a few runs through there.
“Going forward, making sure that we can stay adaptable and being able to change on the run – that’s the main takeaway.”
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: beat South Africa by 65 runs
June 17: beat Bangladesh by nine wickets
June 20: beat Netherlands by 98 runs
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
