Either way the Aussies won it, and at a canter. They demolished the Windies in their semi-final and steam-rollered England in the final, despite a nervy fielding performance, which gave Danni Wyatt, England's top scorer with 43, three lives before she was eventually caught by a tumbling Meg Lanning at extra cover.
Overall the cricket in the tournament was a bit of a disappointment, with very few tight games and the divide between Australia and the rest very noticeable. Australia will undoubtedly continue to dominate women's cricket for several years to come, as no other nation has yet grasped the nettle of having a professional domestic structure, as the Aussies did two years ago. It is a level which is required below the elite contracted few at the top of the pyramid, so that there is competition for places amongst the elite, and so that there is also a natural financial progression, both up and down, a player's cricketing career.
Australia now have over 100 fully professional women cricketers. Cricket really is a realistic career option in Australia for young girls. It is not in any other country. To decide to be a cricketer in England, South Africa, India or the West Indies is still a leap of faith that you will make it to the top 20 in your country, and that you will stay there. If you cannot stay in that top 20 then cricket will not support you. If you have a potential career as a doctor, a lawyer or an accountant, then it is a very stark choice.
Despite the Aussie dominance there were glimmers of hope for other nations. England will be pleased that they made it to the final, despite their batting never really coming to terms with Windies' conditions. India looked like a side that had suddenly worked out how to play T20 cricket, and their win over Australia was thoroughly deserved, but they became too formulaic in their semi-final against England and paid the price. T20 is a dynamic game, which needs dynamic captaincy. The Windies too were a treat to watch, with their swashbuckling batting at the fore in St Lucia, along with their seam attack, both suited by the Daren Sammy Stadium pitches. On the Antigua pudding they were always going to struggle. They could be a force to be reckoned with on Australian wickets in 15 months time, when the next Women's T20 World Cup will be held.
And talking of the West Indians, the crowds, particularly in St Lucia, were brilliant. The atmosphere for the West Indies v England game was fabulous, and when the Windies won they were genuinely dancing in the stands. They all seem to have natural rhythm, although they must also all have hearing problems!
Another gripe though has to be the umpiring, which was poor, and in some cases laughable. Quite how any umpire, at any level, could have missed the massive snick that Nat Sciver got to a wide deliver that she edged behind in the Windies game, is beyond comprehension. I loved Dan Norcross' tweet later in the game when Anya Shrubsole clubbed one to Deandra Dottin at cover point...
There were also a lot of poor lbw decisions, many of them missed on review by teams that had no experience of the DRS system that was available to them for the first time. And the whole "running on the wicket 5 penalty runs" drama in St Lucia was ridiculous, and put added pressure on young inexperienced cricketers, just trying to play the game. Women's cricket deserves the best umpires that are available, not the ones that may be the most politically correct. Let's hope that the best get to stand in Australia in 2020.
And finally how did I get on with my predictions :-
No 1 - Chloe Tryon will be the leading player for South Africa
No I can't claim that one, although to be fair, none of the South Africans looked that flash in this tournament.
No 2 - Ireland will break several records...that they don't want to break
It was a tough tournament for Ireland, as it was always going to be. They are the only amateur set-up in the tournament. They did lose to New Zealand by eight wickets, with 75 balls to spare, which was a T20 World Cup record.
The other "record" Ireland broke was that they were the first team to successfully use DRS to overturn an umpiring decision.
No 3 - Mithali Raj will open the batting for India and bat too slowly
Well not right, but perhaps the thinking behind the prediction tallied with that of the Indian management, as Raj did not open in India's opening victory over New Zealand, but helped herself to 50s at the top of the order against Bangladesh and Ireland, and then missed the Australia group game through "illness". She was then dropped for the semi-final rematch with the Aussies, which India lost, since when all Hell has been broken loose.
So, wrong, but in a "rightish" sort of way?
No 4 - Shemaine Campbelle will be the West Indies player of the tournament
Others had better tournaments, but Campbelle showed her potential with her match-winning knock of 45 against England. One for the future.
No 5 - Nat Sciver will be England's player of the tournament
So, wrong, but in a "rightish" sort of way?
No 4 - Shemaine Campbelle will be the West Indies player of the tournament
Others had better tournaments, but Campbelle showed her potential with her match-winning knock of 45 against England. One for the future.
No 5 - Nat Sciver will be England's player of the tournament
I think I will claim this one. In St Lucia she turned up with the ball as England filled their team with spinners, perhaps at the expense of her batting. In the semi-final she and Amy Jones used both their skills and their noggins, to get England into the final, as the Indians lost the plot.
No 6 - New Zealand will not make it to the semi-finals
No 6 - New Zealand will not make it to the semi-finals
Spot on. After their opening defeat to India they were always playing catch up and by the fourth day of the tournament their T20 World Cup was over as they lost to Australia.
No 7 - Sri Lanka will win a big game against England, South Africa or the WindiesThat's a definite "No", although they did take a point off of England...but only with the help of the rain. If Bangladesh could bat then they would have lost to them as well, but they can't so they will be at the 2020 T20 World Cup as of right. Let's hope they can reverse the current downward trend.
No 8 - Harmanpreet Kaur will be India's player of the tournament
Well she was certainly up there for the Indians. Her majestic 103 against the Kiwis was the innings of the tournament, and her 43 against the Aussies was only overshadowed by Mandhana's 83. Her captaincy in the semi-final was my only concern.
No 9 - Sophie Molineux will be THE player of the tournament
Molineux actually had a very quiet tournament, even though she played every game ahead of Jess Jonassen. She only took 4 wickets and got hit for 45 runs in the Indian defeat. Aussie management obviously have a lot of faith in her though. Watch out for her in the WBBL.
No 10 - THE BIG ONE - Australia will win the WWT20
It's the one I actually started with when I first wrote my predictions down and there was never much doubt, despite the wobble against the Indians.
It was a great three weeks, in two great countries, and it was a privilege to be there. It was a shame that most of the "mainstream cricketing press" weren't.
Martin Davies
28/XI/18
28/XI/18
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