Ellyse Perry is unlikely to be fit for the remainder of the World T20, having suffered a hamstring injury during Australia’s four-run win over New Zealand this morning.
The all-rounder, who is a superstar of the sport and the lynchpin of the Aussie side, attacked a ball struck to her at mid-off, before picking-up and throwing at the non-strikers end whilst off-balance. Landing on the turf, she immediately clutched her right hamstring, signalling that damage had been done.
As she hobbled off the Junction Oval, Perry displayed the sort of emotion of someone who expects not to recover until after the trophy is lifted; whether or not she does so may well determine if it’s the Aussie skipper Meg Lanning who’ll get the honour.
Taking a quick look at the stats, Perry’s importance to Australia’s T20 is clear for all to see. She’s ranked as the No.1 all-rounder in the ICC World Rankings, averaging a smidge under 30 with the bat and 19 with the ball, across 120 T20 internationals.
Capable of bludgeoning the ball to all parts and swinging it at pace, the 29-year-old is a stalwart of this Australian side and has been central to so many of their triumphs in white-ball tournaments.
She’s been named ICC Cricketer of the Year on two occasions, has won the Belinda Clarke Medal (reserved for Australia’s player of the season) three times, and is seen by many in the game as the greatest female cricketer of all time.
In short, despite the odd injury niggle, Perry is a supreme player and a huge loss for this Australian team and their chances of winning the World T20 on home soil.