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Legspinner Grace Parsons and fast Nicola Hancock both shone on their Australia A debuts as the home team won the T20 series against India A by eight wickets, demonstrating the depth of players available.
The two had arrived in Australia a team that substituted Maitlan Brown and Tayla Vlaeminck, ultimately amassing 7 for 44 from eight overs. Subsequently, Tahlia Wilson scored consecutive half-centuries to take command of the chase, which she finished with 10 deliveries remaining.
Parsons, a 20-year-old member of the Brisbane Heat WBBL team, had only played in the WNCL for Queensland before, so this was her first T20 match. She took four wickets, including the crucial one of Priya Punia, who top-scored in this innings with 29 off 26 balls after playing brilliantly in the first match. After taking two more wickets in the span of three balls, Parsons ended her spell.
After Courtney Sippel was forced to withdraw due to injury, Hancock was a last-minute addition to the team. She took the opening wicket with Nicole Faltum making a superb sprinting catch to remove Shweta Sehrawat off a top edge, conceding just 14 runs in her three overs.
India A struggled to gain momentum due to the frequent loss of wickets, and between the 11th and 13th overs, they once lost 3 for 10.
The aim did not budge. Australia A despite Katie Mack’s early withdrawal, as Wilson maintained her strong form in the early part of the season. After falling on the first ball in the first game, captain Tahlia McGrath contributed to her team’s speed to the goal with a barrage of boundaries in a stand of 69.