Australia captain Alyssa Healy will miss her team’s 2025 Women’s World Cup match against England at Holkar Stadium in Indore on Wednesday. The 35-year-old was ruled out after sustaining a minor calf strain at training on Saturday, forcing her to miss her side’s penultimate match of the league phase.
In Healy’s absence, Tahlia McGrath is likely to lead Australia on Wednesday with Beth Mooney taking over the gloves. Georgia Voll could open the batting with Phoebe Litchfield.
Australia have already qualified for the semi-finals with Healy playing an important hand in their progress. The right-hander is the tournament’s highest run-getter so far, with 294 runs in four matches at an average of 98. She has amassed two centuries, both in chases, against India and Bangladesh, respectively, and given her side consistently brisk starts at the top of the order.
Her 142 off 107 balls helped Australia chase down India’s steep target of 331 runs at Visakhapatnam, while her unbeaten knock of 113 from 77 balls paved the way for a crushing 10-wicket win over Bangladesh and confirmed their semi-final qualification.
“We pride ourselves in professionalism, we played well today to get the two points, we’ll come back and be prepared for the next match as well,” Healy had said at the end of the Bangladesh match.
The medical staff will monitor the wicketkeeper-batter in the lead-up to the final four fixture. This is the first 50-over World Cup where Healy has led Australia after Meg Lanning announced her international retirement in 2023.
Australia will finish their league phase with a game against South Africa at Indore on October 25. If they face India in the semi-final, the match will happen at the D.Y.Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. If Pakistan doesn’t qualify for the final, the final will also happen at the same venue on November 2.
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“Really unfortunate there for Midge [Healy] but we know we have got some options. It’s twofold. Obviously, it’s a big loss for us. She’s our captain, she’s made back-to-back hundreds, she’s certainly in some form with the bat. We talk about our depth a bit and that’s going to be tested. It’s going to provide some opportunities for others to step up into some role, which we’ve got the ability to cover. Whilst it’s not ideal, that’s why you bring 15 players to be able to absorb when things like this arise,” Australia head coach Shelley Nitschke said on Tuesday.
