Marizanne Kapp hit two boundaries but was out for 11 and South Africa captain Sune Luus was run out for two. At that stage the home side needed another 103 runs off 56 balls. Wolvaardt and the hard-hitting Chloe Tryon gave a near-capacity crowd of about 15,000 hope with an attacking fourth wicket partnership of 55 off 37 balls, but the match was effectively over when Wolvaardt was leg before wicket to Megan Schutt in the 17th over.

Also read: Women's T20 World Cup final: 'Invincible' Australia stand between South Africa and their fairytale

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The left-handed Mooney played a measured innings, scoring her 74 runs off 53 balls while a succession of partners batted aggressively. Ash Gardner and Grace Harris both batted ahead of captain Meg Lanning and appeared to be under instructions to go for their shots. South Africa’s bowlers performed steadily and were backed up by enthusiastic fielding. Stalwarts Shabnim Ismail and Kapp both took two wickets each. But Australia showed their quality in defending their total with athleticism and commitment that put the South African batters under constant pressure.

Brief scores

Australia 156-6 in 20 overs (B Mooney 74', A Gardner 29; S Ismail 2-26, M Kapp 2-35) beat SA 137-6 in 20 overs (L Wolvaardt 61, C Tryon 25; A Gardner 1-20, J Jonassen 1-21, D Brown 1-25) by 19 runs

6
No of Women’s T20 World Cup titles won by Australia