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Superstar Ellyse Perry has shelved her personal disappointment of missing a historic Twenty20 World Cup final to help drive Australia's push for another title.
Ellyse Perry will not play at the MCG on Sunday but the injured superstar will play a key role at the historic Twenty20 World Cup final she shaped in so many senses.
Perry notably convinced teammates in 2016, when the original plan was to stage the male and female 2020 T20 World Cups concurrently, that women's cricket was ready to take centre stage in an Australian summer.
The gun allrounder has since been the face of women's cricket driving organisers' push for a near-capacity crowd in Melbourne on International Women's Day.
Over the past week her tears have become symbolic of the team's path to a decider against bogey side India.
In Australia's final pool game, the 29-year-old cut a distraught figure after suffering a tournament-ending hamstring injury.
At the SCG, she was overcome with joy while embracing teammates after their dramatic semi-final victory over South Africa.
"I got off the field after the game and she had tears in her eyes. And that made me tear, because you don't really see that emotion from Pez," fast bowler Megan Schutt told reporters.
"For her to show the pain the other day, you knew there was a serious injury there.
"To come off the field at the SCG and see the absolute pure joy in her eyes and the tears as well, I could have cried ... it shows the team character that she is."
Perry has remained with the squad as a well-qualified sounding board and source of support.
Prior to Thursday night, Perry had played in every one of Australia's 36 T20 World Cup matches since the event's inception in 2009.
"She's been great," captain Meg Lanning told reporters.
"Obviously not able to have the impact she would have liked but she's been really impressive around the group. Just being really positive, giving off any bit of experience she can.
"She's obviously been around the group for a long time and experienced a lot of these pressure moments ... it's nice to still have her around and she'll be playing a big role heading into Sunday."
Delissa Kimmince, who was recalled for the semi alongside Sophie Molineux as Australia attempted to fill the void left by Perry, praised the three-time Belinda Clark award winner for her pre-game advice and calming influence during the high-stakes clash.
"She was really good in the planning meetings," Kimmince said.
