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Australian opener Alyssa Healy felt calm walking out to bat before her destructive 75 in the Twenty20 World Cup final against India.
Fearless Australian opener Alyssa Healy has described her Twenty20 World Cup final experience as a dream that will never be topped.
The wicketkeeper was all smiles walking out on the MCG in front of the biggest women's cricket crowd in history.
That grin never disappeared during the Twenty20 World Cup final, as she blasted 75 from 39 balls to write herself into Australian cricket folklore.
On a landmark evening for women's sport, fearless Healy's star shone bright as her destructive batting shellshocked India.
The 29-year-old said she felt calm heading out to bat in front of 86,174 fans.
"I don't think anything's ever going to top that," she said.
"For me, I never thought I would get the opportunity to do something as cool as what we did today and play in front of almost 90,000 people in a home World Cup final.
"It's a dream come true for me.
"I enjoyed every single minute. We just went out there and enjoyed the moment and we enjoy what we're able to create.
"Cricket's done some really amazing things in this country for female athletes and tonight was really just a celebration of that.
"Oddly the group was really calm ... I've never seen the group quite that calm and it was the same in the semi-final."
She entered the World Cup seriously out-of-form, scoring 15 runs at just three across five games against England and India.
But she never got down on herself, neither did the team, and knew she would eventually turn it around.
"I was getting the same feedback from everyone ... that's my role in the side (is to play aggressive)," Healy said.
"I've had an unbelievable ride over the last two years with not a lot of low scores so for me it (a form slump) was always bound to happen."
Healy says she will claim bragging rights on her husband Mitchell Starc, who flew back from South Africa to watch the final.
Fast bowler Starc skittled New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum's wicket in a famous first over of the 2015 men's World Cup final on the same ground.
