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Australia's Twenty20 World Cup hero Beth Mooney says 'the world is changing' as she reflects on the one-year anniversary of a life-changing cricket tournament.
International Women's Day marks the one-year anniversary of Australia's Twenty20 World Cup triumph, a reminder for Beth Mooney of how "the world is changing" amid her own rise and rise.
Mooney dominated the T20 World Cup, scoring a record-breaking 259 runs at 64.75 to be named player of the tournament.
The 27-year-old topscored in the MCG final, attended by a crowd of 86,174, then topped last month's Belinda Clark award count to rubber stamp an ascension to cricket's elite.
A recently-released documentary, which tracks Australia's inconsistent World Cup plus the organising committee's bid to fill the MCG, shed further light on Mooney's achievement.
The Queenslander is the self-deprecating star of the production, describing herself as a "s***kicker from Hervey Bay" while opening up about the doubt, anxiety and pressure associated with her job.
"I feel like in cricket, people never talk about the demons that sit on your shoulder," Mooney says in The Record, discussing a dismissal.
"I'm not the kindest person to myself at the best of times. I just thought 'you're a f***ing idiot' because you've just gone and lost the World Cup for your team."
Mooney hopes her honesty is as well received by fans as teammates, and might help some viewers.
"Nobody is immune to the feelings that you get when you're under pressure. Whether it's during a game, a media interview or anything in life," she told AAP.
"It was about showing the public that we're all human, we go through similar emotions and thoughts.
"Watching it brought back lots of really fond memories. It also brought back the feelings associated with all those emotions we went though before that phenomenal World Cup final."
There are fears about cutbacks in other countries stalling the development and momentum of the women's game, which received an almighty boost a year ago.
Mooney is confident the documentary has captured what will prove a seminal moment.
"It's the start of something that is hopefully going to create equal opportunity for girls around the country," she said.
"It's a reminder for people who were there on the day, and people who weren't, that the world is changing."
National captain Meg Lanning praised Mooney for offering a great insight into cricketers and athletes' minds.
"It probably looked from the outside like she had everything under control - it's all good - but there is a lot mentally that goes into playing," Lanning said.
"The documentary shows how much we care. That it's not always all good, there's times when you really doubt yourself."
Mooney speaks frankly about a range of topics in The Record.
It was only when vice-captain Rachael Haynes sent a message, having approved the final cut, that the world's top-ranked T20 batter got a sense of just how frank she had been.
"She just said 'Moons, you're so funny in this'. I was thinking - oh god, what have I said," Mooney recalled.
"I tend to say things I probably shouldn't.
"I don't know how some of the stuff I said scraped through.
"All the girls are very excited it has come to life. It's a story that needs to be told and a perspective that needs to be shared."
Mooney would currently be nearing the end of a one-day World Cup in New Zealand if the COVID-19 pandemic did not unravel cricket's international schedule.
Instead, she recently clobbered a record-breaking 163 for Queensland and must wait until 2022 for that 50-over tournament.
"You can't get angry or upset (about the delay) ... it's pretty easy to find perspective given lots of people's lives have been turned upside down," Mooney said.
"Some countries are really plagued by COVID-19. We're among the lucky ones."
