Fire still burning in Ellyse Perry as Cricket World Cup heats up
In the middle of her fifth Cricket World Cup, and on the quest to win it a third time, the modern day great is in no mood to slow down.
By Daniel Beswick in Colombo
How does one continue to strive for greatness when you’ve already won it all?
It’s a question fitting only for a select few. Thankfully, a modern-day great, an ICC Player of the Decade winner and a future ICC Hall of Famer in Ellyse Perry is on hand.
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An integral part of a well-oiled Australian machine that continues to churn out victories, at a level only comparable to great women’s teams in other sports, wondering what is possible and not just what beats an opposition on a match-to-match basis is where the drive is found.
“I think for all of us (in the Australian team) we don't want to stand still and I don't think you can in elite sport, it doesn't matter what the sport is,” Perry told the press in Colombo ahead of their Cricket World Cup meeting with Pakistan on Wednesday.
“There's always progress and change and innovation. It's nice to keep finding ways to do that because otherwise I guess the only other option is going backwards.
“I think as a group, we just want to continue to find new potential and play the best cricket we can that hopefully is really exciting and entertaining, but also is really challenging for us to achieve.”
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Australia have lifted the Cricket World Cup seven times in its 13 editions, though the engravings on the trophy outline the difficulties of going back-to-back - the Australian side across the 1978, 1982 and 1988 tournaments are the last to have achieved the feat.
In the eyes of Perry, the idea of a repeat of 2022 is even more difficult with the parity across the tournament now in 2025.
“We love the challenge of continuing to find new ways to get better. There's so much competition in the global landscape now,” Perry continued.
“There are so many good teams, but I also think ultimately that's why you want to play.
“The challenges that are available are really exciting.”
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Of course, to help in the continued endeavour for improvement, previous experience plays a big part. Fittingly, exactly 13 years to the day of Australia’s Women’s T20 World Cup win in Sri Lanka at the same location, the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium, memories of winning came flooding back.
The Colombo leg has given the all-rounder the chance to reminisce, and to see where she has come from.
“Whenever you come back to somewhere that you've, I suppose, been before, there are certain recollections. Often like being in the physical space that you're in all those years ago.
“It's always nice to come back to places that you're familiar with and have good memories.”
“I'd like to think vastly different (to 2012), I suppose I was only like 21 or 22 then, but at the same time things remain the same as well.
“I've experienced and learned a lot since then, been through a lot, and you always want to grow as a person.”
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On the field, Perry’s evolution as a player from a 16-year-old to now has seen her move up the batting order from as far down as No.9 and No.10 to the key cog in an Australian middle order, entrusted at No.3 even in a side overflowing with batting prowess.
And while Australia’s success may not hinge as much on her bowling as it once did, highlighted by her not being required to bowl in their first-up tournament victory against New Zealand, Perry feels the dynamic of the group and clarity from its support network diffuse any self-doubt for all 15 squad members.
“You've got to always be open and accepting to the fact that you can do things better, or there's a different way to look at things or there's opportunity to change.
“When you're in a really supportive environment, where people have always got the same outlook, It's really easy to do that - to stretch and extend you.
“But at the same time, it's not scary because you're supported.”
The clash in Colombo meanwhile provides an opportunity for Pakistan’s 23-year-old skipper and Fatima Sana to go up against her idol in Perry again, two years after meeting her hero in a bilateral ODI series in Australia.
Perry has kept a close eye on Fatima since the interaction, and the Australian’s praise of the all-rounder carries plenty of weight.
“She's an amazing player, a real talisman I think for the Pakistan team,” Perry said of the opposition skipper.
“I really enjoy seeing how much passion and energy she plays with, and she is very clearly a great teammate as well. You can see how much she supports and encourages and celebrates all of her teammates.
“She's incredibly talented too. All around her game is super strong.
“She's awesome to have in the game. So it's always nice when we get a chance to play against her.”
As for Wednesday’s encounter in Colombo, Perry says the defending champions are itching to feature in World Cup cricket again after their washout against Sri Lanka.
“It feels like a long time between matches now. Everyone's really looking forward to the opportunity to get back out there.
“(We’ve had) two training sessions to kind of prepare for what we're going to face tomorrow night. So, that's been a really good opportunity for us. It's just been nice to get out there.”