LONDON (AP) — Winning is what Australia is all about.
In the history of cricket's white ball world championships, the Australian women have won 13. The rest of the world has won nine.
This week, Australia start the 10th Women's Twenty20 World Cup ranked No. 1 and favored for a seventh title.
But thanks to being cricket's financial engine, India is making up for lost time. The men have won their last two T20 World Cups, the most recent in March, and the women won their first ODI World Cup last November.
That supercharged their confidence, so much so that in February they handed Australia its first T20 bilateral series defeat since 2017 and won in Australia for the first time in a decade.
“There's a belief in the team now that we can beat anybody in this world,” India seam bowler Arundhati Reddy said.
Eight years after Australia started the Women's Big Bash League, India launched the Women's Premier League in 2023 along the lines of the men's IPL. That has encouraged fearless strokeplay by the likes of Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh and Harmanpreet Kaur, who will captain India for the fifth time at her 10th T20 World Cup. The closest Kaur came to winning was in the 2020 final.
Australia, without a global trophy for the first time since 2017, began resetting while six-time T20 world champion Alyssa Healy phased herself out. Sophie Molineux has the captaincy, Beth Mooney the gloves, and Georgia Voll an opener's spot.
Voll and Mooney are the Nos. 1-2 ranked T20 batters, the great Ellyse Perry is gunning for her seventh title, and allrounder Annabel Sutherland has a shot at player of the tournament.
But one of Australia, India and South Africa in their group will miss the semifinals, and Australia has never missed out.
South Africa has reached the last three world finals (two T20s, one ODI) but an over-reliance on captain Laura Wolvaardt — averaging 54 in 13 innings this year — prompted the Proteas to persuade out of retirement fast bowler Shabnim Ismail, who is still ripping out batters in franchise competitions at 37, and Dane van Niekerk, the former captain who quit in controversy before the 2023 T20 World Cup.
Also in Group A are Pakistan, Bangladesh — playing in England for the first time — and first-time qualifier the Netherlands.
Group B in the first 12-team T20 World Cup features No. 2 England, New Zealand and the West Indies — all one-time champions — along with Ireland, Scotland and Sri Lanka. England and Sri Lanka open the tournament on Friday in Birmingham.
England's fitness was questioned at the last T20 World Cup and coach Charlotte Edwards, who captained England to victory at the inaugural 2009 tournament, has prioritized it. Captain Nat Sciver-Brunt sat out the recent home series wins over New Zealand and India due to a calf tear but has been passed fit to bat but not bowl until later.
New Zealand has 10 back from the 2024 champion side, including No. 1-ranked allrounder and new captain Melie Kerr. The Kiwis hope to farewell in style Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine and Lea Tahuhu, who share nearly 900 caps. “To have our three most senior players all finishing their careers at the same tournament is a rare and special occasion,” coach Ben Sawyer said.
The West Indies, spearheaded by captain Hayley Matthews and leg-spinner Afy Fletcher, welcomed a tri-nations series win over Ireland and Pakistan last week after being swept at home by Sri Lanka and Australia.
Sri Lanka is headlined by trailblazer Chamari Athapaththu, who has said this 10th T20 World Cup might not be her last; Ireland hope to end a 0-17 record in their fifth appearance; and Scotland has warmed up with a home tri-nations series win against Bangladesh and the Dutch.
The top two from both groups qualify for the semifinals at The Oval, with the final at Lord's on July 5 to cap 33 games in 24 days. Each knockout game has a reserve day.
Ticket sales weeks ago eclipsed the previous tournament record of 136,549 in 2020 in Australia, skewed by 86,000 at the Australia-India final at the MCG. Sales since have passed 160,000 and are tracking toward 200,000.
In another reward for the growth of women's cricket, prizemoney was up 10% from 2024 to $8.76 million, with the winner receiving $2.34 million.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
FILE -New Zealand's players pose with the trophy after winning the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2024 final match against South Africa at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri, File)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United States launched airstrikes early Wednesday against Iran, and Tehran fired back at countries in the region. The escalating attacks threatened to derail efforts to end the war, as U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Tehran would “pay the price” for stalled peace negotiations.
Trump’s warning came hours after Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan — all of which host U.S. troops — came under Iranian fire. It was the second time this week that back-and-forth strikes have tested a two-month ceasefire. On Monday, Iran and Israel targeted each other.
It was not clear what Trump’s post on Truth Social would mean for Tehran, and the comments underlined the American leader's whipsaw approach to the war. He suggested on Monday that a deal to end the conflict could be reached in a matter of days.
Iran, meanwhile, has proved resilient despite having faced weeks of heavy bombing. It is betting that its ability to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial passageway for the world’s oil and natural gas — gives it a strong bargaining chip.
Still, both countries seem to be looking for a way to end the conflict — if they can manage to sell it as a win at home. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears intent on pursuing much more difficult goals: the collapse of Iran’s theocratic government, the elimination of its nuclear program, and the destruction of the Iranian-allied Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. That will make compromise much harder.
Since the U.S. and Israel started the war with attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, the conflict has shaken the global economy, driven up energy prices around the world, and made food and other basics more expensive. The international benchmark for crude oil traded above $92 a barrel on Wednesday, up more than 25% since the start of the war.
In the latest strikes, U.S. fighter jets targeted “air defense, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites,” the military’s Central Command said. Iran acknowledged strikes around Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island, but gave no details on damage.
Iran’s top diplomat vowed that there would be a response, and Tehran later claimed attacks in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.
Jordan said it shot down five incoming missiles, which Iran said targeted the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. The base has hosted American F-35 fighter jets and other aircraft. Jordan’s state-run Petra news agency reported there were no injuries.
Bahrain and Kuwait said they intercepted incoming fire, without elaborating.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the American attacks as a violation of Iranian sovereignty in calls with his counterparts from Turkey and Saudi Arabia “and emphasized the inherent right of self-defense, including reciprocal action,” according to a post on his office's Telegram channel.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said in televised comments Wednesday that in light of the new attacks, Iran would review its stance on negotiations to end the war.
Efforts to mediate a deal were continuing. Following consultations with the U.S., a delegation from Qatar arrived in Tehran for talks on Wednesday, according to an official with knowledge of the visit who requested anonymity due to the sensitive of the talks.
The exchanges of fire came a day after a U.S. Army attack helicopter crashed near the Strait of Hormuz after colliding with an Iranian drone, according to a U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. It wasn’t clear whether the collision was intentional.
A drone boat rescued both of the helicopter’s crew, and Trump said they were uninjured.
Before he accused Iran of downing the U.S. helicopter, Trump expressed renewed optimism over negotiations with Iran, though he didn’t say why there was reason for hope.
While Trump, wary of high gas prices in the run-up to congressional elections in November, seems to be looking for a quick win, he is also making demands that will be tough for Iran to swallow.
The U.S. wants to see Iran give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium. While Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, that uranium is a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels.
Iran is refusing to give up the uranium and demanding relief from sanctions. It also wants the release of frozen assets even before a final agreement is in place, something Trump rejected.
It's not clear how those differences can be bridged — and Trump has repeatedly threatened to walk away from the talks. His Truth Social post Wednesday accused Iran of taking “too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!”
Meanwhile, Iran has continued to insist that any deal to end the war must also end fighting between its ally Hezbollah and Israel. Instead, Israel has intensified its military campaign against the militant group.
Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel would “continue to act forcefully against Iran and its proxies that threaten the Middle East and the entire world.”
Israel’s military said it launched multiple strikes in southern Lebanon over the past day, targeting Hezbollah infrastructure.
An airstrike on a village east of Tyre killed at least six people, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported. It said two others were killed by an Israeli drone strike on a car in the southern city of Sidon.
Guards aboard a cargo ship off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden exchanged fire with gunmen in a small boat and repelled their attack, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.
No group immediately claimed responsibility.
The UKMTO later reported a fire in the engine room of a tanker in the Gulf of Oman, near the Strait of Hormuz, saying one person was hurt and two others were missing. It wasn’t immediately known what caused the fire.
Associated Press writers David Rising in Bangkok; Bassem Mroue in Beirut; Michelle L. Price in New York; Will Weissert in Washington and Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed to this report.
A man runs past burning cars following an Israeli airstrike in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Wednesday, June 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
People take shelter as air raid sirens warn of incoming Iranian missiles in Ramat Gan, Israel, Monday, June 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
A projectile streaks through the sky over central Israel during an Iranian missile attack, Sunday, June 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
A cleric checks his cell phone on stage in front of a screen displaying portraits of the late Iranian revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, left, late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, center, and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, during a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, June 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A woman walks past a mural depicting a U.S. aircraft carrier under missile attack in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
