Focus is on winning every match and not on records, says Australia skipper Lanning

Australia captain Meg Lanning said although they are delighted about the position the team is in, the focus is on winning every match they play after their four-wicket victory against New Zealand in the second ODI at Allan Border Field, Brisbane on Monday (October 5). Australia are on a 20-match winning streak in the 50-over format. The last time they lost an ODI was in October 2017, and the last series defeat was in June 2017.



"We haven't spoken about the record as a group. Obviously, we are aware of it. It's been in the media and spoken about a fair bit. It's just a nice position to be in I guess," Lanning said during the post-match media interaction.



Chasing 253, Australia were off to a good start despite losing Alyssa Healy early. Rachael Haynes and Lanning put on a 117-run partnership for the third wicket. Though Haynes got out for 82, Lanning took it on herself to see through the chase with a brilliant century.



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On their successful run while chasing targets in ODIs, Lanning said that it is more about getting themselves in early on, and then build partnerships during a chase. "For us, it's just about getting to 40 overs with wickets in hand, and then if we needed to step the foot down a little bit, we could," she said. "But we didn't need to today. We were able to keep the run-rate in control, and finish it off a little bit early which is good."



While speaking about her partnership with Haynes, Lanning said that they complement each other's game well, and the left-hand, right-hand combination helps them is disrupting the opposition bowlers. "We are just able to build a good connection I guess. When one of us going, the other one is just hitting the ones and getting them on strike. It just flips throughout the partnership. I guess that's why we work so well," she said.



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The 28-year-old was happy with the way youngsters like Annabel Sutherland and Sophie Molineux have performed in this series. She said that the way Sutherland was attacking took the pressure off her, adding, "To allow her to play in that situation is a great experience for her. Sophie Molineux as well, coming in as a batter, she hasn't batted a lot for Australia."



After a quiet T20I series, Lanning has turned it around personally with the bat. She has scored a half-century and a century so far in this series and felt that the 50-over format suits her game better.



"It's been nice to get out here in the 50-over format, spend a little bit more time in the middle and not really have that scoreboard pressure to get it moving as much as, perhaps, in the T20s. It probably sits a little bit more natural with me, just to be able to build the innings and accelerate if I need to," she concluded.