“No ego, not a dictatorship”: Alyssa Healy on Australia’s captaincy approach

Ahead of the first ODI against India, Australian skipper Alyssa Healy shed light on her approach as a captain, saying that it is not about ego or dictatorship but rather encouraging the next generation of leaders from the group to have a voice.

The first ODI of the three-match series between India and Australia will take place in Mumbai on Thursday. Healy took over the captaincy from multi-time World Cup winner Meg Lanning, who shockingly announced her retirement from international cricket in November.

This comes after Australia lost the one-off Test to India by eight wickets.
“There is no ego in me being captain. It’s not a dictatorship. I am not here to tell anybody how to play. It’s more about encouraging the next generation of leaders within our group, and we have got some amazing senior players who are captaining domestic teams. We have got the next generation of superstars coming through, closing that gap and ensuring that they can lead themselves and drive the way they want to play the game. I am encouraging everyone to have their voice. That is important to make this team successful for the next 10-15 years,” said Healy to JioCinema.

On taking over from Lanning as captain, Healy said that they are huge shoes to fill.
“It is a huge shoe to fill. We know how successful Meg was as a player and also as a captain of the Australian team. It is not lost on me that there are some really big shoes to fill. From my perspective, it is a nice opportunity to see how I would go and take the team into the next generation and the next version of the legacy that they want to create. It is really exciting to get the role full-time. I have been filling in for the last twelve months,” said Healy.

Talking about learning from the Women’s Premier League, where she represents UP Warriorz, Healy said that the league has given her a newfound appreciation for players who play for India, and sitting with them is an eye-opening experience.

“The WPL opened my eyes to what it’s like to be an Indian cricketer. We have traditionally come here and played as an Australian team against India. With the WPL, I’ve got a new appreciation for the boys and girls who play cricket in India. It does not give us an upper hand as to what conditions to expect, but we just adapt. Getting to know all the girls is something we don’t get to do at the international level. But to sit in the same room as someone like Deepti Sharma and see how she goes about things was an eye-opening experience,” Healy said.

Talking about her husband Mitchell Starc’s record Indian Premier League (IPL) deal with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Healy recalled, “I was at the gym preparing for the Test match (against India) at the time of the bid. Initially, it was a shock and amazement that such a bid could happen. It is a crazy amount of money. From his (Mitchell Starc’s) point of view, it is an opportunity to get back and experience the IPL. He has not been here for eight years, so for him, it is an exciting opportunity to experience a new team and a new franchise and play a significant role for them.”

In a history-making move, Starc was bought by KKR for a whopping Rs 24.75 crore just hours after his skipper, Pat Cummins, breached the Rs 20 crore mark after being bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), becoming the most expensive player in the history of the IPL at the auction in Dubai recently.
Talking about the cultural differences between India and Australia, Healy pointed out that Aussies are not fanatical about any one sport and love all their athletes.

“In Australia, we love sport. We are not overtly fanatical about any one sport. We just love our athletes. Over here, certain cricketers are celebrities, and the Harmanpreet Kaurs and the Smriti Mandhanas are on the billboard. That’s a big deal over here. For me, that was eye-opening to see what they have to deal with day-in-and-day-out and how much fans in particular want you to win,” said Healy.