The Fédération Internationale de Basketball (FIBA) hosted its 19th edition of the FIBA women’s world cup in Sydney, Australia, from the 22nd of September to the 1st of October 2022.
Australia (Host), United States, China, Canada, Belgium, France, Puerto Rico, Serbia, Japan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Korea and Mali were all the 12 teams that competed in the tournament from four confederations (Africa, Americas, Asia and Europe). Mali, Africa’s sole representative, crashed out in the group stage with five losses in 5 games and finished 11th in the competition’s final standing, with a set of teammates fighting each other.
Australia ( the hosts) were the biggest winner as they thrashed Korea 145 to 69 during the competition. The United States recorded the largest winning margin in the competition for a semifinal as they beat Canada 83 to 43.
The hosts, Australia, were the most impressive team of the tournament as they won the hearts of their natives and other basketball-loving fans with their intriguing and astounding performances. A new look United States team’s road to the final was predictable as they won all possible games and defeated China in the finals 83 to 61 at the Sydney Superdome in front of 15,895 fans (the highest ever recorded). Australia procured the bronze medal as they defeated Canada 95 to 65, which means a straight ticket to the Paris 2024 Women’s Olympic Basketball Tournament. At the end of the tournament, new awards were announced too, including the Best Defensive Player, Best coach and All-Second team. A’Ja Wilson was named Most Valuable Player, Alyssa Thomas was awarded The Best Defensive Player, Zheng Wei won the Best Coach, and the All-Second Team were Alyssa Thomas, Arella Guirantes, Yvonne Anderson and Li Yueru. According to organizers, a total of 145,519 fans attended the tournament ̶the highest attendance ever recorded in the history of the tournament.
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