England will attempt to end a miserable past few years in the Women’s Ashes and topple Australia for the first time since 2014 when the multi-format series starts on Thursday.
Here, the PA news agency assesses some of the burning issues ahead of the curtain-raising one-off Test at Trent Bridge.
The greatest show
Heather Knight recently harked back to making her England debut in Mumbai in 2010 “in front of one man and his dog” and, as a student, having to explain to her tutor why she would be absent for a month. Thankfully those days are over. The England captain was given equal billing alongside men’s counterpart Ben Stokes on a Tower Bridge projection earlier this month and ticket sales for the ‘WAshes’ sit at a combined 80,000 for the seven matches. Even if there is still just a solitary Test, it will span five days in a break from the traditional four-day affair – giving both teams a chance to claim a first Ashes win in whites since 2015. Barriers continue to be breached for Knight’s side as they will also play T20s at Edgbaston, the Kia Oval and Lord’s for the first time.
Lanning absence evens the odds?
Australia are the double world champions and have held the urn for the last eight years, beating England on their own patch twice in that time. But Rachael Haynes retired last year and totemic captain Meg Lanning withdrew from the tour due to medical issues. Are Australia more vulnerable now? Unquestionably. Lanning is an exceptional captain and batter who was in red-hot form. But her temporary successor Alyssa Healy is also a quality player, as are Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ashleigh Gardner and Jess Jonassen. Australia are therefore red-hot favourites to continue their stranglehold over England.
Spotlight on England’s bowlers
While Australia brought over a couple of unproven talents, England also have a few inexperienced players in their line-up. Katherine Sciver-Brunt may have had a peripheral role given her scaling back of commitments but the seamer’s retirement robs England of some wisdom. Kate Cross is likely to lead the attack after insisting this week she is fit and ready following a battle with a parasitic illness that has cut into her playing time domestically. The uncapped Lauren Filer might be the ace in the hole, though, after being named in the Test XI with Knight telling the PA news agency: “She’s raw but she bowls wicket-taking deliveries, which is why we’ve picked her because we want to take 20 wickets.”
‘Jonball’ faces its acid test
Since succeeding Lisa Keightley as England head coach late last year, Jon Lewis has attempted to instil a more attacking mindset into his charges. Lewis has taken his cues from working briefly as a bowling coach for the England men’s side in the early stages of the Brendon McCullum-Ben Stokes axis last summer, sensing this is the best way to break Australia’s grip on women’s cricket. ‘Jonball’ – the term coined by star all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt – has had modest returns so far with a semi-final exit at the 2023 T20 World Cup but England will keep ploughing the same furrow.
Pressure on Heather?
The decision to jettison Charlotte Edwards and promote Knight as England captain a little over seven years ago was controversial at the time. But barely 12 months into the role, Knight justified her ascension by leading England to a seminal World Cup triumph. She remains the natural leader of this England team and her authoritative presence was missed at the sharp end of last year’s Commonwealth Games, a tournament she sat out because of injury. But she has been unable to land a telling blow in the Ashes, with one drawn series and two heavy points defeats. A third this summer might draw scrutiny on her position even if Australia are one of the greatest sides of all time in women’s sport.
Turning the tide: Windies captain Powell cautiously optimistic about comeback in T20 series against England
Though facing an uphill task in their five-match T20 series against England, West Indies captain Rovman Powell is cautiously optimistic that they can produce a comeback to not only overturn a challenging 2-0 deficit but to go all the way in the series.
Powell’s sentiments served as a rallying cry of sorts as they stare down a must-win situation in the third encounter at the Darren Sammy Cricket Ground in St Lucia on Thursday to keep the series alive.
Still, Powell expressed confidence that the Caribbean setting, coupled with a few strategic changes, will bolster their fightback.
“St. Lucia is always a good place for us. It provides an opportunity for us to play good cricket, and the wicket is generally a good one, probably the best one in the Caribbean,” Powell said in a pre-game interview.
“The people of St Lucia always come out to support us, which is also good, and so we're looking forward to the next three games. Hopefully they can come out and support us, and we can deliver some good cricket,” he added.
After two tough matches in Barbados, which England won by eight wickets and seven wickets, respectively, Powell emphasized the significance of a renewed focus while also pointing to the need for every player to take personal accountability heading into the crucial contest.
“I think it’s a case of each guy reflecting on how things have gone so far from an individual perspective to see if we as individuals are bringing enough to the table, and then we try our best to try to put it together as a team. We have areas that definitely need work, but the guys are in good spirits. We had a good training session today, so we’re hoping to hit the ground running,” Powell explained.
St Lucia is not only familiar territory but also presents a new beginning, especially with the return of key pacer Alzarri Joseph from a two-match suspension.
Powell believes Joseph’s presence will fortify a bowling attack that has struggled in the opening games, as England easily chased down 182 and 158 in both games.
“If you should look at our bowling department, we really needed him in those games. So, it's important for him to come and hit the straps and hit the ground running. As a bowling group, we have areas where we need to control the power play because the middle overs generally take care of themselves, and he will come to bowl some of those overs in the backend,” he shared.
Despite the uphill battle, Powell cited the Caribbean side’s recent successes over the past 18 months as a reminder of their potential.
“It's a little uncomfortable being 2-0 to be honest; it's a position that we haven't found ourselves in in a long time, but it's an opportunity for us to show what we are made of as a T20 team,” Powell declared.
“England is a team that we have played quite often these days, and we have had good results against them. It's just unfortunate that Barbados wasn't good for us in terms of T20 cricket, but St Lucia provides a new opportunity for us to come out and play some good cricket,” the Jamaican reasoned.
Finally, Powell reiterated the importance of a victory on Thursday, not only to stay in the series but also to set the stage for an exhilarating weekend of cricket. The final two encounters are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
“It's a case of us getting back into the series; we just need a win, and once we get the win tomorrow, we can go from there. The guys are upbeat; even though we are 2-0 down, they are in a good frame of mind and ready to play good cricket,” the captain ended.
Tilak's unbeaten ton helps India take lead against South Africa
Tilak Varma smashed an unbeaten 107 as India went 2-1 up in their T20I series against South Africa, claiming a nail-biting victory in Wednesday's third match in Centurion.
Following their surprise defeat in Sunday's second match, the tourists bounced back to earn their 10th win in their last 12 outings in the format, putting them on the brink of a series triumph.
Tilak was the star of the show as he produced comfortably the best score of his T20I career, surpassing a knock of 55 versus Bangladesh last year in some style, while only facing 56 balls.
He hit eight fours and seven maximums to set South Africa a target of 220 for victory, with Abhishek Sharma scoring 50 from 25 deliveries in support before Keshav Maharaj broke their partnership in the ninth over.
Despite six of India's batsmen scoring 18 runs or fewer and four – Sanju Samson (0), Suryakumar Yadav (1), Rinku Singh (8) and Axar Patel (1) – being limited to single figures, the damage had largely been done already.
South Africa were then dropped to 84-4 within their first 10 overs as Varun Chakravarthy claimed the crucial wickets of Reeza Hendricks (12) and Aiden Markram (29).
Heinrich Klaasen's incredible 54 off 17 balls dragged South Africa back into contention, and they required 18 runs from four deliveries in a grandstand finish, but Arshdeep Singh trapped the hosts' dangerman lbw to secure India's victory.
Having fallen short of their target by just 11 runs, the Proteas must now win Friday's fourth match to salvage a 2-2 draw from the series.
Data Debrief: Big-hitting India on the brink
Tilak recorded a strike rate of 191.07 while Abhishek was at 200.00 as their early partnership powered India towards victory.
India have now hit over 200 sixes in T20I matches this calendar year, only previously surpassing that figure in the format in one previous year – recording 289 in 2022.
Kusal and Avishka centuries take series opener for Sri Lanka
Kusal Mendis and Avishka Fernando guided Sri Lanka to a 45-run victory via the DLS Method in the first match of their ODI series against New Zealand on Wednesday.
On a rain-soaked day, the hosts ended their eight-match losing streak at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium with a dominant display from start to finish.
After electing to bat, Sri Lanka were dealt an early blow when Pathum Nissanka (12) was caught by Nathan Smith from Jacob Duffy's delivery in the second over.
However, Kusal would join Avishka at the crease and put the hosts in control, with the pair putting on a 206-run stand.
The duo's contribution formed the bulk of Sri Lanka's 324-5, with Sadeera Samarawickrama (five), Charith Asalanka (40) and Janith Liyanage (12 not out) concluding their innings.
New Zealand started well in their run chase through Will Young (35) and Tim Robinson (35) before the latter was stumped by Mendisb Theekshana in the 13th over.
That kickstarted the tourists' collapse, with the dismissals of Young, Henry Nicholls (six), Mark Chapman (two) and Glenn Phillips (nine) leaving New Zealand 110-5 after 17 overs.
Michael Bracewell's 34 from 32 deliveries steadied the ship somewhat but the damage had been done, with the tourists falling short of their target by 45 runs.
Data Debrief: It's coming home
Sri Lanka have won five of their last six multi-game bilateral men’s ODI series (L1), including each of their last two, and they got off to a perfect start in Dambulla.
The Lions' victory was their first in the format at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium since a seven-wicket win against Pakistan back in August 2014.
They were helped by Kusal's knock of 143 from 128 deliveries, which was his fourth ODI century but his first on home soil since 2020.
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