Women’s Ashes: England v Australia, 2nd ODI
Venue: Ejaz Bowl, Southampton Date: 16 July Time: 11:00 BST
Coverage: Ball-by-ball Test matches on BBC Sounds, BBC Radio 5 Live and exclusive commentary on the website and app, where there will be live text commentary and in-play video clips (UK only). Highlights on iPlayer and Red Button.
It’s time to dare to dream.
Few thought Heather Knight’s England could reach this position – leveling the Ashes series based on multi-format points after Australia raced to a 6-0 lead.
Knight and England were probably the only ones who believed.
The skipper said his side will be “flying” after overcoming the psychological hurdle of getting a win on the board against the world champions, which they did in the second T20 at The Oval.
But England aren’t just flying.
They are on the rise, and in an interesting twist, Australia is under pressure.
After England’s 2-1 series win in the T20 league, there was a feeling that they had already achieved enough, that they had exceeded expectations and now the routine would resume in the 50-over format.
After all, that’s Australia’s strength: they’re the world champions, and England haven’t beaten them in the format since 2017.
And in a fitting coincidence, the win came in Bristol, where Knight’s side drew level with Australia with a tense two-wicket win.
England still face an uphill task, needing to win their remaining two matches (or one, if the other ends in a tie or forfeit), while only a win keeps the trophy in the hands of current holders Australia.
But despite the hype, England have their feet firmly planted on the ground.
“We’re not taking them lightly, they’re not pushovers at all,” England batsman Tammy Beaumont said.
But we are playing good cricket.
“We’ve always felt we could beat them, but in retrospect we probably didn’t think we could after going down 6-0.”
England’s attacking style of play has created a lot of excitement throughout the series, fueled by Lauren Filer’s Test match pace and the ferocious hitting of Alice Keapsey and Danny White with the white ball.
And there is plenty of room for improvement too – England dropped five chances and missed a stumping in Bristol, and the chase for at least 40 was more than it needed.
But through it all, Knight has remained calm, Sophie Ecclestone has been world-class and, rather ominously for Australia, Nat Skewer Brent has yet to really fire.
The world’s best preparing for the unknown
Perhaps the most interesting element of all this is how Australia will handle the pressure.
While England are basking in the joy of unfamiliar territory, there is no precedent for how this Australian side will react.
After the T20 defeat that sent England back into contention, captain Alyssa Healy said it was a “kick up the bomb” – but a subsequent performance in Bristol suggested the kick was not hard enough. .
They have built a reputation for themselves as a team with high standards led by captain Meg Lanning, who is absent from the tour for medical reasons.
They grind bowlers with the bat, frustrate batsmen with their consistency and pull off athletic saves in the field when everyone in the ground thinks it’s over for four runs.
But in the first ODI, balls slipped through the legs and went to the boundary, fielders were giving up achievable chases (for them), bowlers gave 17 wides and some batsmen threw away their wickets cheaply.
It is difficult to say whether this is due to Lanning’s absence, or whether England’s aggression has suffered a psychological blow.
And yet, Australia’s brilliance is reflected in the fact that they are probably still the favourites, and that even in their poor performance, England have to work hard to win.
They are not used to being wounded lions, and England, so often the victim, is not used to being the hunter.
History beckons for England, otherwise the world order will be restored.
