England’s mission to reclaim the Women’s Ashes for the first time since losing them in 2015 has grown harder after defeat in the one-off Test at Trent Bridge.
With Australia building a 4-0 points lead, England face having to win at least four and almost certainly five of the white-ball matches to come out on top of this multi-format series.
Here, the PA news agency looks at what they could do to boost their chances of ending Australia’s one-sided dominance in this contest.
Do not be overawedAustralia started as favourites and after prevailing in a see-saw Test they will be cock-a-hoop as the ODI and T20 world champions head to their white-ball comfort zone.
England unquestionably have a mountain to climb. They have not beaten Australia in any format in four years while their last win when the Ashes was still in the balance was back in October 2017.
However, it was palpable how relieved Australia were at the end in Nottingham, with Tahlia McGrath confessing the tourists were frequently “panicking” as England landed several meaningful blows.
Recent history may be against them but England cannot be discouraged by the events of the last few days and more importantly they must believe that all-conquering Australia can be toppled.
Attack, attack, attackHead coach Jon Lewis has attempted, alongside captain Heather Knight, to hard-wire an attacking mindset into the DNA of this side.
The approach is yet to have tangible success with early signs of promise at the T20 World Cup followed by a deflating semi-final exit, while they had Australia on the rocks a couple of times only to let them off the hook.
Lewis has promised England will “go harder” in the three T20s – the first of which is at Edgbaston on Saturday – and three ODIs that follow.
It is high-risk, high-reward strategy, but frankly what do England have to lose by going with this template?
Seize the crunch momentsAustralia won all of them in Nottingham.
Consider that they were 238 for six in their first innings while England had 448 on the board before they lost their seventh wicket, yet it was the visitors who banked a 10-run lead.
Or openers Beth Mooney and Phoebe Litchfield taking advantage of some England fatigue to pile on 82 in 19 overs, laying the foundations for a total that proved out of reach.
Or the coup de grace that saw England lose four top-order wickets in 29 balls on the penultimate evening, which left too much to do for the other batters.
The limited-overs matches will not ebb and flow as much – but if England get on top, they cannot allow Australia to wriggle free again.
Do not overwork Nat Sciver-BruntEngland’s premier all-rounder worryingly collapsed to the turf at the end of her ninth over in Australia’s second innings – restricted to bowling just 14 in the Test after jarring her right knee.
It might be that she can fulfil her four-over quota as the bowlers’ workload comes down drastically but why take the risk?
England need her batting far more – she probably has the highest ceiling while Australia will still remember her unbeaten 148 in last year’s World Cup final, the most recent ODI between the teams.
Unleash Issy WongLauren Filer was able to unsettle Australia stars Ellyse Perry and McGrath with extra pace, regularly climbing into the mid-70mph range.
Filer looks set to miss out, at least on the T20 portion of the series, because England deem her more suitable for Tests so Wong should come into the reckoning.
The 21-year-old has never come up against Australia but has shown a flair for the big stage, including a hat-trick in the Women’s Premier League, where she also took three crucial wickets in the final.
Cricket West Indies to reveal squad for ICC T20 World Cup Friday, May 3
Cricket West Indies (CWI) is gearing up to unveil its squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup during a highly anticipated live press conference in Barbados on Friday, May 3. The event will feature CWI's Lead Selector, the Most Honourable Dr. Desmond Haynes, and Head Coach Daren Sammy alongside CWI Chief Executive Officer Johnny Grave.
In a statement, Johnny Grave expressed the organization's excitement about the impending announcement and highlighted the decision to host a live press conference as a means to directly engage with fans and media.
"Emphasizing the significance of this moment, we chose to host a live press conference to engage with fans and media directly. We also requested permission from the ICC to align our announcement with this event," said Johnny Grave.
The announcement comes amidst increasing excitement as local box offices across the region open on Thursday, May 2, allowing fans to secure their tickets for the tournament. Additionally, CWI will be releasing the official tournament song on the same day, further adding to the anticipation building around the event.
"Excitement is mounting as local box offices open across the region on Thursday, May 2, and we are equally thrilled to release the official tournament song on the same day. Anticipation is building, and we can't wait to share this journey with cricket enthusiasts worldwide," Grave added.
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, set to commence on June 1, will be co-hosted in the Caribbean and the United States, culminating with the finals scheduled to take place in Barbados. With preparations in full swing, CWI's squad announcement promises to be a significant moment in the lead-up to this highly anticipated global cricketing event. Stay tuned for the unveiling of the squad and the exciting journey ahead for Cricket West Indies at the ICC T20 World Cup.
IPL: Punjab Kings spinners frustrate CSK in routine win
Punjab Kings eased to back-to-back wins in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday, their spinners doing the damage as they claimed a seven-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings.
The Kings chased down an IPL-record of 262 with eight balls to spare to beat Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday, but they didn't need anywhere near that level of big hitting to clinch their first set of consecutive victories this year.
Spinners Harpreet Brar and Rahul Chahar made it a far more comfortable outing for Punjab, finishing with two wickets apiece and giving up just 33 runs between them through eight overs.
Ruturaj Gaikwad did his best to keep CSK in it with his 62 off 48 balls, but they always looked unlikely to defend a middling score of 162, particularly when Deepak Chahar pulled up two deliveries into the Punjab innings and walked gingerly from the field.
Richard Gleeson dismissed Prabhsimran Singh for 13 on his IPL debut, but that was as good as it got for Chennai as Jonny Bairstow (46 off 30) and Rilee Rossouw (43 off 25) steadily ate away at their score.
The Super Kings' outing was summed up by Sam Curran's wayward drive spinning away from Shivam Dube at the boundary for a four late on, and Punjab wrapped up their most comfortable win of the season with 13 balls to spare.
Data Debrief: Kings maintain Chennai hoodoo
The Kings' upturn may have come a little too late to give them a genuine shot at the play-offs, but for Chennai, it was a case of more frustration against their bogey team.
Punjab have now won their last five matches against the Super Kings, who have seen their title defence stall with a run of three defeats in four outings.
Marsh named captain in Australia's T20 World Cup squad as Smith and Fraser-McGurk miss out
Mitchell Marsh will captain Australia at next month's T20 World Cup, but Steve Smith and Jake Fraser-McGurk have been left out of the 15-man squad.
Marsh, who has shared the duties on an interim basis since Aaron Finch's retirement, was named the Baggy Greens' permanent T20 skipper on Wednesday.
Test captain Pat Cummins, fast bowler Mitchell Starc and Glenn Maxwell have also been named in the squad, which features 11 of the players that were part of the team that won this tournament in 2021.
However, there is no place for former skipper Smith following a difficult spell of form, while Fraser-McGurk is also absent despite his impressive form in the Indian Premier League.
"This is an experienced squad with extensive World Cup experience that offers a variety of structures and covers the scenarios the panel believes will factor in the West Indies with the unique nature of the venues and our opponents," selection chief George Bailey said.
"Steve Smith, Matt Short, Jason Behrendorff, Aaron Hardie, Spencer Johnson and Xavier Bartlett were all part of long conversations, along with several others, including Jake Fraser-McGurk who is yet to play T20 International cricket but continues to impress and is developing rapidly.
"Being constrained to a squad of 15 for World Cups is always a challenge given the different scenarios and options we’d like to cover.
"Ultimately, the balance of the final 15 needs to provide the best chance of being successful in this campaign."
"It's been an immense privilege to play for my country and now an even greater honour to lead the squad to a World Cup," Marsh added.
"We have had some strong success in recent times, and I am hopeful that will continue in what looks like a wide-open tournament."
Australia will begin their tournament against Oman on June 5, while they will also play England, Scotland and Namibia in Group B.
Australia's provisional squad:
Mitchell Marsh (captain), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
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