Heather Knight says England should take hope from their miraculous comeback in 2023 as they bid to maintain the ladies’s Ashes alive with victory within the opening T20 in Sydney on Monday.
England go into the sport trailing 6-0 on the factors desk after Australia accomplished an ODI whitewash with an 86-run win in Hobart on Friday. The hosts now solely want two extra factors to retain the Ashes.
However captain Knight has not misplaced all hope and identified her aspect’s restoration from the same deficit two years in the past to finally tie the sequence 8-8.
“What we learned from that 2023 Ashes series when we were in the same position was to be really focused on what we had to do in the moment,” Knight mentioned.
“There’s no doubt it is going to be tough but we will try and bring our best to the T20 and I think the format change will suit us well.”
All-rounder Freya Kemp, spinner Linsey Smith and wicketkeeper Bess Heath will be part of the squad for the T20 leg, as England look to reassert their dominance over the quick format after a disappointing 2024 World Cup.
“I think it’s a real strength of ours,” added Knight. “It is a format the ladies actually love enjoying and it fits loads of the characters within the group as a result of it is quick and thrilling.
“I think the mental side will suit us as well, we can draw a line under the one-day series and come out and play at a beautiful cricket ground and hopefully put in a really strong performance.”
Will T20 format assist England enhance?
England captain Heather Knight has vowed to maintain combating to the final
With the ODI leg of the multi-format sequence now concluded, the change to T20s ought to favour England.
The format is arguably England’s strongest, with Knight’s workforce profitable seven of their eight T20s forward of The Ashes, together with a 3-0 T20 whitewash on their current tour of South Africa.
“I think the change of format is really good for us. T20 is one of our best formats and I think that little reset will do us some good,” Knight mentioned.
“T20 is a format a lot of the girls love playing and I hope that change will do us a lot of good.”
With the brand new format comes recent faces, as England’s T20 squad picks up the baton from their ODI counterparts for Monday’s pivotal conflict in Sydney.
“I think a change of format will lift the spirits and loosen everyone,” mentioned Nat Sciver-Brunt. “There are new recruits who will bring us energy, we look forward to going back to Sydney.”
Nevertheless, Australia prime the rankings for the very best T20 workforce on the earth presently while England are in second place.
Girls’s Ashes 2025 schedule
All dates and instances UK and Eire
- First ODI: Saturday January 11 – North Sydney Oval – Australia gained by 4 wickets
- Second ODI: Monday January 13 – Junction Oval, Melbourne – Australia gained by 21 runs
- Third ODI: Thursday January 16 – Ninja Stadium, Hobart – Australia gained by 86 runs
- First T20I: 8.40am, Monday January 20 – Sydney Cricket Floor
- Second T20I: 8.40am, Thursday January 23 – Manuka Oval, Canberra
- Third T20I: 8.10am, Saturday January 25 – Adelaide Oval
- Take a look at: 3.30am, Thursday Jan 30-Sunday Feb 2 – MCG, Melbourne
