England ‘are really not far away’ from matching Australia despite conceding the Ashes AGAIN following defeat in first ODI, insists captain Heather Knight… with tourists now only able to level series in two remaining games
Heather Knight insists her England side are not far off matching Australia despite the hosts retaining the Women’s Ashes.
A 27-run win at the Manuka Oval in the first ODI saw Australia extend their lead in the multi-format series to 8-4 and retain the title they have held since the 2013-14 series in the process.
Knight’s side had restricted the hosts to 205 for nine from 50 overs in Canberra, but they never recovered from losing early wickets in their reply and were skittled for 178 with 30 balls remaining.
Heather Knight insists her England side are not far off Australia despite conceding the Ashes
Australia will retain the Ashes after a 27-run victory in the first of the three ODIs in Canberra
While the 31-year-old was keen to look at the positives with the ball, she admitted her side’s inability to put in a complete performance in the first T20I, the drawn Test and now the opening ODI has cost her team.
‘The way we bowled was outstanding, we were unlucky not to take more wickets,’ Knight told BBC’s Test Match Special.
‘We weren’t with the bat, they bowled pretty well but we just needed that one big partnership.
‘In the three games we’ve played we have not had a complete performance with bat and ball. We’re really not far away from Australia.’
But Knight insists her side are not far away from matching Meg Lanning’s team on the field
Knight highlighted her team’s quality with the ball, with Kate Cross (R) taking three wickets
Although the tourists can no longer reclaim the Ashes, they can level the series by winning the remaining two ODIs, having taken two points from the drawn Test and a point each from the second and third T20Is which were abandoned due to rain.
And Knight was keen to point out England’s improvement on their performances on home soil in the 2019 Ashes, and said her side will now look forward to finishing the series on a high with a view to the World Cup in New Zealand in March and April.
‘We talked about the preparation leading into this series but we’ve gone toe to toe with them and certainly performed better than in 2019. We just haven’t quite strung it together.
‘We’ve got two more games to try and win in order to draw this series and prepare for the World Cup.’
But the England skipper lamented her side’s inability to put complete performance together in the series
Knight also insists England have improved since their Ashes thumping on home soil in 2019
England won just one game – the third T20I – two-and-a-half years ago, with Australia claiming victory in the other two 20-over matches prior to a 3-0 ODI whitewash. The white-ball matches came either side of another drawn Test.
Former England spinner Alex Hartley echoed Knight’s words, claiming England are no longer ‘overawed’ by Australia’s star-studded side as they were when they lost the series 12-4 in 2019.
‘England are not far behind. In 2019 they were beaten easily and only won the final T20,’ she told TMS.
‘They seemed overawed playing Australia. They’ve not been here.’
Ex-England spinner Alex Hartley insists England are no longer ‘overawed’ by Australia