Australia Women. (Photo Source: Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
The Australian team is a dominant force in world cricket. Be it the men’s team or the women’s team, the Aussies know how to bring their best game, especially when it matters the most, and thrive under pressure. The women’s team was the favourite to retain the Ashes when they visited England to play in a multi-format series. After winning the one-off Test, Alyssa Healy’s women asserted their dominance by defeating England in the first of a three-match T20I series. However, with their backs against the wall, the hosts bounced back to win the next two T20Is and two out of three matches in the subsequent ODI series to level points with their arch-rivals.
Former England captain Nasser Hussain lauded Australia and called them ‘one of the greatest sporting teams of all time’. He also urged the England players to keep striving towards closing the gap on their Aussie counterparts.
“England have got some good young players coming through, although actually in our Ashes series, it was the senior players like Natalie Sciver-Brunt, Kate Cross, and Danni Wyatt that absolutely put in performances,” Hussain told host Sanjana Ganesan on the latest episode of The ICC Review.
“You would be a fool to say, ‘oh, that’s it. Australia are coming back to the pack. I don’t think they are doing that. Other nations have to keep playing catch up cricket with the Australian women’s team as they’re one of the greatest sporting teams of all time.”
England women’s team to host Sri Lanka in August-September
After an impressive Ashes, England will host Sri Lanka for a three-match T20I series followed by a three-match ODI series. The first T20I is scheduled to be played at County Ground, Hove on August 31.
Chamari Athapaththu-led Sri Lanka recently played host to New Zealand as the two teams collided in three ODIs and as many T20Is. The home side managed to win the ODI series 2-1 while the White Ferns emerged victorious by the same scoreline in the T20I series.