A few weeks ago, a 17- strong England side was announced ahead of the multi format Ashes starting on 20th January in Adelaide. The tour will consist of 1 test match, 3 T20s and 3 ODIs, all which rack up points in attempt to win the Ashes series. The homes Ashes in 2019 was claimed by Australia: the test match was drawn, the Aussies won 3–0 in the ODIs and 2–1 in the T20s. England are going to be fighting down under in Australia to win back the Ashes
Heather Knight All-rounder, Heather Knight, will be leading the England side out in Australia. Taking over from Charlotte Edwards as captain in 2016, Knight’s side have been largely successful against most sides, except Australia. England have lost the Ashes in both 2017 and 2019 but Australia are beatable. Knight lead the side to victory in the 2017 World Cup on home soil. In the group stages, England beat Australia by 3 runs. Australia were knocked out before England could face them again, India thrashing them by 36 runs.
Not only as a captain but also as an individual, Knight has been hugely successful. In the recent ODIs against New Zealand, she hit totals of 89 and 101, with bowling figures of 3/24. In the only test match that they played, Heather scored 95 in the first innings, England only batting 1 innings. It would be fair to say that Knight is a key member of this squad and will hopefully have some strong batting innings out in Australia.
Tammy Beaumont The first thing that comes to mind when I think of Tammy Beaumont is powerful. She is a strong, consistent and fearless batter. Tammy is the sort of player who you watch, she makes it look easy but you still leave wondering how she played some of the shots she does. In recent T20s and ODIs she has racked up scores as high as, 102, 97, 87*, 86* and 66 in the test match against India.
Beaumont will be essential for big totals and boundaries in all formats and should definitely be feared by Australia! This is Tammy’s 5th Ashes series, the last 3 of which England have lost. With a strong top order to support her, can Beaumont lead England to victory?
Maia Bouchier A less familiar name in this squad is Maia Bouchier. The batter made her England T20 debut back in September against New Zealand, scoring 25. She has certainly made a good impression on England selectors playing well in both the Hundred for Southern Brave and down in Australia, playing for the Melbourne Stars in the WBBL most recently.
I had the pleasure of speaking to Maia all about her cricket journey, the Hundred, her England debut and the call up to the WBBL. A full interview can be found here on the podcast:
“Everyone thinks that because I strike it quite high during T20s, I’m a T20 player but I feel completely different, I feel more of a 50 over player. I love opening, opening is my favourite thing to do and setting up my innings and that was something I felt really strong when I played in the final for Vipers, I felt like I really built my innings, obviously I messed up, I need to keep going but that’s something that I will need to work on and the Ashes and the world cup will be such a good opportunity if I get there, and the big bash help with the T20s. Obviously, I’d love to be selected in the squad and that’s just something to look forward to hopefully!”
Katherine Brunt At 36, Katherine Brunt is the oldest member of the England side, the upcoming Ashes being her 9th. She is known for her fiery bowling and passion on the field. Brunt could not be more different off the field, according to her Trent Rockets teammate, Michaela Kirk
“No she’s not, she’s a very chill person, she loves a lot, she loves making people smile which is nice especially when you’re very nervous”
In England’s last game of the summer (ODI), she took 4/22 and scored 49* showing herself again as a strong all-rounder. Brunt’s experience, especially in Australia, and skill, we would expect that she will be a key contributor for England.
Kate Cross England pace bowler, Kate Cross is heading out to Australia with the momentum of her incredible summer, some of her best figures being 5/34, 3/34 & 3/43 in the ODIs against India and New Zealand. Cross was the 5th highest wicket taker of the Hundred and even hit the 1st 6 of the tournament! In the test match against India, Cross took the key wicket of Shafali Verma on 95 and consistently is a key player in the ODI squad.
One of the most frustrating elements of this Ashes tour is the looming threat of Covid-19 and how one case could cause the series to come crashing down. I spoke to Kate Cross a few weeks ago before they headed to Australia and she told me about the struggles of training on your own and isolating:
“I think it’s not having the drive of people around you, you’re just relying on yourself. I’ve not had anyone to talk to for a week now, it’s been a lot more difficult than I thought it would be and I’ve not even had the chance to think about how I’m going to bowl in the Test match or how the Ashes is gonna go yet, I’m kinda just trying to get to Heathrow without getting covid!”
The full chat with Crossy will be out on the “Noughtie Child Podcast” on Friday 21st January 2022
Freya Davies This will be Freya Davies’ first Ashes series, playing in the Academy side back in 2019. Davies made her debut back in February 2019 and was even contracted by England, uncapped. She is a regular T20 squad member and her best figures in 2021 came in Wellington against New Zealand taking 4/23.
Freya is one to watch, dynamic in the field and consistent with the ball. It will be interesting to see how she performs in new conditions and with a new level of pressure.
Charlie Dean Charlie Dean is definitely one of the stories of the summer. Dean was not professionally contracted in the 2021 season making her England call up a bit of a shock! What a good decision though. On only her 2nd game for England, she took 4/36, over the ODI series taking 10 wickets; the highest wicket taker.
At the end of October, she signed a professional contract with her regional team, Southern Vipers. At only 20 years-old, she has a bright future ahead with so many more opportunities to show what she can do on the international stage. I am very excited to see Charlie face the Aussies and show the quality of the England squad.
Sophia Dunkley
Sophia Dunkley impressed us all with her amazing 74* on Test debut against India at Bristol in June. Dunkley was again impressive in the Hundred, playing for the Southern Brave. She was the 3rd highest run scorer and had the 6th highest strike rate. Let’s hope Dunkley’s good form continues into this Ashes and that she continues her impressive Test match batting!
Sophie Ecclestone The no.1 T20 bowler, Sophie Ecclestone was a very obvious choice for the squad not only down to her impeccable T20 bowling but also her performances in Test and ODI matches. Back in June, she bowled 64 overs, taking 8 wickets in the Test match; an extremely impressive feat! Ecclestone’s low economy will be key for England’s success.
Sophie’s batting must not be overlooked. Despite being a bowler, she is proving herself as a batter . In the inaugural Hundred, she hit totals such as 31* and 32*, especially hitting 4s and 6s.
Tash Farrant Tash Farrant is a real success story of the domestic contracts. Making her debut for England only age 17, winning the Ashes in 2013/14 and receiving a central contact age 18, she looked like the next young star! Up until 2019, she was named in the England squads yet would not regularly play resulting in Tash losing her contract in 2019.
In 2020, she signed one of 25 retainer contracts, signing a regional one later that year. At the start of 2021, she then played for England again. Her summer was topped by being the top wicket taker in the Hundred with a total of 18 wickets, 3 more than the 2nd highest and was a vital member of the Oval Invincibles squad. If Tash’s good form from the summer continues into this Ashes series, she will be extremely destructive.
Sarah Glenn At only 22, leg-spinner Sarah Glenn has made a name for herself in the England team. Off the back of 3 great KSL seasons, Glenn made her international debut in 2019 against Pakistan, taking 2 wickets. Since then, Sarah has continued to have international success, especially in T20s with both bat and ball. She again proved herself in the Hundred as a handy all-rounder and has tons of potential.
Glenn has experience in Australia, playing for the Perth Scorchers in 2020, taking 17 wickets with her best figures at 4–18. Let’s hope that Glenny’s Australian success continues into the Ashes!
Amy Jones
Wicket-keeper, Amy Jones, is one of the more experienced members of the squad, making her debut back in 2013. Jones has played in multiple Ashes series, captained Birmingham Phoenix to the eliminator of the Hundred and competed in the WBBL for Sydney Sixers and Perth Scorchers.
Arguably, Amy is the best wicket-keeper at the moment and her success behind the stumps cannot be ignored. Finding good form at the end of the season, it would be great to see Amy perform well with both the gloves and the bat.
Nat Sciver
With 3 ODI centuries to her name and countless wickets, Nat Sciver is one of the strongest all-rounders in the world. Sciver was the 6th highest run scorer in the Hundred, captaining Trent Rockets and was a key member of the Test match squad against India in June, scoring 42 and taking the key wickets of Smriti Mandhana and Punam Raut with the addition of Shikha Pandey.
Again, Sciver is highly experienced in Australia and I’m sure that she will be a real leader in this side. I would argue that she is very underrated and we should not underestimate how destructive she can be.
Anya Shrubsole Battling with various injuries, it will be interesting to see how Anya performs and which games she is selected for. Shrubsole is England’s highest wicket taker in the Ashes but has struggled to take many wickets in recent games.
I do have high confidence in her ability and her expertise as a senior player I am sure will be valuable however I would imagine that it may be some of the younger pace bowlers that could shine in this series.
Mady Villiers Mady Villiers is one of the most dynamic fielders in the women’s game. During the inaugural Hundred which she won as part of the team Oval Invincibles, Villiers took some world class catches and contributed well with both bat and ball. I am very excited to see some epic catches from Mady and some sharp run outs!
Lauren Winfield-Hill Opening batter, Lauren Winfield-Hill, is one of the more experienced members of this side, and despite struggling with form earlier in the year, at the back end of the season she was a consistent run scorer in the ODIs against New Zealand. Like some of her teammates, she has played in the WBBL and has gained plenty of experience in Australian conditions.
Danni Wyatt Powerful batter, Danni Wyatt, was a main contributor to her side, Southern Brave, in the Hundred. She hit a strong 63* against New Zealand at the end of the season. Unfortunately, that form hasn’t continued in the warm up games against England A getting a duck and struggling to get into double figures but, there is a reason there are warm up matches!
England are probably undercooked, likewise Australia and the looming threat of Covid-19 is not another stress that the players do not need however, after a dire performance from England in the men’s ashes, can the women be the success story for England?
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