The superb leg spin of Alana King left England in tatters as they were bowled out for 170 on day 1 of the day-night Test in the Women’s Ashes.
Nat Sciver-Brunt was a lone pillar for England as she made 51, but without any support around her, England’s collapse was inevitable. Heather Knight, Sophia Dunkley and Danni Wyatt-Hodge chipped in with 20s.
A poor run rate paired with continual wickets kept progress slow for England and once King got on a role, progress almost completely halted.
The leg spinner took figures of 4-45, including three crucial top-order wickets. Kim Garth started well with the new ball. She and Darcie Brown took two each.
England’s batting woes continue
Allysa Healy won the toss, putting England in. A green layer covered the top of the wicket meaning Australia could look to capitalise on their strong seam-bowling attack and keep the pressure on the visitors, using the almost 12,000-strong crowd as back-up.
That is indeed what happened.
Garth nicked off Maia Bouchier four balls in before Brown trapped Tammy Beaumont LBW a few overs later.
Bouchier seemed hesitant during her dismissal, which probably comes from this being only her second long-form match, but she was sent packing thanks to an impressive grab from Beth Mooney behind the stumps.
Knight made it to 25 before she misjudged the line of a Garth delivery and was hit dead in front.
Three down for 47 was indicative of how the series had gone for England but was not beneficial to their chances at stopping the whitewash.
Fightback from England
With Dunkley and Sciver-Brunt at the crease, England retreated into their shell. The two trudged along with minimal risk, save for a few wild swings from Dunkley and one missed stumping opportunity. The partnership laboured its way to fifty, but a tame dismissal brought it to a close. Dunkley chipped a simple catch back to King. A well-deserved wicket.
Wyatt-Hodge brought some intensity back into the game as she batted with her usual freedom. Her scoops and sweeps entertained the crowd as she raced (comparatively) to 22, but her expansive play also gave opportunities.
She managed to survive a testing over from King as well as a few LBW shouts, but her positivity was her undoing as she looked to turn the leggie through square leg but her leading edge was caught at silly point.
England’s batting troubles return
This wicket kicked off a mini collapse as England lost Amy Jones and Sophie Ecclestone in quick succession. Both were undone by spin, both failed to make an impact with the bat. Natural variation saw Jones’ off stump taken, while Ecclestone picked out Garth at cover for a simple catch.
England limped to the dinner break and soon after it went from bad to worse. Alana King continued her terrific form and cut Sciver-Brunt in half for 51. The all-rounder dropped back, looking to flick it into the leg side, but she was done for pace.
Lauren Filer came and went too, looking to counterattack. She managed to muscle one boundary down the ground but then skied a slog. Georgia Voll still had a lot of work to do with the ball in the air and her spectacular catch did not disappoint.
Lauren Bell partnered with Ryana MacDonald-Gay at the crease and together they put up a strong resistance. They only added 13 but lasted 20 minutes before a mix-up between the wickets brought a slightly disappointing end to the innings. All out for 170.
Australia reined in by England
Phoebe Litchfield and Georgia Voll, the future of Australian cricket, strode to the crease after the ten-minute turnaround but their fluent aggressive style from the white-ball series was muted by some skilful new-ball bowling from the two Laurens: Bell and Filer.
A big booming drive, similar to the way she started her Test career, was the undoing of Voll. While she didn’t have the impact that she would have hoped, there is a lot of potential for the future of young Australian.
Despite taking just one wicket, England did brilliantly to slow the progress of Australia. Going at an economy of around two, the final hour and a half contrasted brilliantly with the crucial day three evening session in 2023, where Australia piled on 82 in just 19 overs. Compared to the 38 added in the first 19 overs here, England’s containment was impressive.
Australia finished with some expansive shots, exploiting a tired England with a flurry of boundaries. They made it to stumps without any other casualties, finishing on 56-1.