Goodbye!
And with that, as the TV commentators continue to pick the flesh from the carcass, it is time for us to say goodbye.
It’s been a complete victory for a supreme Australian side, both in this Test and in the multi-format series. Heather Knight’s team started badly, and got worse, as many England sides have before them down under. Outgunned, outclassed and, on a whistle-stop tour, with no time to rest, mentally left for dust.
A final glance at the G, where the sky is blood-orange red, but the stands are empty. Australia 16- England 0. Back to the February grey, and the drawing board.
Thank you for all your comments today and during the series. Over and out.
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Paul Barnes has a final word :
“Healey pays tribute to Tahlia McGrath for her captaincy contribution in her absence. But it could have been Mooney or Perry (or Jess Jonassen or Sophie Molineux if not injured) and then you look at Litchfield and Voll as leaders of the future. England seems to not have either the immediate backup captain or as obviously the next generation.”
There’s a definite hole in the succession pipeline for England, which might be why Knight stays on.
"When we’re put under pressure, we like to step forward rather than step away from it" Healy
Healy is speaking to Alex Hartley. “I’ve played a lot of Ashes series, but to stand here saying 16-0 still feels unreal. I really wanted to finish the game tonight. King has been awesome, to have two world-class leggies in our side is awesome. King made England feel very uncomfortable. We thought seam would play more of a role.
Why so dominant? “I think, there are lots of cliches you could throw around about professionalism. But when we’re put under pressure we like to step forward rather than step away from it. Throw the first punch back at them. England are a really good side, I hope they don’t forget about it.
Tonight? “I think we sit down together as a group and smile about it. Look forward to the World Cup.”
"I really feel I haven't finished the job I came here to do" Jon Lewis
“Australia haven’t let us play the cricket we want to play,” says Lewis. “Once you give a juggernaut team the ahead, it is really hard to come back. Australia’s skills were really on point from the start – Kim Garth’s wicket in first over. We didn’t help ourselves in the field, a big area , as we saw in the World Cup, that we need to review. We must pick the bones out of it and come back stronger.
Pressure the problem?"This game in particular, it is more bringing attention to the moment you’re in. When you drop catches, it is not a lack of skill or athleticism, but a lack of being present in the moment you’re in. It is hard for players to maintain their focus when they don’t play a lot of this (long-form) cricket. We need to go ahead to work on it, we know we have the ability to beat a lot of teams, haven’t played the pressure moments we should.”
How has the gap grown so large since the last series? “We pushed the Aussies really hard last time in England and that fuelled their fire, they’ve come really hard at us. Once you give them the opportunity to get ahead, they’re very skilful, they’re very athletic, they’re very hard to stop.
A review?“I think that happens regularly. One of the great things we will do from this series is learn, and reflect, and try and grow the team. We need to compete better against Australia and there is a World Cup coming up this year in India.”
Your future: “I strongly feel that there is real growth still left in this group of players, lots of young players. I really feel like I haven’t finished the job I came here to do. I’m really committed to the players, to growing women’s cricket in England.”
“I don’t think for me her captaincy is a problem, it is how much she has left to give, says Elwiss. “We saw in the men’s game when Root stepped down he played with freedom. If that what she decides I’d love to see her in an England coach.
A natural successor? “Nat is the vice-captain, I think Ecclestone was the vice-captain under Nat. I think they say don’t make decision when you’re emotional.” says Robinson.
"It's all quite raw, the next few weeks about working out the future"
Heather Knight again: “I think probably we will look back on the first two games and be frustrated, did quite well didn’t win the big moments. The tour has been short and sharp and no time to turn it around. Been a frustrating tour. Credit to them, theyv’e played some remarkable cricket. The second ODI frustrating to bowl them out for under 200 and not win.”
“I think there are a lot of different areas we can get better in, different for different people. Some times you’re not sure what the reason is for all the dropped catches, sometimes you drop a couple and the rot sends in. We have to make sure that when we have chances, we are ruthless like Australia.”
Her future: “I don’t know at the moment. It is all quite raw, the next few weeks about working out the future. The next few months about working out the future of the team.”
The team troop on stage, Healy collects the trophy and they are all covered in gold and green streamers.
Healy looks fantastically Australian, dirty and suncreamed and baggy greened. “It is amazing, give some credit to Tmac who led beautifully in that T20 series. Coudn’t be prouder, whenever we thought England were coming back, someone closed the door on them. We played at some of the best stadiums in Australia, playing against a really good oppostiion, getting the crowds back.”
The host then directs her to say thank you, like a parent after a party.
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Heather Knight looks grim faced and sounds almost-tearful but holds them back. She plays tribute to Australia and the crowd. “Its been a tough month, Australia have played some remarkable cricket. We’ve completed at times, but not enough. Lauren Bell deserves a mention, I can’t fault the effort but we weren’t quite good enough.”
Player of the series: Alana King
She’s wearing her baggy green, and grinning. “I’ve had fun from the get go. I love bowling for this team, I love contributing to many wins, I’m stoked to contribute and we’ll have fun tonight.”
She’s put on the spot to say a few words to England. But pulls it off graciously.
Player of the match: Annabel Sutherland
Not King, but the first women to score a Test century at the G “I’m really proud of the girls, a great contribution across the whole series,” she says. “To spend time with my teammates out there was really cool. Pretty cool to be on the honours board, Mooney and I are up there and King is going to join us. As a Victorian pretty cool to do that at the G.”
In the studio, they muse about how King is one of the few legspinners in either men’s or women’s cricket to concentrate on leg spin – the predominance of white ball cricket meaning players concentrate on the googly.
But, asks the host, if she hasn’t got the googly, and you know what’s coming why can’t you prepare more? “It’s not that easy’ retorts Georgia Elwiss.
Back in studio, Mark Robinson is trying to make the best of things “Alana King has been the star of the whole thing. The drift, the amount of spin, well backed up by Gardner. She wasn’t meant to play, she was supposed to be a backup for Georgia Wareham.”
“England only went past 200 twice in series. We’re better than that. It isn’t about today, its about early in the tour where you can get a foot-hold in the series. Today was about resisitance, but it was too late.”
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Australia won the three ODIs, the three T20s, and the Test by an innings. The first Ashes white-wash since the beginning of the mult-format series. A shellacking by any standards. And the bald facts are: England haven’t won any of the last seven Ashes series.
Shelley Nitschke, Australia’s coach, is quietly happy. “It probably hasn’t sunk in yet, had a pretty tough Ashes a couple of years ago, to come back like this has been awesome. We speak a lot about playing our own way, and not putting too much focus on the scoreline, keeping our eyes down. The application across the series is what sticks out, its beein pretty hectic in terms of travel etc. Seeing the younger players come in, it makes you proud.”
Pure delight from Australia, who hug and jump and grin. Five wickets for King, nine for 98 in the match. The cameras aren’t showing England, out of kindness perhaps. Plucky last wicket stand there though by Filer and Bell – even if Australia suddenly forgot how to field.
WICKET! Filer c Sutherland b King 14 (England 148 all out) Australia win by an innings and 122 runs and take the Ashes 16-0
At last! After Filer was missed at slip earlier in the over, she finally runs out of luck. Hoiking to mid-on for the whitewash.
68.5 overs England 148 all out ( Bell 0)
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68th over: England 146-9 (Filer 12, Bell 0) Gardner throws down a bouncer at Filer, who flays blindly and picks up a boundary. Nearly falls to the next as she has another go and the ball plops into the covers just short of the fielders.
67th over: England 141-9 (Filer 7, Bell 0) A DROP! King tosses one up, Filer flicks the ball into short leg’s belly and Voll can’t hold on. The next sings past off stump. Filer launches at another which flies just over the back-peddling McGrath’s head. Bell and Filer laugh in the middle, they are enjoying this.
66th over: England 140-9 (Filer 6, Bell 0) This is now the second-longest partnership of the innings. Bell swings at Gardner with leaden feet, misses, and survives. The ball passing cms over her stumps. If England could force Healy to bring on a fast bowler, that would be a small victory in the hollowness of defeat.
“Thoughts,” writes Stephen Holliday. “Yeah I have some…”
65th over: England 139-9 (Filer 5, Bell 0) Decent application and a fair dose of luck have kept this pair going. King brushes away her hair and takes her cap with a trudge.
Over in Galle, Australia’s men are also in the hunt for a final wicket.
64th over: England 138-9 (Filer 4, Bell 0) A couple of runs as Filer wafts the ball away. Then an LBW cry. Not out on the field but Healy, with a face full of suncream, gives Gardner her review. Would have missed leg stump.
Paul Barnes, if you’re still reading, Raf has got back to me on England’s wicket-keeping pipeline. Bess Heath is next in line, “Except they aren’t totally sold on her. Was picked for her batting (there are better keepers) but hasn’t developed.”
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63rd over: England 135-9 (Filer 1, Bell 0) Around the wicket, over the wicket, King can’t poach these English rabbits. Looks almost despondent as she takes her cap.
62nd over: England 135-9 (Filer 1, Bell 0) Slip, leg slip, short leg. Filer, all skinny arms and long legs crouches, watches Gardner carefully as she and King battle it out for five wickets. Survives. On we go.
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61st over: England 135-9 (Filer 1, Bell 0) Lauren Bell is the only England batter Alana King has not dismissed this series – and so it remains as Bell, without fuss, prods her away, surving one that turns too much past the outside edge, leaves another.
60th over: England 135-9 (Filer 1, Bell 0) The crowd clap slowly, they want their entrails. But Filer survives.
59th over: England 135-9 (Filer 1, Bell 0) King too, too good for Bell. Rips one through her with her last ball, Bell grins widely. What can you do?
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58th over: England 134-9 (Filer 0, Bell 0) Bell has a good giggle with the Australian fielders as she scratches her mark. Survives four balls from Gardner, but it won’t be long. Filer and Bell punch gloves between overs, as the future of England cricket, they will remember the hurt of this day.
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WICKET! Ecclestone c King b Gardner 19 (England 134-9)
After a gnarly fight, Ecclestone, carthorse like, flaps a slow bouncer to mid-on.
57th over: England 134-8 (Ecclestone 18, Filer 0) Ecclestone picks up a few more as the curtains begin to close.
56th over: England 131-8 (Ecclestone 15, Filer 0) Another excellent maiden from Gardner, the last ball leaping off pitch towards Filer.
“The excellence of Beth Mooney’s wicket keeping to King, in particular, and the other bowlers is a testament to her skill and preparation given how infrequently she keeps for Australia” continues Paul Barnes. “Does England have a second or third wicketkeeper of such quality as a keeper or batter? Or any wicketkeeper that can handle a top legspinner like King, Wareham or Wellington?”
It’s another element of the game where Australia are streets ahead. Bess Heath I think is the next cab off the block (I’ll check with Raf about that) but as England don’t have such leggies in the domestic game, prospective keepers just won’t have the practice.
55th over: England 131-8 (Ecclestone 15, Filer 0) A lesser-spotted boundary, with the old heave-ho from Ecclestone. King looks pained.
“Consider that if Perry was bowling regularly before this game, Georgia Wareham would probably be playing as another leg spin bowler. King is considered a better test bowler of that type, but the margin isn’t much.” This is a bit much for a Saturday morning Paul Barnes! “And for all the (correct) hype about King, Gardner is both stifling England with maidens and taking wickets at her end. The injured Sophie Molineux and the highly competent and experienced Jess Jonassen aren’t there either, nor the highly talented A-J Wellington. From where I’m looking England just doesn’t have that depth of spin talent.”
“Some talk about Garth not bowling much in the first innings. With due respect to her and the other seamers, on this wicket, the spinners are the stars.”
They absolutely are. Fantastic to watch too.
54th over: England 123-8 (Ecclestone 7, Filer 0) A run at last, after six successive maidens, almost results in a run-out.
53rd over: England 122-8 (Ecclestone 6, Filer 0) King starts with a zinger. McDonald-Gay presses forward gallantly but is nowhere near and the ball rips past the bat and just misses off stump. She lasts just five more balls.
WICKET! McDonald-Gay c Brown b King 1 (England 122-8)
A rare loose ball, a terrible full toss. McDonald-Gay’s eyes light up after the relentless pressure, she throws the bat, picks out almost the only outfielder, and Brown does the business on her knees.
52nd over: England 122-7 (Ecclestone 6, McDonald-Gay 1) And another.
51st over: England 122-7 (Ecclestone 6, McDonald-Gay 1) King beguils the ball, this way and that. Turn and bounce, Mooney taking the ball sometimes with a leap and up by her neck. Another maiden.
Good morning Peter Warrington. “England are going to have to find a way to find young batters who can do more than just slog a pretty 20 in a T20 against weaker attacks. If they had young talent they could get into the WNCL, maybe the ACT, that would be a start. Real hard 50 over comp under the sun, test quality bowlers in every state.”
50th over: England 122-7 (Ecclestone 6, McDonald-Gay 1) Softly, softly, catchee monkey. Another maiden from Gardner.
49th over: England 122-7 (Ecclestone 6, McDonald-Gay 1) McDonald -Gay’s nascent career starting with a pretty stiff test – Alana King from the Shane Warne End on a turning, tricksy, MCG pitch. She survives a maiden, watched by 11,804 people on a gorgeous Australian evening.
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48th over: England 122-7 (Ecclestone 6, McDonald-Gay 0) Gardner continues where she leaves off, tightening, tightening the screw.
Final session
47th over: England 121-7 (Ecclestone 6, McDonald-Gay 1) Out trudge England, for one last time. Ecclestone stretches and tucks into a bad ball from King, sending it whizzing for four. She’s got four close fielders and the keeper in her ear. Oooof that’s another beauty which rips off the surface.
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Mark Robinson on Jon Lewis and more: “He’ll take a lot of responsibility himself. It seems like if you lose an Ashes series, you lose a coach. Sometimes we deny people the ability to reflect and think how can we do better. Everyone should be thinking how they would do better. Australia are streets ahead of us, it is how we close that gap. I would hope they’d sit down with Jon, reflect with him and give him another go.”
“There will be a review and I hope it isn’t just about the tour, but what we’re doing, what we should do differently, especially now we’ve got the investment. We haven’t got a left hander, we haven’t got a leg spinner who can change the game. You can’t magic that but you’ve got to have programmes.”
Ex England Women’s coach Mark Robinson is in the TNT studio “The two set batters were going well, and we were combatting it very well until two balls before the interval when Heather was out. It is always hard for a new batter to play against leg spin and then it has a sense of inevitability about it.”
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England lost five for 17 in that final hour, with no answer to the exceptional King. After all that, time for a coffee, back shortly.
WICKET! Jones c Mooney b Gardner 6 (England 117-7)
46th over: England 117-7 (Ecclestone 2) The last delivery before the break. Jones prods forward, gets a kiss to the joyous pink ball, which is well taken by the excellent Mooney. Jones is stunned, but off she must go, trailed by a glum Ecclestone and the Aussies, who stroll off, in their own time, enjoying every moment of applause, as they should. What a team. Three wickets each for King and Gardner. The tour closes in on England in a hurry.
45th over: England 116-6 (Jones 6, Ecclestone 1) The first spins past Jones’s outside edge, Mooney takes it up by her ears. Jones bats the second away. The third is blocked. And so on. Jones survives a maiden. One over till the break.
42nd over: England 116-6 (Jones 6, Ecclestone 1) Jones goes up and over Gardner’s head, over mid-on, to break the shackles with a boundary.
42nd over: England 111-6 (Jones 1, Ecclestone 1) Gardner is wearing a microphone and you can hear her heavy breathing as she walks back to her mark, the grunt of exertion as she lets go of the ball. Eleven overs in the heat, this another maiden. Big crowds watch rapt this text-book leg-spin.
41st over: England 111-6 (Jones 1, Ecclestone 1) Gardner whistles through another. Just over ten minutes till tea – supper in a pink-ball game perhaps.
40th over: England 109-6 (Jones 0, Ecclestone 0) A wicket maiden for King – and it feels like she could take one every ball. She’s pocketed 21 wickets in this Ashes series so far: the queen of the green.
WICKET! Beaumont b King 47 (England 109-6)
Make that four for nine, as a tired-looking Beaumont stretches out and drags onto her stumps.
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40th over: England 109-5 (Beaumont 47) Gardner tucks a loose hair behind her ear and gets on with dismantling England.
WICKET! Danni Wyatt-Hodge c Brown b Gardner 2 (England 109-5)
Sweeps, uppishly and the pink balls loops straight to Darcie Brown at backward square leg. England have now lost three for nine.
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39th over: England 106-4 (Beaumont 45, Wyatt-Hodge 1) King smiles at the top of her mark. Spins the pink ball from hand to hand. England squeeze a couple of singles, one a tight one that would have sent Danni Wyatt-Hodge on her way with a direct hit.
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38th over: England 104-4 (Beaumont 44, Wyatt-Hodge 0) Gardner quietly gets on with her work, another maiden.
37th over: England 104-4 (Beaumont 44, Wyatt-Hodge 0) This is an unfair contest now, King in utter, hypnotic control. Even the shade is encroaching on England now, feels like they’re about to slip off into the darkness. Dunkley lasted two balls – four and out.
WICKET! Dunkley b King 4 (England 104-4)
Ripping perfection! Pitched outside leg, hits the top of off. A ball for the ages. I imagine Shane Warne raising a glass right now.
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36th over: England 100-3 (Beaumont 44, Dunkley 0) Gardner tightens the screw with a maiden.
35th over: England 100-3 (Beaumont 44, Dunkley 0) King, sleeves buttoned to the wrist, dog at a lampost release. NSB sweeps, repeatedly. Brings up the hundred with another, reaching those long arms and twisting effectively. It felt temporarily, that England were on top. They weren’t. NSB returns to the dressing room, not the Ashes series she’d have been hoping for.
WICKET! NSB lbw King 18 (England 100 -3)
The slider! NSB immediately reviews, pulls her helmet half way up her head with a shrug to watch the big screen. But technology is not her friend – the ball would have shimmied into the top of leg stump. A slider for the ages, King celebrates with both fists.
34th over: England 94-2 (Beaumont 43, Sciver Brunt 13) Nast Sciver Brunt sweeps Gardner for a couple – she’s been full of positive intent since she came to the crease, and then nudges another single. England keeping it moving here, not making the mistake of getting rooted to the crease and letting the pressure build.
33rd over: England 91-2 (Beaumont 43, Sciver Brunt 9) From the Shane Warne end, Alana King. “Spin it, Kingy” reads a sign in the crown. And she does, fizzing it off the pitch. One leg-break dances past the diligent Beaumont. She survives.
31st over: England 90-2 (Beaumont 43, Sciver Brunt 9) Spin both ends, as Gardner wheels in, Beaumont watches carefully.
31st over: England 88-2 (Beaumont 42, Sciver Brunt 8) And good morning from a cold Manchester. I’ve got the heated blanket, the dog, and a cup of tea for company, and for the first time this Test this feels like “a bit” of a contest. I don’t think I’m mistaken – when I first came bleary-eyed downstairs I saw an Australian overthrow and a misfield. Anyway, consecutive boundaries from NSB off Alana King, the second a tip-top grass-trimming on drive. She’s beaten by the next which beats the keeper too.
30th over: England 79-2 (Beaumont 41, Sciver Brunt 0) Thanks Jonathan, great stuff. England so nearly made it to the break – I wonder if that will be Heather Knight’s last Test innings.
And on that note, I’ll pass the baton to Tanya Aldred. Thanks for your company, catch you soon.
WICKET! Knight c Litchfield b Gardner 32 (England 79-2)
Huge wicket for Australia! Gardner pinned Knight down with typical accuracy then after four dots the England skipper pushed straight to short leg where Litchfield held onto a superb instinctive catch. That was one of England’s best partnerships of this series, but Australia have the breakthrough.
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29th over: England 79-1 (Beaumont 41, Knight 32) Beauty! King does Beaumont all ends up with an absolute ripper that loops onto middle, draws the forward defence, and turns and bounces past the outside edge. Unplayable. Beaumont counterattacks and just gets away with a lofted drive beyond the reach of King in her follow through. Excellent cricket. King has really enhanced the entertainment since coming on
28th over: England 76-1 (Beaumont 39, Knight 31) Another Australian misfield! Two deliveries in a row Knight tries to get off strike. The first time Beaumont is dawdling at the non-striker’s end, the second they both set off for a quick single, the throw comes in from cover, misses everything and runs away for four overthrows. Aside from those couple of skittish attempted runs this pair have looked rock solid since Knight arrived at the crease.
27th over: England 71-1 (Beaumont 39, Knight 26) Australia now have two fielders in helmets on either side of the pitch, denying England’s batters the opportunity of just propping forward to King. Inevitably Beaumont is forced to sweep and she sweeps hard, connecting with a meaty blow that canons straight into one of those fielders at short leg! That’ll sting. Next ball Beaumont tries to find some room on the off side, and she pierces the infield as well as benefiting from a weak McGrath dive to earn four runs. Excellent batting. Beaumont is well into her work now.
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26th over: England 65-1 (Beaumont 33, Knight 26) Just the single from Gardner’s fourth over.
25th over: England 64-1 (Beaumont 32, Knight 26) Knight breaks the shackles with a couple, but from an unconvincing sweep. King is such a fun bowler to watch and her variations and release point make for fascinating duels.
24th over: England 62-1 (Beaumont 32, Knight 24) Two quickfire maidens in a row for Australia with Beaumont dabbing away Gardner. The spin pair have upped the intensity out in the middle.
23rd over: England 62-1 (Beaumont 32, Knight 24) Now we have spin from both ends with King’s leggies belatedly introduced to the attack. Knight is watchful, and rightly so when the third delivery turns appreciably, but slowly, off the turn. The follow up is even better, drifting to leg in the air then spinning sharply to the off side. King isn’t finished, hollering for LBW when the attempted sweep is missed but the umpire’s finger stays down and Healy declines to review, fearing the amount of turn and bounce King generates. And rightly so, with DRS indicating the ball was too dynamic. Superb start for the Australian livewire.
22nd over: England 62-1 (Beaumont 32, Knight 24) The runs keep coming for England! Gardner drags down a long hop that Beaumont under-edges down to the fine leg boundary. Then there’s the sign of some variable bounce as Gardner gets one to spit off the pitch and trundle away for a couple of byes. Beaumont then demonstrates how well she is seeing things after over 60 deliveries at the crease, punching a couple through the covers.
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21st over: England 56-1 (Beaumont 26, Knight 24) Sutherland continues but again she’s costly, getting too straight then too short to Knight, allowing her to work a couple then crunch a pull to the midwicket rope. And the England skipper isn’t finished. There’s time for back-to-back boundaries with a sumptuous cover drive.
20th over: England 46-1 (Beaumont 26, Knight 14) Finally some spin. Gardner into the attack, landing her right-arm over varieties on a good length, mostly outside Knight’s off stump. The England skipper is watchful and plays away a maiden.
19th over: England 46-1 (Beaumont 26, Knight 14) Runs off Sutherland! Finally the allrounder concedes some width and Beaumont slaps it through the covers from the crease for four. The next delivery isn’t much chop either so the England opener rocks back and cuts this one behind square for back-to-back boundaries.
18th over: England 37-1 (Beaumont 17, Knight 14) Shot! Knight leans forward and creams an effortless on drive from an overpitched Garth delivery for a rare boundary. A good sign for England that while this pair are digging in they’re not ignoring the run-scoring opportunities.
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17th over: England 31-1 (Beaumont 17, Knight 8) Sutherland sends down a jaffa that nips away off the seam and has Beaumont fishing outside off stump. The only moment of note in Sutherland’s second maiden after Dinner. England’s experienced batters are digging in here.
16th over: England 31-1 (Beaumont 17, Knight 8) Garth continues from the Members’ end as Healy backs her pacers while the ball is still hard. Not a lot happening yet this session. Surely spin is not far away.
15th over: England 30-1 (Beaumont 16, Knight 8) Sutherland gets play back under way and Knight is happy to block it out for a maiden.
The teams are back out as shadows start to form on the MCG. It is a hot sunny evening in Melbourne.
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Over in Galle, Australia have taken seven wickets in 45 balls during the first session of play on day four as they look to beat the rain and seal a crushing victory over Sri Lanka.
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A rare session win for the tourists. They bowled – and fielded – excellently in the first hour, ripping out the lower half of Australia’s batting order for just nine runs. Then they made it through 14 overs of pace to reach the dinner break just one wicket down.
Australia remain the only side that can win this match, and that victory may still arrive today, but England have at least given a decent account of themselves after yesterday’s shambles.
See you back here in 40 minutes or so.
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Dinner: England 30-1 (trail by 240 runs)
14th over: England 30-1 (Beaumont 16, Knight 8) There will be no spin before the interval as Garth replaces Brown from the Members’ end. And there’s another review – this time for LBW! Two in three balls from the trigger happy Healy. Line and length from Garth, Beaumont is forward with bat and pad together. Which did it hit first, and where did it hit? The third umpire bemoans on the hot mic that there has been a technical snafu so no ball tracking or ultra-edge are available. The decision has to be not-out and Australia retain their review. The likelihood was pad first, but outside the line – with an outside chance of umpire’s call.
13th over: England 30-1 (Beaumont 16, Knight 8) England are happy to just see off Sutherland from the crease as dinner approaches, but then on ball five Australia go up as one for a catch down the legside. The umpire’s finger isn’t raised. Knight holds her ground. Australia review but DRS quickly indicates there was no nick.
12th over: England 30-1 (Beaumont 16, Knight 8) Beaumont pulls just the second boundary of the day, over short square leg, and well in front of fine-leg.
11th over: England 25-1 (Beaumont 12, Knight 7) Just a couple of leg-byes as Sutherland eases into her work.
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10th over: England 23-1 (Beaumont 12, Knight 7) Just the single from Brown’s fifth over. She has 1/9 in this second innings.
With just 15 minutes until the dinner break I wonder if we’ll see some spin soon?
9th over: England 22-1 (Beaumont 11, Knight 7) Sutherland comes into the attack and her first delivery is loopy and overpitched allowing Knight to drive down the ground. It’s an easy two but some awful running keeps it to one.
Australia’s men have enforced the follow on in Galle. As Rob Smyth writes, “and frankly you’d hope so with a lead of 489 runs.”
8th over: England 18-1 (Beaumont 10, Knight 4) Beaumont respects Brown’s line and length until she digs out a fuller delivery that beats mid-on for a couple.
7th over: England 15-1 (Beaumont 8, Knight 4) Shot of the day so far! Half-volley outside off stump and Knight just leans into a cover drive with textbook excellence to caress the first boundary in 90 minutes of play.
Meanwhile in Sri Lanka, Kuhnemann and Lyon have rattled through the host’s middle and lower order to secure a first innings lead of 489. Surely the follow-on will be enforced in Galle.
6th over: England 11-1 (Beaumont 8, Knight 0) Beaumont continues to work the ball around and keep the scoreboard moving.
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5th over: England 7-1 (Beaumont 5, Knight 0) Beaumont is lucky not to cut an edge behind chasing a classic Garth outswinger, but then the bowler is too straight and England can rotate the strike.
4th over: England 6-1 (Beaumont 4, Knight 0) England one down before the spinners have been thrown the ball. It’s going to be a long rearguard action.
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WICKET! Bouchier b Brown 1 (England 6-1)
Back to the sheds and back to the drawing board for Bouchier. Her technique has been exposed badly this tour, and it ends in predictable fashion, bowled through the gate by Brown, who gets one to nip back a fraction and canter through the wide open gate and plant middle stump flat to the MCG turf.
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3rd over: England 5-0 (Beaumont 3, Bouchier 1) Garth continues to extract plenty of movement through the air but England do well to resist the urge to chase anything wide of off stump – until Bouchier fends at the last ball of the over.
2nd over: England 4-0 (Beaumont 2, Bouchier 1) Brown shares the new ball but she starts too straight and Bouchier can glance to the legside to get off the mark. When Brown shifts her line towards off stump Bouchier’s technique looks very sketchy indeed, the England opener failing to move her front pad in the direction of the ball and looking a candidate for being bowled, or caught behind the wicket.
Meanwhile over in Galle, Australia’s men have resumed their Test with Sri Lanka, and Matthew Kuhnemann has taken an early wicket.
1st over: England 2-0 (Beaumont 2, Bouchier 0) Garth has the new ball for Australia but she offers Beaumont some width first up and the England opener gets off the mark with a couple behind point. I’m a big fan of Garth and how she bowls old-fashioned stump to stump with natural away swing. There’s some decent movement in the air for the Dublin-born bowler but her line isn’t tight enough and England see off the opening over, which is an upgrade on their first innings.
News coming through that Ellyse Perry is unlikely to take the field for Australia during this innings.
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Tammy Beaumont and Maia Bouchier are already one their way out to the middle of the MCG. Australia’s fielders huddle on the boundary listening to Alyssa Healy deliver some final instructions. Can England find a way to salvage something from this series?
England took 5/18 in just 50 minutes this afternoon.
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Australia 440 all out (lead by 270 runs)
The honours board artist at the MCG is going to be busy. Annabel Sutherland’s century yesterday set the tone for Australia, and her name will be accompanied by that of Beth Mooney, who racked up her milestone in the first over of play today. And to those names will be added Sophie Ecclestone, with England’s star spinner wrapping up the innings with her fifth wicket.
England require at least 270 runs to make Australia bat again, but on a turning pitch they may do well just to take this match into a fourth day.
WICKET! Perry c&b Ecclestone 2 (Australia 440)
Ecclestone ends with a deserved fifth wicket in her 45th over. Perry, clearly unfit, tries to deal in boundaries, and after driving handsomely for two cannot repeat the trick, chipping a straightforward return catch to the England spinner.
The MCG goes wild as Ellyse Perry walks out at No.10! #Ashes pic.twitter.com/KSCeRKH1jy
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 1, 2025
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130th over: Australia 438-9 (Perry 0, Brown 0) Almost two for Filer but Brown’s defensive jab into the offside lobs just out of reach of the diving gully. This has been a far better display form England, unfortunately too little too late.
WICKET! Mooney b Filer 106 (Australia 438-9)
England’s superb afternoon continues apace! Line and length from Filer at good speed and the centurion plays inside the line and watches her off stump get a solid thumping.
Everyone inside the MCG – including England’s players – stands to applaud Mooney as he leaves the field.
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129th over: Australia 437-8 (Mooney 106, Perry 0) Another wicket-maiden for Ecclestone, and she could have had two with Perry pushing forward with hard hands and offering a very tough chance to the right of the diving silly point.
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WICKET! King LBW b Ecclestone 3 (Australia 437-8)
Textbook left-arm orthodox dismissal, pinning the right-hand batter bang in front, beating the attempted forward defence. Plumb. Ecclestone has four… and here comes Ellyse Perry!
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127th over: Australia 437-7 (Mooney 106, King 3) An eventful over!
England go upstairs for an LBW against Mooney. It looked hopeful in real time with Mooney moving towards the offside and seemingly struck well outside the line, but replays reveal a much closer call, with DRS determining the impact point was umpire’s call. Review retained.
King is then extremely fortunate to survive a wild pull shot that ricochets off the splice and loops just beyond short leg. That was an excellent bouncer.
Finally, Mooney appears to glance down the legside to the tumbling Jones. England appeal, but without much conviction, so we go to DRS. Replays quickly determine Mooney gloves the ball, now, does it carry into the gloves of the diving keeper? Almost inevitably, with TV replays as they are and no soft signal on-field to provide guidance, it is determined the catch was not completed.
Top level cricket needs to get a hold of this problem. They’ve painted themselves into a corner and no longer have a suitable solution.
127th over: Australia 435-7 (Mooney 105, King 2) Mooney works a single before King drops anchor against Ecclestone, aside from a cut shot that floats at catchable height through point for a couple. The England spinner completes her over by turning one beautifully past the attempted forward defensive.
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126th over: Australia 432-7 (Mooney 104, King 0) Australia lead by 262. Ellyse Perry has still not come out to bat.
WICKET! Garth c Jones b Filer 0 (Australia 432-7)
Filer is happy to gift Mooney a single so England can target the new batter, and she only needs one delivery at Kim Garth! Full outside off stump, Garth can’t resist the big drive but manages only to edge behind. England’s impressive afternoon continues.
125th over: Australia 431-6 (Mooney 103, Garth 0) Wicket-maiden for the superb Ecclestone who now has three wickets from her 42 overs. Of course, her form this morning does not bode well for England later on with King and Gardner to face on a turning deck.
WICKET! McGrath c Bell b Ecclestone 12 (Australia 431-6)
Maybe the declaration won’t be required after all. Ecclestone beats McGrath in flight but the allrounder follows through with the shot, only to chip a *simple* catch to mid-on. Thankfully, Lauren Bell does make it look simple, and Australia are six down.
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124th over: Australia 431-5 (Mooney 103, McGrath 12) Now that Mooney has ticked off her century, attention turns to Australia’s declaration. For the time being batting is circumspect with this pair happy to see of Filer from the crease. The England seamer has started promisingly, but erring slightly on the short side.
A century in all three formats = complete! ✅
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 1, 2025
Beth Mooney gets her Test century, at the MCG no less!#PlayOfTheDay | @hcltech | #Ashes pic.twitter.com/qgy2nndDsf
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123rd over: Australia 428-5 (Mooney 103, McGrath 10) Plenty of turn out there early for Ecclestone. England’s selection means she’s the only player at Heather Knight’s disposal to take advantage of the surface. She already bowled 39 overs yesterday.
122nd over: Australia 426-5 (Mooney 101, McGrath 10) It’s the right-arm pace of Lauren Filer from the other end. She hits decent areas, worked away for a couple of singles.
Jane Evans has emailed in: “Jonathan, I think the saddest thing about the lacklustre performance of the English side, and the comments about tiredness on field yesterday as excuses for the poor fielding, is it pretty much puts to bed any arguments for more women’s test matches in coming seasons. It’s such a shame.”
I fear you’re right Jane. But hopefully it acts as a signal to increase investment in strength and conditioning and scheduling more Tests to improve future performance.
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100 to Beth Mooney (155 balls)
121st over: Australia 424-5 (Mooney 100, McGrath 9) Sophie Ecclestone begins the day’s play with her left-arm orthodox over the wicket to the left-handed Mooney. There’s decent turn and bounce and Mooney does not look comfortable at all. The second ball of the over turned a long way from off to leg, putting doubt into the batter’s mind, but then balls three and five don’t move, beating Mooney on her outside edge. On 98, Mooney is desperate to get off strike, and is fortunate to be sent back after clipping to point.
But then, on the final ball of the over, she gets some length and width to attack and cuts safely square to bring up her first test century! Mooney becomes the first Australian to register tons in all international formats. Relief for Mooney and the Australian dressing room.
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Out walks Beth Mooney and Tahlia McGrath into the middle of the sunkissed MCG. England are in a huddle on the boundary, revving themselves up for one final effort in the field at the end of a long and challenging tour.
It is a glorious day in Melbourne. The sky is cloudless, temperatures are nudging 30C, and there’s a whiff of southerly breeze to stop everything getting too oppressive.
We've had 11,918 fans at the MCG today, which mean's we've broken the world record attendance at a women's Test match with two days still to come!
— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) January 31, 2025
Thank you Melbourne for coming out to support our incredible team 🙌 #Ashes pic.twitter.com/kaMlDmo3qj
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Speaking of experts, here’s Geoff Lemon who was at the MCG yesterday.
How to describe England’s fielding? Let’s say that while walking through the Betty Cuthbert Bar in the third session, witnessing a small, tired girl abruptly coat both her parents and the floor with a sluice of vomit formed from chips and lemonade, that was only the second-most noxious display at the MCG that day.
“Good morning from chilly Yorkshire,” emails John Starbuck. (John, I hope you’re up this early by choice.) “Whoever is the best fielding coach in England is going to have a long career by the looks of it. I don’t think I’ve ever known such a sorry state of affairs. Something Must Be Done, if women’s cricket is to thrive.”
It has been a disastrous tour for England, showcased most spectacularly in their fielding. I’ll leave it for experts better qualified than me to determine whether this is an aberration or a trend, and to workshop necessary solutions.
My overwhelming feeling is just one of sadness. With the men’s summer ending early, this Ashes series getting excellent broadcast coverage here in Australia, and both teams at the top of the game, this could have been a seismic moment for women’s cricket, but England’s displays have never allowed that to happen.
Preamble
Hello everybody and welcome to live OBO coverage of Australia v England in the women’s Ashes. Day three of the only Test match begins at 2:30pm local time (3:30am GMT).
It is scheduled to be the penultimate day of the series, but considering England’s wretched form it may yet turn out to be the curtain call. Australia will resume at 422/5, a lead of 252, already 30 runs greater than England’s highest total this lopsided summer.
Let’s begin with the positives: Australia’s appetite and conviction; Annabel Sutherland’s ton; Beth Mooney’s likely century; and the record aggregate crowd for a women’s Test. Ordinarily each would be cause for glowing headlines. But England have barely provided any opposition to the challenge offered by their hosts: the two big knocks benefited from multiple dropped catches, and the crowd would doubtless have been greater had this Test carried any jeopardy, instead of the Ashes been done and dusted with only white balls.
Raf Nicholson’s report from day two is superb, if at times harrowing reading, encapsulating England’s collective ineptitude.
Ecclestone, Filer and Ryana MacDonald-Gay beginning a competitive game of “who can produce the most tired misfield?” MacDonald-Gay put down a catch at cover off Ecclestone’s bowling; Ecclestone returned the favour by letting one slide through her hands at slip; Filer reached down to pick up the ball, let it through her legs, and back-kicked it halfway across the field. The winner of the competition? A late entrant, Maia Bouchier, who put down an absolute sitter at gully.
‘It’s not been the tour we wanted,’ Lauren Filer told the BBC. ‘We all know we’re better than this, we don’t need reminding.’
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