Heather Knight said that England’s strength in the Twenty20 format will give them the best chance of rescuing their Ashes chances with their series hopes hanging by a thread after three successive one‑day international defeats.
England need to win all three T20s, which begin on Monday in Sydney, to stand any chance of regaining the Ashes, but their captain is confident they can pull off the feat.
“In the 2023 Ashes series we were in exactly the same position,” Knight said, a reference to England’s dramatic comeback from 6-0 down to level the series 8-8. “We focused on the moment and trying to win the next game.
“The format change will suit us. T20 is a real strength of ours. The blueprint that we have in T20 cricket is really clear, and how we’ve played in T20 has been really dominant for the last couple of years.”
Knight confirmed that Sophia Dunkley and Sarah Glenn will come into the XI for the T20s, with Dunkley batting at No 3, likely in place of Alice Capsey. The all-rounders Dani Gibson and Freya Kemp are both fit for selection, having recovered from injuries earlier in the winter, but look to be fighting it out for the No 7 role, with Knight strongly hinting that Kemp would be preferred because of the variety offered by the left-hander. “Those girls are desperate to bring a lot to the team and bring that energy,” Knight said.
By the time they take to the SCG field on Monday evening, England will have had just three days to throw off their disappointment at going 6-0 down in the series, and one player in particular seems set to feel the brunt of the hectic schedule – the seamer Lauren Bell. Bell was one of a handful of players selected in all three Ashes squads (ODI, T20 and Test) and was expected to be rested for at least one of the T20s. But her success in the ODI format has been such that Knight hopes to select her in every match of the series – despite the compressed schedule.
“I’m pretty confident that Belly can get through all seven [Ashes matches],” Knight said. “She’s fit enough, she’s really strong. In a massive series like this, you want to try and play your best team as much as you can so we’re hoping to do that.”
That will be unwelcome news for Australia, who have found Bell’s newfound away swing difficult to contend with in the ODIs. “Lauren Bell has changed a lot since the last time we faced her,” Phoebe Litchfield said. “She’s provided some really good consistency and she’s swinging the ball the other way this time.”
Australia’s own big headache is whether they can find room for Alana King in their T20 XI, after her extraordinary success in the ODI leg of the series. The leg-spinner has not played a T20 international for Australia for almost two years, but is the leading wicket-taker so far in this Ashes with 11; her four for 25, just when England looked on course to chase down their 181-run target, changed the course of the Melbourne ODI.
Australia’s last outing in T20 cricket was the World Cup semi-final in October, when they were eliminated by South Africa, but Litchfield said that experience had helped the team to reflect. “We learned a lot from that game. We were really disappointed to be knocked out, but that’s where you learn the most as a team. We’ve reflected in our time since then and are keen to come out with a bang, and take the game on.
“The way England play is very attacking – they probably take the game on as best as any other side in the world. We’ll definitely not take them lightly. I’m excited for our team to unleash the shackles.”
