Ashes Summer Musings: Vol IX
Heather Knight and an impossible mission.
Heather Knight and an impossible mission.
Wednesday 12th July 2023
I had to forego today’s cricketing Ashes battle and the 5th game in a series of 7 between the ladies of England and Australia, as quite simply my son insisted upon us visiting our local cinema to aid Tom Cruise in his impossible mission of saving the world once more. To say we were both excitedly looking forward to this latest instalment in a franchise approaching its third decade is another of my monumental understatements and refraining from any hints, score updates or sporting spoilers, I bubbled myself away in a cocoon until late this evening and the hour long highlights from Bristol of today’s 50 over ODI (One Day International). After saving the world, with the added help of the Impossible Mission Force and Thomas Cruise Mapother IV, I settled in with a pizza to accompany the highlights hoping for an England victory that, like their male counterparts, would keep their Ashes dreams alive.
Remarkably, considering England lost the first match in the series and a brilliant Test Match to boot, as well as the first of three IT20 (International T20) matches and trailing 6 points to 0 as a consequence, the Ashes are alive as England’s hopes following today’s close run 2 wicket triumph over the World Champion Australians. The razor thin margin of victory is perfectly in keeping with the series as well as a mirror to the men’s series recommencing next week and the mirroring theme continues with an Australian team being incredibly difficult to beat and never giving up, and an England team on the rise, a little raw in places, and apt to drop a lot of catches.
A lot of catches.
After winning the toss and electing to bat first, Australia lost captain Alyssa Healy for just 8 before Ellyse Perry and 20 year old Phoebe Litchfield steadied the ship of their innings with a fine partnership that saw Perry granted a cricketing “life” when on just 6 and Litchfield finally dismissed for 34 runs from 36 balls received with unquestionably one of the greatest catches of this sporting Summer. On a day when England would spill 5 catches (with the combined extra cricketing lives costing a mammoth 141 additional runs), youngster Litchfield was brilliantly caught one-handed by a leaping Sophie Ecclestone at the “Mid-On” position. Ecclestone, a mixture of joy, relief and utter astonishment at her incredible grab, simply clasped a hand over her mouth before being mobbed by her jubilant teammates. It was a true highlight of this Ashes Summer, and any cricketing Summer come to that.
As was the performance yet again of Beth Mooney. The 29 year old from Shepparton in Northern Victoria impresses every time I watch her and assisted by the 2 extra lives granted her by the easy catch dropped by Kate Cross when on just 19 and the straight forward stumping opportunity missed by England wicket-keeper Amy Jones when on 39, Mooney would eventually steer her team to a final innings total of 263–8, remaining 81 not out from 99 balls received.
Chasing 264 for victory and a must win to keep The Ashes series alive, England could have been chasing a far, far lesser total had they held their catches, but where they had been profligate Australia were sloppy and, for a time, overmatched by a marauding England desperate for the win. Racing to 103–1, it appeared as though England were treating this game as an IT20 match rather than the longer 50 over format and whilst they didn’t collapse (as has been common for both teams in the latter stages of this series), wickets regularly tumbled as they edged their way toward the victory target. 207–6 became 235–8 with the limp dismissals of Amy Jones, Sophie Ecclestone and Sarah Glenn, and with 29 runs still to win it appeared as though England were heading for an Ashes losing defeat in a game they’d largely controlled.
Enter Kate Cross.
Four boundary 4’s, one an audacious reverse scoop over the head of Aussie wicket-keeper and captain Alyssa Healy, and England had gone from a dominating victory to the brink of Ashes disaster to a win by 2 wickets with just 11 balls of the innings remaining.
With the calmest head of all stood England captain Heather Knight.
Guiding her team to this crucial 2 wicket win with a crushing boundary 4 to end the game 75 not out, the 32 year old from Plymouth threw her bat into the air with unrestrained joy before hugging partner Kate Cross, and from 2 series opening defeats and a 0–6 points deficit, Knight has skippered her team to 3 consecutive wins against the World Champions, a level 6–6 points position in the series and with 2 games to go most crucially of all, The Ashes are still up for grabs.
With a 0–6 deficit after 2 games against the World Champion Australians, it appeared to be an impossible mission for Heather Knight and her team, but heading to my home county of Hampshire this Sunday, this game is arguably the biggest single match in ladies Ashes history for some considerable time.
The same could, and probably will be said, come the final match in Taunton on Tuesday.
The impossible mission continues, and so does this intriguing Ashes series.
Thanks for reading. Volumes 6, 7 and 8 in this on-going series of diary entries are linked below:
Ashes Summer Musings: Vol VIII
Aussie Rules, OK?medium.com
Ashes Summer Musings: Vol VII
Fish and Chips on the riverbank.medium.com
Ashes Summer Musings: Vol VI
Pyjama Cricket through a Black Mirror.medium.com