Heather Knight: England captain says 2023 Ashes comeback vs Australia provides hope in bid to keep series alive | Cricket News happymamay

Heather Knight says England should draw hope from their miraculous comeback in 2023 as they bid to keep the Women’s Ashes alive with a win in the opening T20 in Sydney on Monday.

England go into the match trailing 6-0 on the points table after Australia completed their ODI whitewash with an 86-run win in Hobart on Friday. The hosts now only need two more points to retain the Ashes.

But Captain Knight did not lose all hope and pointed to her team recovering from a similar deficit two years ago to eventually tie the series 8-8.

“What we learned from the 2023 Ashes series when we were in the same situation is to really focus on what we need to do in the moment,” Knight said.

“There is no doubt that it will be difficult but we will try to give our best to T20 and I think the change of format will suit us well.”

Freya Kemp, spinner Lynsey Smith and wicketkeeper-batsman Bess Heath will join the squad for the T20 match, as England look to reassert their dominance in the short format after a disappointing 2024 World Cup.

“I think that’s our real strength,” Knight added. “It’s a format that girls really love to play and it suits a lot of the characters in the group because it’s fast and exciting.

“I think the mental aspect suits us as well, we can draw a line under the one-day series and go out and play on a beautiful cricket pitch and hopefully put in a really strong performance.”

Will the T20 format help England improve?

With the ODI leg of the multi-format series over, a shift to T20s should favor England.

This format is arguably the strongest in England, with Knight’s side winning seven out of eight T20s before the Ashes, including a 3-0 T20 whitewash on their recent tour of South Africa.

“I think the change of format is really good for us. T20 is one of our best formats and I think a bit of a reset will do us some good,” Knight said.

“T20 is a format that a lot of girls love to play in and I hope this change will benefit us a lot.”

With a new format comes new faces, as England’s T20 side takes up the baton from their ODI counterparts in Monday’s pivotal clash in Sydney.

“I think changing the format will lift morale and ease everyone’s suffering,” Nat Skiver-Brent said. “There are new players who will provide us with energy, and we are looking forward to returning to Sydney.”

However, Australia currently tops the rankings for the best T20 team in the world while England are in second place.

Ashes Woman 2025 Timeline

All dates and times in the UK and Ireland

• First international match: Saturday 11 January – North Sydney Oval – Australia won by four wickets
• Audi II: Monday 13 January – Junction Oval, Melbourne – Australia won by 21 points
• Audi III: Thursday 16 January – Ninja Stadium, Hobart – Australia won by 86 runs
• First T20I: Monday 20 January, 8.40am – Sydney Cricket Ground
• Second T20I: 8.40am, Thursday 23 January – Manuka Oval, Canberra
• 3rd T20I: 8.10am, Saturday 25 January – Adelaide Oval
• exam: 3:30am, Thursday 30 January – Sunday 2 February – MCG, Melbourne