Women's Ashes: How England closed gap on Australia

Heather Knight (left) and Nat Sciver-Brunt were 2 of the main driving forces for England successful the Women's Ashes

It was the cardinal question posed to some captains aft the drawn Women's Ashes bid - person England closed the spread connected all-conquering Australia?

They near with the Ashes urn inactive successful their possession but having mislaid some white-ball bid against England, their one-day bid loss being their archetypal successful a bilateral contention since 2013.

So however person England achieved what galore thought was impossible?

Jon Lewis improves each department

'Bazball' is the buzz connection of the English summertime successful men's cricket, and the benignant of play which has been truthful palmy for Ben Stokes' broadside has been adapted and adopted by skipper Heather Knight and her team.

The antheral who has introduced this is caput manager Jon Lewis, who was portion of Brendon McCullum's gyration earlier taking complaint of the women's team.

Neither McCullum nor Lewis similar the word Bazball - oregon 'Jonball' arsenic Lewis' saltation has been nicknamed - but there's small uncertainty they person transformed the mode England's men and women play their cricket.

In its simplest form, it's astir controlled aggression with the bat and a tendency to instrumentality each azygous absorption wicket with the ball.

Bowlers should beryllium proactive alternatively than reactive. Defensive fields, lines and lengths conscionable bash not fly.

Jon Lewis replaced Lisa Keightley arsenic caput manager successful November 2022

Under Lewis, England's Test, one-day planetary and T20 batting run-rates person improved, but excavation a small deeper and it's wide the affirmative enactment is arsenic controlled arsenic it is successful.

England's Test strike-rate (58.81) successful the one-off lucifer against Australia was higher than successful immoderate different Test successful which records were taken.

That's much than their 54.95 strike-rate successful the past Ashes bid down under, and acold successful beforehand of the 39.66 England scored their runs astatine successful the erstwhile location Ashes bid successful 2019.

Interestingly, however, England played less attacking shots than successful the astir caller Ashes Test successful Australia (43% compared to 50%), underlining the McCullum/Lewis mentation of clarity not carelessness.

In the T20s, for the 2nd successive series, England scored astatine much than 8 runs an over, having ne'er antecedently touched specified numbers (see reddish bars successful illustration below).

One of the biggest occurrence stories of the Lewis reign is 32-year-old batter Danni Wyatt.

So often seen arsenic a white-ball specialist, she was handed her Test debut this summertime and has seen her strike-rate amended successful T20 and ODI cricket nether Lewis.

She ended the one-day bid with a assured 43 disconnected 25 balls which proved important successful England's victory.

Spin sisters radiance erstwhile again

England's fightback from losing the solitary Test and archetypal T20 coincided with a callback for Charlie Dean and the hosts going with 3 spinners, Sophie Ecclestone and Sarah Glenn being the different two.

The information each bring thing antithetic is simply a cardinal spot for England. World fig 1 Ecclestone is simply a left-arm spinner, Glenn a leg-spinner and Dean an off-spinner.

Since Lewis took over, England's spinners person excelled successful each formats. They took 18 wickets astatine an mean of 11.27 connected the wintertime circuit to the West Indies, 22 astatine 14.68 successful the T20 World Cup successful South Africa - a state not known for being particularly suited to rotation bowling - and successful each Ashes matches this summertime they person 31 wickets.

England's spinners person been much costly yet much potent successful this year's Ashes.

"It does assistance erstwhile you person the champion spinner successful the satellite (Sophie Ecclestone) successful your side," said England World Cup victor Alex Hartley.

"England are present backing Sarah Glenn successful ODI cricket too, truthful that's a shift.

"In the rotation department, England and Australia are evenly matched, but Ecclestone gives England specified an edge."

Sarah Glenn celebrates a Sophie Ecclestone drawback with her chap spinner

In a classical lawsuit of 'if you can't bushed them, articulation them', Australia turned to leg-spinner Alana King successful Sunday's decisive 2nd one-day international.

The effect was a player-of-the-match show and a series-deciding win.

It's besides worthy highlighting the colossal interaction of Australia's ain rotation prima Ashleigh Gardner, who took 23 wickets successful the series.

Without her, England mightiness present beryllium successful possession of the urn. But her occurrence highlighted the deficiencies of Australia's gait bowling stocks...

Bell tolls for England arsenic Filer impresses successful the accelerated lane

Australia's caller dominance coincided with the second stages successful the vocation of England accelerated bowling legends Anya Shrubsole and Katherine Sciver-Brunt.

With some present retired, Kate Cross and Lauren Bell person stepped up to pb the attack.

Bell, 22, took 14 wickets crossed this year's Ashes series, which is much than Australia's Megan Schutt, Darcie Brown and Ellyse Perry combined.

Lauren Bell (left) and Kate Cross person spearheaded England's seam bowling onslaught this summer

"England had the large task of filling the void near by Shrubsole/Brunt, particularly for the consistency those 2 offered implicit a fig of years," said ex-Australia batter Alex Blackwell.

"But I person seen signs of Lauren Bell being capable to bash that arsenic she is increasing successful confidence. Her quality to vessel with subject has had a immense effect connected this team."

England besides turned to breathtaking young gait bowler Lauren Filer successful the Test, which saw an accrued corporate bowling velocity of 2 miles per hr for the seam onslaught compared to the astir caller 2 Tests England played.

"Lauren Filer provided immoderate of the champion amusement during the Test erstwhile she was charging successful with the assemblage down her, and she got Ellyse Perry retired twice," said Blackwell.

"Darcie Brown is Australia's equivalent - their young tearaway - and she hasn't rather been astatine her best, but she's young and volition larn control.

"They person besides got a batch of depth, but Tayla Vlaeminck being injured has been a shame. Raw gait has been absent for Australia."

The Lanning effect

Meg Lanning led Australia to T20 World Cup occurrence successful South Africa earlier this year

England mightiness person closed the spread successful immoderate cardinal areas, but what is hard to quantify is the interaction of Australia losing skipper Meg Lanning for this bid for aesculapian reasons.

A titan with the bat - she averages 53.51 successful one-day cricket - she has led Australia to unprecedented occurrence arsenic skipper and should beryllium spoken astir successful the aforesaid enactment arsenic different large Australia captains similar Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting.

Her captaincy triumph percent is simply a singular 80%, compared to the 55% occurrence complaint of her replacement successful this series, Alyssa Healy.

Australia person besides mislaid their caput coach, Matthew Mott, and influential batter Rachael Haynes (retired) successful the past year.

Mott, who is present the caput manager of England men's white-ball sides, has been replaced by Shelley Nitschke, with all-rounder Tahlia McGrath taking implicit from Haynes successful the enactment group.

However, Blackwell said the nonaccomplishment of Lanning, portion significant, has not been the main crushed for the drawn series.

She said: "Meg has a antithetic benignant to Healy, who is precise amusive and light-hearted, whereas Lanning is much 'follow my lead' and sets precise precocious standards for herself and for others. It has been hugely palmy for her, but I don't deliberation it is the difference.

"We saw Australia nether unit for moments successful the Test, but Healy's fearless benignant helped Australia astatine times.

"When she came retired to bat successful the 2nd innings, Australia had mislaid a flurry of wickets and she was connected a brace with 2 breached fingers - but she made a half-century from 60-odd balls. And that's what Lanning has instilled successful the team.

"They cognize they are ne'er retired of it until the precise past ball; they volition ne'er springiness up. She is the ice-cool captain, but I haven't seen a immense quality from that position betwixt her and Healy."

While Australia dropped much chances successful this bid than successful caller years nether Lanning's stewardship, they inactive retained an borderline implicit England successful the fielding department.

So person England closed the gap?

All-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt - imperious for England each summer, particularly successful the one-day bid arsenic she scored successive centuries - thinks so, though she concedes determination is inactive enactment to beryllium done.

"I would accidental we're not that acold apart," said Sciver-Brunt, speaking earlier the last ODI.

"As agelong arsenic support our intent and the mode that we play determination isn't excessively overmuch of a gap.

"When unit moments are on, they've astir apt inactive got the borderline connected america a small bit.

"We've evidently got implicit the enactment successful immoderate adjacent games but astir apt not done it arsenic convincingly arsenic we'd person liked to.

"But I conjecture we're inactive connected that learning curve a small spot - astir however we, arsenic individuals, spell astir those unit moments astatine circumstantial times."

Perhaps, however, the last connection should spell to Australia's subordinate of the series, Gardner.

Speaking astatine Tuesday's post-match presentation, she said: "England person outplayed america and played a fearless marque of cricket, and it is thing we should look at."

The apprentices mightiness conscionable person taught the masters a lesson.