Renewed belief as England look to end decade-long Ashes wait but daunting schedule ahead

The scars may be fewer, but scale of the challenge remains.

England’s women start their latest Ashes quest Down Under emboldened by the home show of 18 months ago and sensing an opportunity, with Australia bruised, but conscious still that the trend of a decade will take some reversing.

Heather Knight’s team kick off the multi-format series in the First One-Day International in Sydney late on Saturday night, seeking to win an Ashes series for the first time since the winter of 2013/14 and win back the trophy the Aussies have held since snatching it from the 2015 English summer.

The 2023 equivalent was a blockbuster, England coming from six points down to square the series at 8-8, Australia ultimately retaining the Ashes by virtue of a gripping, three-run victory in Southampton’s penultimate ODI.

“That home Ashes summer was really big in terms of getting some white-ball results,” said spinner Charlie Dean this week, England having edged both the T20 and ODI legs. “We didn’t come away with an Ashes win but it felt like we did a lot of hard work and the momentum was with us in that series.

"It feels like we don’t have as many scars in the group from games previous. That home Ashes summer has really brought some positive feelings around the Ashes and what we can do.”

If that series showed rare chinks in formidable Australian armour then they were exposed more completely at last year’s T20 World Cup in the UAE, where New Zealand were surprise champions and their Anzac cousins, the perennial holders, failed even to make the final for the first time since 2009.

That Aussie failure, though, was a rarity in that it stung England almost as bad. Having waited so long for their rivals to slip, Knight’s team were not on hand to capitalise, already knocked out in the group stage.

The disappointment was coupled with a newly intense criticism at home, much of it stemming from comments from 2017 World Cup winner Alex Hartley, who accused some players of "letting the team down when it comes to fitness”.

Dean launched another defence of England’s physical preparation ahead of this series opener, insisting their World Cup flop was down to “cricketing things”.

“I don’t think the reason we lost the World Cup was because of our fitness,” she said. “You lose one game and you’re out. I don’t think our fitness comes into question at all. We’re professional athletes and we’re all working hard in our individual ways.”

Fitness - or durability at least - will doubtless be a topic of fierce conversation throughout a series that is almost demonic in schedule. The entire thing - three ODIs and three T20s each worth two points, followed by a Test match worth four - takes place across the course of three weeks, with travel to a new city between every game. England have not been helped by their sole warm-up match being washed out after 28 overs this week.

Head coach Jon Lewis insists his team are ready but has also led the backlash to the calendar congestion that will see him managing his resources - including an exciting pace-bowling group spearheaded by Lauren Filer - rather more carefully than would be ideal during such a marquee series.

Players on both teams have also called for an expansion of the Test leg of the series to three matches. Aside from the obvious benefit of providing more women’s Test cricket, the sole contest currently has too much bearing on the series, providing half of the points needed for the holders to retain the Ashes in one swoop.

This winter’s Test - a four-day, day-night game - has at least been moved to the end of the series; in 2023, an opening defeat left England with an unfathomable task in needing to win five of the six white-ball games - albeit they nearly did.

The aim for the tourists this time will be to make sure they are still alive by the time they arrive at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, hosting a women’s Test for the first time since 1949, at the end of the month.

“We feel that we’re closing the gap,” Dean added. “They’ve been so dominant over the past ten years but we know that when the Aussies get poked it only spurs them on to do greater things.

"Hopefully, we can come at them with the same attitude and energy we did at home.”