Heather Knight: A Format Change is Key for England
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Synopsis
England captain Heather Knight is hopeful that switching from ODIs to T20Is will revive their spirits in the women's Ashes series after suffering a 3-0 defeat in the 50-over matches. With all eyes on the upcoming T20Is, Knight believes this change will be beneficial.
Key Takeaways
- Heather Knight optimistic about T20Is helping England.
- England needs to win all remaining matches.
- Australia only needs one more win for Ashes retention.
- Kate Cross is preparing for the pink-ball Test.
- England has added new players for the T20Is.
New Delhi, Jan 18 (NationPress) England’s captain Heather Knight is optimistic that transitioning from ODIs to T20Is will aid their recovery in the women’s Ashes series, particularly after a disappointing 3-0 defeat in the 50-over segment of this multi-format competition.
With England needing to secure victories in all remaining matches of the series, which includes three T20Is and a day-night Test at the MCG, they find themselves trailing 6-0 due to Australia’s success in the ODIs. Australia only requires one more victory to maintain their grip on the women’s Ashes trophy, with the first T20I scheduled to take place at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday.
“The last Ashes series was 6-0 and we were able to turn things around. I think having a change of format will be really good for us. I think T20 cricket is one of our best formats. I think that little reset will do us some good,” Heather remarked.
“We've got to keep believing, but we can't look too far ahead. Back in the last Ashes, we kept it game by game and just got on a bit of a roll. We're still alive, we're still in it, and we've got to keep believing we can,” she added, as reported by ESPNCricinfo.
England will benefit from the inclusion of Bess Heath, Dani Gibson, Freya Kemp, and Linsey Smith for the T20Is. Heather also noted that England’s recent victory in the T20I series against South Africa might not provide a significant advantage.
“I think they're a team that play T20 cricket very well. And as are we. We've played some brilliant T20 cricket recently in the last year. So hopefully it does (help) but I don't think it will make a huge advantage them not playing too much,” she stated.
Heather concluded by mentioning that pacer Kate Cross, who was sidelined during the ODIs due to a back issue from the South Africa series, is among the England players preparing for the upcoming pink-ball Test at the MCG.
“Kate felt like she was pretty close and probably fit enough to play. But we felt like it was too much of a risk really because she hasn't had a huge amount of cricket. She's still in a place where it is a bit grumbly and can flare up at any time,” she said.
“The Test match girls will have a little bit of a camp away from us, training, so Tammy (Beaumont) and Ryana MacDonald-Gay will be a part of that. They'll get a really good preparation. So, it's moving in the right direction (for Cross),” Heather concluded.
