Mixed emotions for ‘proud’ skippers after special series

Alyssa Healy summed up the prevailing mixed emotions for Australia following the end of their Ashes campaign as "pride" and "disappointment".

For the second time during their eight-year reign as Ashes holders, Australia kept their hold on the trophy via a drawn series rather than an outright win.

Having at one point held a six-nil advantage in the multi-format series after winning the sole Test and first T20I, England won four of the remaining five games to level the Ashes eight-all in Taunton.

Australia’s campaign ended with a 69-run DLS defeat in Taunton, their first ODI series loss in a decade.

But Healy nonetheless takes the Ashes home with her, a fact not lost on the Australian skipper as she reflected on the challenge of stepping in for the absent Meg Lanning.

"There's a few different feelings," Healy said.

"For me at the moment, I think (I feel) pride … we came over here to do a job and we didn't quite do it but we've got the trophy back in our grasp, which is job number one done.

"We couldn't quite get ourselves up over the line in the white-ball stuff, but overall, I think really proud of the way that the series has unfolded.

"I think it's been an amazing spectacle for cricket in general and it's been really cool to be a part of.

"I sit here slightly excited and then slightly disappointed at the same time."

Image Id: F0FCD2CF576647E2B628A76C439D6B80 Image Caption: Healy holds the Ashes trophy aloft in Taunton // Getty

Protracted post-game presentations saw a jubilant England presented with a trophy and medals for winning the ODI leg 2-1 as Australia watched on.

Their roles were then reversed when Australia received their own medals for retaining the Ashes before Healy raised the trophy.

And while Australia will be taking the Ashes back home with them, their celebrations were noticeably muted in contrast to England’s lifting of their own, more minor, silverware.

Ash Gardner and Natalie Sciver-Brunt were named the players of the series for their respective countries, but it was the Australian allrounder who earned the overall honour of being named the Peden-Archdale Medallist.

While Australia had mixed emotions in the immediate aftermath, for England it was clearer cut.

Trailing six-nil, they were left needing to beat Australia five times in a row to take the series.

Ultimately, they won four and lost the other on the last ball – and their disappointment came when their hopes of regaining the Ashes slipped away via Sunday’s three-run defeat in Southampton.

Having sat with, and then parked, those emotions on the two-and-a-half hour bus journey to Taunton immediately after the match, Knight said England could enjoy Sunday’s victory for what it was – their first ODI series win over Australia in a decade, and a drawn Ashes series bounced back from trailing six-nil after the first T20I.

"We've had a lot of hurt against this side and it's quite nice to not be doing a down-in-the-dumps interview at the back end of an Ashes series," Knight said after Tuesday’s game.

"The Ashes was gone the other day and this disappointment all came out then ... I'm just happy and really proud of the team," Knight said.

"I think two series wins against the world champions in both formats is brilliant.

"I think the character in the side to turn it around today was unbelievable ... it was a pretty quiet bus journey after the Ageas Bowl, we came straight here, and to have the resilience and the character to turn it around today from not just the players, but the staff as well, deserve real credit for that.

"If you told me that at six-nil down I certainly would have bitten your hand off."

England walked away having won more matches across the seven-game series than their rivals, but Australia’s 89-run Test victory in Trent Bridge proved decisive, as did their status as current Ashes holders.

It was a drastic shift in fortunes from the previous two editions of the multi-format Ashes which saw England win a sole T20 across the two campaigns.

"A lot of emotion came out … I think we've experienced quite a lot of hurt against Australia and we haven't got the Ashes but I think to play the way that we have done this summer has been hugely pleasing and the most exciting thing is we haven't played our best cricket," Knight continued.

"I think we've got a huge ceiling for this team to keep moving forward and keep improving."

Knight pointed to England’s improved mindset under coach Jon Lewis, who took over last December, and to a team bonding camp to the Lake District in May as two factors behind their improvement.

Both Healy and Knight were in agreement that the much-discussed "gap" between the countries was less to do with the talent at their disposal, but in their differing abilities to seize the big moments in recent years.

"That's probably been the biggest gap between the two sides previously," Knight said.

"I think the mental side of the game (we’ve worked on) leading into this, we went up to the Lake District and spent a lot of time going in cold water but also a lot of time chatting to each other and working out how to get the best out of each other and how to communicate when you're under the pump, and tell someone when they're not doing something so great.

"I think that's been really key."

CommBank Ashes Tour of the UK 2023

Multi-format series drawn 8-8, Australia retain the Ashes

Test: Australia won by 89 runs

First T20I: Australia won by four wickets

Second T20I: England won by three runs

Third T20I: England won by five wickets (DLS)

First ODI: England won by two wickets

Second ODI: Australia won by three runs

Third ODI: England won by 69 runs (DLS)

Australia squad: Alyssa Healy (c), Tahlia McGrath (vc), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Heather Graham, Grace Harris, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Wareham

England ODI squad: Heather Knight (c), Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Bell, Alice Capsey, Kate Cross, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Lauren Filer, Danielle Gibson, Sarah Glenn, Amy Jones, Nat Sciver-Brunt (vc), Issy Wong, Danielle Wyatt