Healy eyes Ashes retention in long-awaited Lord's debut

The last time Australia played at Lord's, all the way back in 2013, Alyssa Healy was running the drinks.

On Saturday, the Australian skipper will finally get her chance to play at the home of cricket as she leads her country in the third Ashes T20I with another chance to retain the Ashes on the line, in front of an anticipated crowd of more than 20,000 people.

Until recently, opportunities for women's teams, England included, to play at the iconic north London ground have been few and far between.

Since Rachael Heyhoe Flint and her England team first broke down the barriers and found their way onto the ground (via a side door, as they were unsure if they were permitted to pass through the Long Room on their journey from the dressing rooms) to play Australia in a one-dayer in 1976, just 18 women's internationals have been played at Lord's.

Of those, 17 have been one-day internationals. After Heyhoe Flint's hard-won, years-long battle against a reluctant Marylebone Cricket Club to stage that inaugural game, it took another 11 years for England's women's team to return to the ground, again against Australia in 1987.

Image Id: 9DD8FFB1DE7346B2AAD98835B1CE4BC6 Image Caption: Australia and England meet in an ODI at Lord's in 2013 // Getty

Australia last played at Lord's during the 2013 Ashes; the only current Ashes squad members to appear in the game were Ellyse Perry, Jess Jonassen and Megan Schutt, whose drinks were mixed by Healy on the day.

Saturday's game will also be just the second time a women's T20I has been played at Lord's, and the first one to be standalone, given the first was the 2009 T20 World Cup final played as a double-header with the men.

For Healy, who has played 244 matches for her country across all formats since her debut in 2010 and won multiple World Cups, Ashes series and last year claimed Commonwealth Games gold, Saturday night will present what is these days a rare chance to tick off a bucket list item.

"I am really looking forward to the opportunity to play there," Healy said in London on Wednesday.

"This Ashes series has been an amazing one so far, playing at the biggest grounds in the country.

"People are wanting to turn up and watch because they know what they're going to get.

"To tick Lord's off will be a really special occasion for the girls who get that opportunity."

Despite the scarcity of women's internationals at Lord's, the ground was host to one of the most significant moments in the history of the women's Ashes 25 years ago.

For the first 64 years that England and Australia played against one another, there was no trophy on offer. That changed in 1998 after Australia arrived in the United Kingdom to play three Tests and five one-day internationals.

It was the final tour that would be hosted by the Women's Cricket Association – the former governing body for women's cricket in England – which was about to merge with the England and Wales Cricket Board.

In honour of the change, outgoing WCA president Norma Izard designed a trophy; she commissioned a hollow cricket ball carved from the wood of a 300-year-old yew tree, and selected Lord's as the ideal place for the creation of ashes, which would be placed inside that ball.

Image Id: 82DA76D329484AF1994536BBA94DC897 Image Caption: (L-R) Belinda Clark, Karen Smithies, Norma Izard and Roger Knight at the ceremony in 1998 // Cricket Australia

On July 20, on the eve of just the sixth women's international at Lord's, a small group gathered in the Harris Garden and watched on as a miniature bat signed by both England and Australia, a copy of the WCA constitution and a rules book were burnt in a wok borrowed from the Lord's kitchen.

That ball remains at the centre of the women's Ashes trophy that Australia have held since 2015, and the anniversary of the trophy's creation will be celebrated prior to Saturday's game.

While women's games at Lord's have been something on a rarity in the past – just two have been played in the 10 years since Australia's last appearance – that is set to change.

Image Id: C6DA71A18D5F4C05AC937635BFCBEAA6 Image Caption: Australia have held the Ashes trophy since 2015 // Getty

Since a then-record 15,000 people turned out to watch England play India in a one-dayer at the ground last year, the England and Wales Cricket Board have committed to hosting an international at the ground in each of the next eight seasons.

The first women's Test will be played at the ground in 2026.

So while Healy knows there will be several disappointed members of the Australian squad who find themselves running drinks on Saturday, she hopes they will not have to wait as long as she did to get their chance.

"(The ECB) have set the benchmark now which is great," she said of the current Ashes schedule, which has featured games at other top-tier venues including The Oval, Edgbaston and Trent Bridge.

"Hopefully the crowds show up and support and hopefully we get the result our way."

CommBank Ashes Tour of the UK 2023

Australia lead the multi-format series 6-2

Test: Australia won by 89 runs

First T20I: Australia won by four wickets

Second T20I: England won by three runs

Third T20I: July 8 at Lord’s, London, 6.35pm (3.35am July 9 AEST)

First ODI: July 12 at The County Ground, Bristol, 1pm (10pm AEST)

Second ODI: July 16 at The Rose Bowl, Southampton, 11am (7pm AEST)

Third ODI: July 18 at The County Ground, Taunton, 1pm (10pm AEST)

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

England T20 squad: Heather Knight (c), Natalie Sciver-Brunt (vc), Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Alice Capsey, Kate Cross, Freya Davies, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Danielle Gibson, Sarah Glenn, Amy Jones, Issy Wong, Lauren Winfield-Hill, Danielle Wyatt