Australia clean sweep Ashes ODIs with commanding win

Ashleigh Gardner's breakthrough century and a dominant display from leg-spinners Alana King and Georgia Wareham have put the Aussies on the cusp of retaining the Ashes following an emphatic 86-run win in the third and final ODI.

Gardner's 102 rescued Australia from a precarious position at 4-59 at Bellerive Oval, as she shared crucial stands with Beth Mooney (50 off 64) and Tahlia McGrath (55 off 35) before Wareham's late flurry of 38no from 12 saw Australia to 8-308.

Megan Schutt (3-57) then handed Australia a strong start with the ball before King (5-46) and Wareham (2-27) combined to roll through England for 222 in 42.2 overs, despite Tammy Beaumont's fighting 77.

The win gives Australia a 6-0 lead in the points-based series, with just two more needed to retain the Ashes. 

England will need to win all three T20Is and the day-night Test at the MCG if they are to reclaim the trophy. 

Once again in this series, England found themselves giving up a position of strength as Australia asserted their dominance.

Needing to pull off the highest successful chase in women's ODI history, England's pursuit could not have started on a worse note when Maia Bouchier was dismissed by Schutt for a duck in the opening over.

Heather Knight (14) also departed cheaply, again to Schutt, leaving England wobbling at 2-29.

Beaumont (54 off 77) and Natalie Sciver-Brunt (61 off 68) steadied, putting on an 89-run third-wicket stand that kept the required run rate in check and raised hopes of a miraculous win.

But the introduction of Wareham in the 25th over brought about an immediate result as the leg-spinner first cleaned up Beaumont's leg stump, then repeated the dose to clean bowl Sciver-Brunt.

Amy Jones and Danni Wyatt-Hodge attacked to take the England total to 200, but after their dismissals, it became a procession as King rolled through the lower-order and the Australians put on a fielding clinic. 

Phoebe Litchfield took a brilliant diving catch to dislodge Wyatt-Hodge for 35, while Kim Garth took one low to her right at short fine leg to end Jones' day on 30.

Fittingly, Gardner took the most spectacular of the bunch; Sophie Ecclestone's shot looked bound for six before the allrounder intervened on the rope, knocking the ball back into play before she leapt back over the boundary to complete the catch.

Chasing a sweep of the ODI leg of the multi-format series, Australia elected to bat first on a used surface but were put under early pressure when Litchfield gloved one down the leg side and Ellyse Perry flicked a Lauren Bell delivery directly to Lauren Filer at short fine-leg.

Alyssa Healy was bogged down early and looked to break the shackles against Sciver-Brunt but only managed to pick out Beamont at deep midwicket, and when Annabel Sutherland chipped a Charlie Dean delivery to Ecclestone at mid-off, Australia were in deep trouble at 4-59.

With a partnership sorely needed, Gardner and Mooney came together in a 95-run stand, and when the latter was dismissed just after reaching her fifty, McGrath picked up where she left off.

The Australia vice-captain had been under some pressure with the bat after being dropped down the order to No.7 but responded in style with a 38-ball half-century.

Gardner had found form with the bat since Australia entered a solid block of 50-over matches over the last six weeks and that continued as she navigated England's classy spin attack, bringing up fifty from 53 deliveries.

The 27-year-old had posted a career-best 74 against New Zealand in Wellington last month, but went bigger again in Hobart, reaching triple figures from 100 deliveries.

In doing so, she etched her name into the history books, becoming the first Aboriginal woman to hit an international century, and the first woman to hit an ODI hundred batting at No.6.

Gardner's 102-ball innings, which featured eight fours and a six, finally ended in the 46th over when she holed out to Tammy Beaumont in the deep.

Her knock continued a solid patch with the bat in ODIs, which started when Gardner struck fifty in the third one-dayer against India at the WACA Ground last month.

She backed that up with 74 against the White Ferns, and helped steer Australia through a tricky chase in the opening Ashes one-dayer at North Sydney Oval, hitting an unbeaten 42.

While Gardner and McGrath perished with four overs to go, Wareham finished off the Australian innings in style, hammering an unbeaten 38 off 12 balls.

In all, Australia added 104 runs from the final 10 overs to reach 8-308, leaving England needing to pull the highest chase in women's ODI history to get their first points of the Ashes series.

England's standout bowlers from the first two ODIs, Bell and Ecclestone, came in for particular punishment, finishing with figures of 1-72 and 1-76 respectively.

Commbank Women's Ashes 2025

Australia lead the multi-format series 6-0

First ODI: Australia won by six wickets

Second ODI: Australia won by 21 runs

Third ODI: Australia won by 86 runs

First T20I: January 20: SCG, Sydney, 7.15pm AEDT

Second T20I: January 23: Manuka Oval, Canberra, 7.15pm AEDT

Third T20I: January 25: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, 6.45pm ACDT (7.15pm AEDT)

Australia squad (ODI/T20Is): Alyssa Healy (c), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Grace Harris+, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath (vc), Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham

England squad (ODI/T20Is): Heather Knight (c), Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Alice Capsey, Kate Cross*, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Lauren Filer, Danielle Gibson+, Sarah Glenn, Bess Heath+, Amy Jones, Freya Kemp+, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Linsey Smith+, Danni Wyatt-Hodge

* ODIs only; + T20Is only

Day-night Test: January 30 - February 2: MCG, Melbourne, 2.30pm AEDT

Australia Test squad: TBC

England Test squad: Heather Knight (c), Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Bell, Maia Bouchier, Kate Cross, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Lauren Filer, Bess Heath, Amy Jones, Ryana MacDonald-Gay, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Danni Wyatt-Hodge

The rivalry resumes with a blockbuster series in Australia from Jan 12 - Feb 2. Learn about the remarkable 90-year history at the Women's Ashes Hub