Australian bats made the tourists pay for dropping no fewer than eight chances on the second day in Melbourne
Fielding hits new low amid England's cruel summer
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As Australian artist G-Flip belted out their cover of Taylor Swift's 'Cruel Summer' during the day-one dinner break, the England team might have been wondering if it was an ode to their series of woe.
Winless and 12-0 down in the Ashes, England have found this tour tough going.
But, after a series plagued with fumbles, spills, drops and other miscellaneous mistakes in the field, England somehow managed to take their performance to another level of calamity on the second day of the day-night Test in Melbourne.
All told, there were eight dropped catches and a missed run out, while Australia plundered 4-366 from 98 overs.
Amid the mayhem, England's bowlers toiled hard, with all four of the frontline bowlers sending down at least 19 overs. But they were repeatedly let down by their fielders in a display that went from bad to worse.
Australia captain Alyssa Healy got some assistance in her tea-time wish of "keep(ing) England in the dirt", as the English team only had themselves to blame for their lengthy (and unfinished) stint on the MCG turf.
The drops not only extended England's time in the field but also caused the visitors serious pain on the scoreboard.
With five runs to her name in the first four overs, Annabel Sutherland was taking her time getting going. On 29, she offered a chance to Danni Wyatt-Hodge at point off a sliced dive.
Wyatt-Hodge moved to her right, got both hands to the ball, but couldn't hold on.
Five hours and 13 minutes later, Sutherland was walking off to a standing ovation from her hometown crowd having piled on 163 runs.
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Maia Bouchier's blunder off Beth Mooney was perhaps the most egregious of the drops, with Mooney guiding the ball to the gully fielder in a fashion regularly seen in the team's training sessions.
The ball landed right in Bouchier's lap but the young opener lost her balance, leapt off the ground, and shelled the chance.
"That was like slips catching practice," remarked Molly Strano on FoxCricket.
The Bouchier miss capped off a four-over stretch where Mooney was put down three times, on eight, 11 and 18. The left-hander finished the day on 98 not out.
Between Sutherland and Mooney, Australia scored an extra 224 runs from the point of their respective first chances given. Throw in the missed chances against Phoebe Litchfield (on 20) and Ashleigh Gardner (on 12 and 36), and the total balloons to 281.
England's 20-year-old bowler Ryana MacDonald-Gay, who had three opportunities put down off her bowling, admitted there were "frustrations" in the group but said the team wasn't dwelling on their fielding performance.
"Yeah, obviously it's quite disappointing," MacDonald-Gay told reporters after play. "But there's 100 overs, so there's always an opportunity to come around the corner.
"Obviously it's a long day, it's hot. You're fielding for six hours, it's hard to keep concentration for every ball, but I think that's just something that we'll need to work on.
"There's no point of dwelling on what's been and gone. You can't change that.
"The best way to move forward was just to forget about it and just try and take another wicket."
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A diplomatic Sutherland, speaking to media after her marvellous 163, said she was "not unsurprised" by England's many mistakes, pointing to the fact that even the Australians missed a few chances on day one.
"(England) probably showed signs of it throughout the series, (and they were) potentially a little bit tired at different points today," Sutherland told the media on Friday night.
"You expect high quality, but having said that, we dropped a few too."
Commbank Women's Ashes 2025
Australia lead the multi-format series 12-0
First ODI: Australia won by four wickets
Second ODI: Australia won by 21 runs
Third ODI: Australia won by 86 runs
First T20I: Australia won by 57 runs
Second T20I: Australia won by six runs (DLS Method)
Third T20I: Australia won by 72 runs
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: Alyssa Healy (c), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath (vc), Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham
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 until Feb 2. Learn about the remarkable 90-year history at the Women's Ashes Hub