Heather Knight admits England need to be “more ruthless” with the bat in the second match of the Women's Ashes after losing the first one-dayer against Australia.
England travel to Melbourne for the second of three ODIs, starting at 11.05pm UK time on Monday, looking to bounce back immediately in the multi-format series after Australia comfortably won the Sydney opener by four wickets with 67 balls to spare.
The win means Australia have an early 2-0 lead in a series where the six white-ball matches (three ODIs and three T20s) played this month carry two points apiece ahead of the four-day Test, which runs from 30. January to February 2 at the MCG in Melbourne, offers four points for the outright winner.
While England captain Knight said there were plenty of positives to take from the opening match, especially given the way the side bowled after setting Australia a target of 204, she said they must find a way to post bigger scores in the second match at the Junction Oval.
“I think we did some things really well in this match,” said Knight, who was England's top scorer with 39.
“I think with the bat – myself included – a few of us got off to a good start and we didn't get that big score or a really big partnership, that's something we can do a little bit better.
“Be a bit more ruthless when we go in to really get that big score, that wicket didn't always look like you were in it, there was always a bit of it during the innings.
“We've got 20 more runs there and we're really in the game.”
Nat Sciver-Brunt scored 19 off 27 balls before being dismissed
Bell: We can take confidence from the early series despite the early loss
Praising the way England's bowlers approached the task of trying to limit Australia's runs after setting a target of 204, Knight reserved special praise for “outstanding” Lauren Bell and said “it's the best I've seen her bowl in an England shirt”. .
Bell, who took the wicket of Ellyse Perry, said she felt “in a really good place” with her bowling and that, from a team perspective heading into Melbourne, “there are a few things we can definitely work on moving forward”.
“Obviously Australia caught well and we dropped a few at key times,” she added.
England's Lauren Bell, second right, celebrates with teammates after taking the wicket of Australia's Ellyse Perry
“As a whole we can take quite a bit of confidence from the game.
“We're one game into a pretty long run and obviously we're 2-0 down, but we'll have to start the next game, imagine it's 0-0 and let's go again. That's the beauty of this run; we can come back. We'll just have to bounce back. and let's stick to our plans and start again.”
And on how they would approach the second ODI at the Junction Oval, Bell added: “I think we will sit down as a team and review and our batting group will come together and we will sort it out.
“The conditions will be different in Melbourne, so we'll have to adapt then. But we'll come together as a group and work out what little we can sort out and hopefully put in a better performance.”
Women's Ashes 2025 Schedule
All UK and Ireland dates and times
- First ODI: Saturday 11th January – North Sydney Oval – Australia won by four wickets
- Other ODIs: 23.05, Monday 13 January – Junction Oval, Melbourne
- Third ODI: 23.05, Thursday 16 January – Ninja Stadium, Hobart
- First T20I: 8.40am, Monday 20 January – Sydney Cricket Ground
- Second T20I: 8.40am, Thursday 23 January – Manuka Oval, Canberra
- Third T20I: 8.10am, Saturday 25 January – Adelaide Oval
- Test: 3.30pm, Thursday 30 January – Sunday 2 February – MCG, Melbourne