Tahlia McGrath requires ‘fearless’ cricket as Australia return to their favoured ODIs
Tahlia McGrath says {that a} return to Australia’s favoured 50-over format will assist their gamers rediscover their “fearless” mindset, as they search to shut out the Women’s Ashes after a uncommon setback within the T20I leg.
After victory within the one-off Test at Trent Bridge, adopted by a good four-wicket win in the first T20I at Edgbaston, Australia had taken an imposing 6-0 lead within the multi-format factors system, and wanted only one extra win from the remaining 5 matches to retain the Ashes for the fifth consecutive sequence.
And whereas nonetheless they continue to be one win away from their purpose, the strain has since been ramped up by England’s stirring fightback within the again half of the T20I sequence. Consecutive victories, by three runs and 5 wickets in a pair of tense finishes at The Oval and Lord’s, condemned Australia to their first bilateral sequence loss because the corresponding leg of the 2017-18 Ashes.
But, with the scoreline now a extra aggressive 6-4 in Australia’s favour, McGrath says the gamers’ eyes haven’t deviated from the prize, and they won’t be happy with a mere retention of the Ashes.
“I don’t think that’s enough,” McGrath mentioned in Bristol, on the eve of the primary ODI. “We want to win every game of cricket. Yes, first and foremost, we want to retain the Ashes, but we want to win these three games coming up. Winning 8-8 doesn’t sound as good as winning them outright.”
To that finish, the holders can level to one of the crucial imposing data ever compiled by a global sports activities crew. In 45 ODIs since their semi-final defeat at the 2017 World Cup, Australia’s girls have received a outstanding 43 occasions, together with their final 15 in a row – a span that encompasses their unbeaten run to the 2022 World Cup title in New Zealand.
Since securing beating England within the last of that match, at Auckland in April 2022, Australia have solely performed three extra ODIs – every of them an emphatic win over an outclassed Pakistan in January. However, McGrath is assured that the extra drawn-out nature of the 50-over format will give the matchwinners of their line-up all of the extra time to supply their absolute best.
“It’s where we’ve been so successful in the past,” McGrath mentioned. “You’ve just got so much more time. You can build your innings a bit more, and we’ve had players cash in and score those big hundreds with players supporting them.
“From a bowling standpoint, you possibly can construct a bit extra strain, work batters out a bit extra … we have simply been constant in that format. And we play that team-first [brand of] cricket, so gamers coming in know precisely what they should do for the crew, after which play their function to the perfect of their skill.
“The 50-over format is one we’ve been really consistent and really good at, so from there it’s about fine-tuning and playing a little bit more fearlessly.
In the last five years, India are the only team to have toppled Australia in the ODI format, and that result – a gripping two-wicket win in a dead-rubber third match in September 2021 – arguably helped to sharpen Australia’s focus going into the World Cup the following spring.
England, by contrast, last beat Australia across 50 overs in the 2017-18 Ashes, but despite eight subsequent defeats – up to and including the last World Cup final – McGrath said her side would never under-estimate the threat that Heather Knight’s team would pose, especially after their T20I showing.
“Every time we play towards England, it is actually good cricket, actually hard-fought,” McGrath said. “We get pushed each time we play towards England, and so they have been higher than us within the final two video games, and we have to acknowledge that and repair some areas of our sport.
“No game against England is ever easy. It feels as if, every time we play each other, it comes down to the last over. All four games in this series have all been close, or had some key moments to determine the game, so we’re excited for some more good cricket.”
That uncommon sensation of defeat, nevertheless, has obliged Australia to embrace their vulnerability on this tour, with McGrath admitting to some trustworthy chats within the dressing-room within the aftermath of the T20I losses.
“People put their hand up when they’re not playing at their best,” she mentioned. “We help each other problem-solve, because everything’s team-first. We put egos aside and we try to help each other improve, and that’s been a strength of this side for so long.
“Win, lose or draw, we’re all the time trying to get higher. So, yeah, it is not superb to lose however there’s all the time some positives to take out of it, and we have had some actually good chats as a bunch.
“Individually, we’ve discussed our batting, bowling and fielding plans, but at the end of the day, it just comes down to playing some fearless cricket,” she added. “If there’s something you’re thinking about, or a plan you want to put in place, you’ve just got to be confident and go ahead and do it.
“The reality is we weren’t at our greatest [in the T20Is] and now we have to discover a method to repair that. Even if we would have received a few of these video games, it is nonetheless about having these chats as a result of we wish to be the perfect crew on the earth in each format. We wish to hold evolving.
“It’s not nice that we’re losing, but it felt as though there were some moments where we perhaps might have got into our shells a little bit. We’ve just highlighted that maybe we’ve been off the mark there a little bit, so we’re pretty keen to be on the front foot.”
An added consider England’s revival has arguably been their vociferous help for this sequence, with a median of 20,000 followers attending the three T20Is, and additional full homes anticipated for the ODIs in Bristol, Southampton and Taunton. But, with the expansion of the ladies’s sport an enormous subplot on this sequence, McGrath has been delighted with the turnout, even when the cheers have not all the time accompanied her personal performances.
“The crowds have been a real highlight,” McGrath mentioned. “We’ve really embraced it. We’ve loved playing in front of packed houses. We’re hopeful that they continue, because we’ve heard there’s really good ticket sales coming up.
“It’s superior to see the help they get, it is superior to listen to how loud it will get. And I feel it is fairly cool with the [Barmy Army] trumpet going within the background. We all get pleasure from taking part in cricket if you get to play in some very nice iconic stadiums with a packed home.
“They let me have it when I dropped a catch,” she added, referring to a nasty miss off Sophia Dunkley within the second match at The Oval. “But that is a part of it.
“We’re simply targeted on ourselves. We’re fairly snug with what we do and the way we go about our cricket. There’s quite a lot of exterior issues that goes on with the Ashes, quite a lot of chat, rather a lot within the media, however at the beginning, we’re simply specializing in ourselves. Sticking with our batting and bowling plans, after which going on the market and taking part in some actually good cricket.”
Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket