Australia shrugs off injury crisis to control Ashes
AUSTRALIA has shrugged off an injury crisis that could have derailed its Ashes campaign to remain in control of the Women’s Ashes Test through to stumps on Day Two.
With Georgia Wareham, Sophie Molineux and Tayla Vlaeminck unavailable through injury and Megan Schutt not yet back to full strength post-Covid, Australia’s bowling stocks looked severely depleted ahead of the one-off Test at Manuka Oval.
But led by fresh faces, Australia handled the pressure with aplomb, maintaining the momentum it worked hard to build at the crease on day one and holding England to figures of 8-235 at close of play.
Australia declared at 9-337 early on day two with history on its side – no women’s team has ever lost a Test after scoring 300 runs in the first innings.
But few of those winning teams would’ve been relying on as many inexperienced hands as Australia was.
Annabel Sutherland, Alana King and Darcie Brown had played a combined total of two Tests prior to the toss on Thursday and none of the trio had ever claimed a Test wicket. But on the biggest stage, the new kids in town left the English veterans lost for answers early on.
Ellyse Perry wasn’t about to let the Test rookies hog all the fun, though.
She was on the board within the hour of the innings’ commencement and had her second wicket before lunch in a strong return to national colours, having been dropped for the Ashes T20s.
Only captain Heather Knight (127 not out) was immune to the Aussie onslaught. Like her counterpart Meg Lanning the day before, she finished the innings as her side’s highest scorer, eventually knocking her way to a second Test century.
Sophie Ecclestone pitched in an unbeaten 27 runs late in the day to make the score a little more respectable.
But too many others did too little as the Aussies kept their feet on the visitors’ throats.