Humbled England blown away by Perry
Fast bowler takes seven wickets in 194-run rout Hosts must win every match to regain Ashes
What happens when you polish gold? Australia’s Ellyse Perry, that is what. In taking seven wickets for 22 runs and ripping the heart out of England’s barely beating batting order yesterday, Perry now has the best figures by any Australian in women’s one-day internationals, and the fourth best of all time.
Nineteen for four was, we thought, the stat that could not have been bettered in the first ODI of this Ashes series. But just as Perry was the poacher with English rabbits in her sights then, so it was here – but worse.
The errant viewfinder had been recalibrated as Australia’s strike bowler, previously with wickets but a few too many runs against her, had England five for three and then, in just minutes, 21 for six. It was a surreal, almost out-of-body experience. Had that just happened?
Sadly for England, it had. It was all the more bizarre because, despite England requiring their highest-ever successful chase to reach Australia’s 269, at the halfway stage this felt like their best chance, albeit a remote one, of clawing their way back into this Ashes series.
England had pegged Australia back somewhat after an assured start by Alyssa Healy (68) and Meg Lanning (69) had them well set at 130 for two in the 23rd over. Just 139 runs later, had momentum swung England’s way? What a ridiculous thought that has now become.
Perry, for more than a decade the athletic poster-woman of Australian cricket, is, almost unbelievably, improving. She is alone in women’s cricket as a bowler with pace, bounce and guile. And this is a woman with a Test double hundred in her previous encounter with England. Are we witnessing the greatest women’s all-rounder of all time? The greatest all-rounder ever, perhaps?
“You can call me what you like, but I’m not sure that’s the case,” Perry laughed. “Today just went my way, which is nice. For us to have started [the Ashes] the way that we have and to be six points clear is an absolute dream, so I think all of us are really chuffed. It’s really cool to be in that position.”
Amy Jones, less than a month ago the player of the ODI series against West Indies with 189 runs across three matches, has been infantilised. In three innings in this series, Jones has faced eight Perry deliveries, hit four runs and been dismissed three times.
Of previous England-versus-australian battles, Glenn Mcgrath is famous for having had Mike Atherton as his bunny. That may have been the case, but at least Atherton scored some runs, quipped one Twitter user. Mcgrath does, however, have Australia men’s best ODI bowling figures: seven for 15.
“I don’t really think about Amy, to be honest,” Perry said. Perhaps that, in itself, is the most damning assessment. “We’ve got some really clear plans around the way that we want to start. Everyone just knows their role. It’s both [technical and mental]. I don’t think that you can do one without the other.”
England entered this Canterbury ODI with fond memories of a Tammy Beaumont century and an accomplished run chase against South Africa at the same venue last year. Any thoughts of a repeat were quickly dispelled and replaced, instead, with the last time England faced Australia at this venue, in the 2015 Ashes Test.
This is a ground with rich memories for Perry. In that match, she picked up nine wickets across two innings, including Sarah Taylor for a pair. She needed just one ball to account for Taylor yesterday.
England’s 75 all out is their lowest total against Australia, although the 194-run margin is not their worst defeat. That was in 2000, when they lost by 220 runs.
“It was not good enough,” Heather Knight, the captain, said in some visible distress. “It is obviously very tough to take. There are a lot of girls hurting in that dressing room. Australia came out very hard and we did not have an answer.”
For England this is the point of no return. They must win every remaining match in this multi-format Ashes series, as a draw in next week’s Test would only allow for a drawn series. In that case, Australia, as holders, retain the Ashes.
Healy, before the series started, quipped that Australia were “not losing a game”, before clarifying that this had been a joke. Perry, equanimous as ever, refused to be drawn on whether this was now a reality. Unfortunately for England, it could soon be.