Women's Ashes 2023

Watch: Kate Cross cuts Alyssa Healy in half and crashes into middle stump with vicious wobble-seamer | Women’s Ashes 2023

by Ben Gardner July 18, 2023 - 5:34pm 3 minute read

Watch: Kate Cross bowled Alyssa Healy with a beauty as England made inroads with the new ball in the third women’s Ashes ODI.

Needing a victory to level the multi-format series and to claim a rare ODI series win over Australia, England set Healy’s side a target of 286 to win on the back of a second consecutive century from Nat Sciver-Brunt.

The chase would be a record for a women’s Ashes contest, but Australia have completed a higher pursuit in the past, meaning England needed a good start in the field. They were provided that by Lauren Bell and Cross, who each claimed an early wicket.

Phoebe Litchfield edged an away-seaming delivery from Bell to first slip before Cross bowled Healy with a beauty. The Australia captain brought her bat down late after the ball moved in off the surface, and was unable to make connection as the ball snuck between bat and pad and hit off-stump.

Slow-motion replays revealed Cross had bowled a wobble-seam delivery, with Healy having now answer to the pinpoint variation.