Former England captain Charlotte Edwards has criticised England's approach with the bat following their comprehensive loss to Australia in the final T20I of the women's Ashes series in Adelaide.
Speaking to the Wisden Women's Cricket Weekly podcast, Edwards cited the lack of partnerships and being "confused about their game plan" as the core reason England have struggled in the series. England lost their sixth match in a row to Australia in Adelaide, after they were bowled out for 90 chasing 163. Only two England batters reached double figures, with Danni Wyatt-Hodge scoring 17 and Heather Knight the last wicket to fall for a 38-ball 40.
The result means that England have slumped to 0-12 in the series ahead of the one-off Test match in Melbourne later this week, and lost the possibility to regain the Ashes at the earliest opportunity.
ODI series ❌
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) January 25, 2025
T20I series ❌
England's struggles continue as Australia clinch the final T20I, to hand them a sixth straight loss in the Women's Ashes.
Scorecard ➡️ https://t.co/mvuUuCIjxo pic.twitter.com/xE7minsJnr
"I think they just get really confused about their game plan," said Edwards following the defeat in Adelaide. "I think they go too hard sometimes and then not hard enough. It's stripping things back, we see so many people get caught at times where they just need to create partnerships. Heather's batted beautifully there but there's no one who's stayed with her."
England captain Knight came under criticism following England's defeat in the second ODI of the series, when she put their defeat in the game down to needing to be "braver" with the bat. In the game in question, England were tasked with chasing down 180, reaching 120-5 before collapsing to 159 all-out.
"They are such soft dismissals at times that we can't create those partnerships or create that momentum against Australia," says Edwards. "If Australia get all over you, it's really hard to come back from it. When you're six down for 40-odd, you're really going to struggle to compete. Fundamentally that's the biggest issue. We don't create big enough partnerships or put them under pressure enough."
Edwards won two Ashes series under the multi-format system as a player, captaining England to series wins at home and away from 2013-14. The last time England held the Ashes was when they won the series in Australia under her leadership in 2014. Since her retirement in 2016, she has established herself as one of the most sought after coaches in the women's game, winning trophies in her roles with Sydney Sixers, Southern Brave, Mumbai Indians and Southern Vipers.
The final opportunity England have to avoid a historic Ashes whitewash will be in the day-night Test match at the MCG, which will begin on Thursday, January 30.
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