With Amy Jones on strike, and Lauren Bell waiting at the other end, Annabel Sutherland ran in, searching for the wicket which would give Australia a hefty 4-0 lead. For Jones, she’d faced 20 balls since her last boundary, gently hauling England towards their target and attempting to protect Bell at the other end. The required rate had risen into double-figures on a tricky pitch which only Ellyse Perry had been able to find any fluency on.

Facing up to Sutherland, Jones was dealt a chest-high full toss, which she helped just over the short-fine leg fielder and to the boundary. Just as important as the boundary was the umpire’s outstretched arm, signalling the no ball and subsequent free hit. Two balls later, having not taken the run on offer from the last free-hit, Sutherland over-pitched again. This time, Jones was on the advance, looking to go in front of the wicket. Two steps in front of the crease line and the ball just reached over Jones’ waist. Despite Alyssa Healy’s appeals, Sutherland was out of the attack, and Tahlia McGrath came on to bowl the free-hit.

Until then, Jones had struggled to manage the strike. The confusion in between the wickets had led to Lauren Filer’s run out, attempting to get Jones down the other end with two balls left in the over. On the last two occasions Jones had been on strike at the end of the over, she had been unable to force a single to stay on strike. This time, the single was indisputably on offer. The ball was banged in short by McGrath and pulled to deep square-leg. Fatally, Jones did not run.

While managing the strike is an imperfect art, manufacturing singles and weighing up the capabilities of the weakest batters at the most crucial of times, Jones had her work cut out. She kept England in the game right up until its final moments, something no other player was able to do. In the chaos of that final over, with free-hits, no balls and the ever more pressing scorecard, it’s easy to miscalculate. There’s nothing to say Jones herself wouldn’t have been cleaned up by Megan Schutt’s next ball, or that one of the next would have accounted for her before she pushed England’s total above the target.

First ODI ❌
Second ODI ❌

England stumble early in the Women's Ashes with consecutive defeats in the first two games.

Scorecard ➡️ https://t.co/pTofu3T2ZS pic.twitter.com/NCR4RkF1wi

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) January 14, 2025

But in a situation necessitating a clear head and authoritative control in the middle, Jones fluffed her lines. Left stranded on 47 not out off 103 balls, she almost timed her innings to perfection, but was left doubled-over in the middle in disappointment as the bails flew off behind Bell.

It would never have been a simple chase against Australia, even after they were bowled out for their first sub-200 score since 2023. Alana King worked her magic well to keep England on the edge, her ball to Danni Wyatt-Hodge particularly magical. While she was largely unplayable, England needed one or two players to dig in alongside Jones, and that target would be achievable. Instead, Nat Sciver-Brunt gave a simple catch to Beth Mooney, while Charlie Dean inexplicably tried to ramp the penultimate ball of King’s final over, giving a simple top edge.

There were echoes of the game against the West Indies three months ago, after which Jon Lewis said England had drawn ‘a line in the sand’. Put under pressure once again, in a game in which Australia gave them rare opportunities, England crumbled. Perhaps the most worrying thing about that dissolution is its predictability.

Australia are now 4-0 up in the series, halfway to their goal of retaining the Ashes. If England are to pull off another 2023-style comeback, they will either need someone to fill Sciver-Brunt’s starring role in that series, or to collectively form that outcome from the sum of their parts. This isn’t an Australia side that poses more of a challenge than in 2023, arguably they’ve given England more reason to believe they can still win the series in these first two games than they did then. However, if England are to take their opportunity this time, they will have to throw off the pressure demons that have followed them round for far too long.

Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.