England captain Heather Knight ponders future after Ashes humiliation
What's the story
England's women's cricket team captain Heather Knight is considering her future after a heartbreaking Ashes series defeat.
The loss was a historic low for the team as they lost all seven matches on their all-format Australian tour.
The dismal performance made them the first squad in women's Ashes history to be completely whitewashed.
Here's more.
Reflection
Knight opens up about England's performance
Knight also opened up about the team's performance and future plans.
"Things are pretty raw and it's all happened pretty quickly," she said after the loss in the Day-Night Test.
She added, ""I think the coming weeks is a time for everyone to reflect on what we could have done better, how we're going to improve as a side."
Meanwhile, this also includes her own role as captain, a decision she says won't be made impulsively but in due course.
Coach's stance
England coach Jon Lewis remains committed and expresses frustration
Knight admitted Australia's superior performance saying, "The Australian team probably won the big moments, and that's something we need to try and do better."
Despite the team's disappointing performance, England coach Jon Lewis has said he would like to continue in his role.
He also spoke about how everyone in the English camp is frustrated stating, "I'm certainly frustrated with with how the team has gone. We haven't showed our best cricket. We're all obviously very frustrated with that."
Pundit's perspective
Vaughan questions ECB's role in England's defeat
Former men's team captain Michael Vaughan was disappointed over the tour, but praised Australia's exceptional performance, stating "Let's not lose sight of how good the Aussie women team are ... exceptional team of skilled/disciplined & ruthless cricketers."
He questioned the role of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in the team's defeat.
Vaughan wrote on his X account, "Big questions to be answered about the England women's team .. mainly from those who have been involved at the ECB."
Twitter Post
Twitter post by Micahel Vaughan
My thoughts on the Women’s Ashes .. https://t.co/VyUZBnCjkM
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) February 1, 2025
Silver lining
Ecclestone's achievement offers solace amid defeat
Amidst England's defeat, there was a silver lining as star spinner Sophie Ecclestone made history.
She became the first visiting female bowler to have her name inscribed on the MCG honors board.
Despite this remarkable achievement, Ecclestone also conceded 143 runs, the second-highest for any bowler in a women's Test with a five-wicket haul.
Series recap
A recap of the Ashes series
The Australians were on their A-game since the first ODI winning it by four wickets.
They then won the ODI series 3-0.
In T20Is, they glided through the first two matches, but England fought back in the third, losing by six runs (via DLS method).
Meanwhile, in the Day/Night Test, the Aussies were ruthless. They won by an innings and 122 runs,(Annabel Sutherland, 163 off 258 balls, Alana King, 9/98).