Two years ago, England came close to returning the ashes to British shores for the first time since 2014, but ultimately failed to do so.

Australia retained their turf and continued their dominance – but that doesn’t tell the full story of how close England came to victory after the series was drawn 8-8.

Australia won by 89 runs in the one-off Test at Trent Bridge before England took control of the ODI and T20 stages to win 2-1 and leave the visitors with captain Alyssa Healy Healy led them to the comprehensive victory they had been looking for. The results were later described as “a bit bittersweet”.

How England came close

While Australia started their tour with a Test win, Heather Knight’s side were left with regrets on one night in particular when they let the game slip away from their hands.

England’s bowlers struggled with the line and length of delivery on day three, allowing Australia to score 82 of their easiest deliveries.

On the fourth day, Australia were leading by 159 runs, just one wicket behind, before pace bowler Lauren Filer bowled Ellyse Perry cleanly and Tahlia McGrath, helped England regain some momentum.

Knight considers it one of her favorite moments in the sport.

Filler made her debut in 2023 and was named in the Ashes squad for the upcoming series and her discovery was integral for England and although they would go on to lose Test matches, the 24-year-old Players will bet on more permanent statements in the testing fold.

How England can close the gap

Farrar wasn’t England’s only bright spot.

During the Tests, Sophie Ecclestone became the 11th bowler and sixth spinner to take 10 wickets in Women’s Tests.

After her success in the series, she was named the world’s number one bowler in T20s and ODIs, a position she still retains two years later.

After the Test defeat, England decided to change their strategy and reflect a more aggressive mentality.

England’s chances of reaching the white-ball format are slim. Australia are on a 39-match winning streak and have not lost a T20I since March 2021, but wins at Lord’s and Seat Unique Stadium shattered the impression of Australia being invincible and helped England close the gap.

It also gave the home team confidence as they won the ODI format 2-1 and leveled the series, a result that seemed almost impossible after the Test.

Beaumont’s bat makes history

On the batting front, Tammy Beaumont stole the headlines when she notched the first-ever double hundred by an English woman in Test cricket.

Her 208 surpassed Betty Snowball’s 88-year-old England Test score record, and she passed 189 in the double ton, becoming only the eighth person to achieve that mark in women’s cricket. players.

Beaumont finished the 2023 series as the series’ top run scorer. It’s a remarkable turnaround for the 33-year-old, who was omitted from the T20 squad a year ago in 2022.

Beaumont was left out of the T20 squad for the South Africa series in November 2024 but was included in the ODI squad and top-scored with 65 runs.

She has been included in the ODI and Test squads for the upcoming Ashes series but has once again been left out of the T20s.

Record-breaking Ashes 2023

The public was also captivated by exciting performances from England and Australia.

The England and Wales Cricket Board sold more than 94,000 tickets, almost three times the 2019 Women’s Ashes total attendance of 32,000.

All three T20 matches saw record attendances, with the Women’s Test total attendance reaching a new record of 23,207. The previous best was 15,000 in 1951 at The Oval.

TV show numbers also broke records.

Watch the stats during England’s five wins at Lord’s sky sports The highest attendance for a women’s T20 international match was 795,000, with the average attendance being 285,000.

Viewership in the beta was nearly 400% higher than the 2019 series, with the T20 format recording a 135% increase in viewership.

There are plenty of positives to take away from England’s 2023 series, with head coach Jon Lewis saying his side are in pole position “A very nice place” After a successful multi-format tour in South Africa.

But it’s not easy, especially away from home.

“It’s a very, very difficult challenge,” Lewis said.

“Is this the hardest challenge? Yeah, probably, that’s pretty much it.”

England Women’s ODI Line-up: Heather Knight (Captain; Somerset), Tammy Beaumont (Flames), Lauren Bell (Hampshire), Maya Buzier (Hampshire), Alice Kapp West (Surrey), Kate Cross (Lancashire), Charlie Dean (Somerset), Sophia Dunkley (Surrey), Sophie Ecclestone (Lancashire) ), Lauren Filler (Durham), Sarah Glenn (The Flames), Amy Jones (The Flames), Nat Seaver-Brent (The Flames), Danny Wyatt-Hodge (Surrey).

England Women’s IT20 squad: Heather Knight (Captain; Somerset), Lauren Bell (Hampshire), Maia Bouchier (Hampshire), Alice Capsey (Surrey), Charlie Dean (Somerset), Sophia Dunkley (Surrey), Sophie Ecclestone (Lancashire), Lauren Filer (Durham), Danielle Gibson (Somerset), Sarah Glenn (The Flame), Beth Heath (Durham), Amy Jones (The Flame), F. Rhea Kemp (Hampshire), Lindsay Smith (Hampshire), Nat Seaver-Brent (The Flames), Danny Wyatt-Hodge (Surrey).

England women’s Test squad: Heather Knight (Captain; Somerset), Tammy Beaumont (Flames), Lauren Bell (Hampshire), Maya Buchier (Hampshire), Kate Cross ( Lancashire), Charlie Dean (Somerset), Sophia Dunkley (Surrey), Sophie Ecclestone (Lancashire), Lauren Filer (Durham) ), Beth Heath (Durham), Amy Jones (Flame), Ryana MacDonald-Gay (Surrey), Nat Sciver-Brunt (The Blaze), Danni Wyatt-Hodge (Surrey).

2025 Women’s Ashes Schedule

UK date and time

CommBank Women’s Ashes ODI Series

• First foreign direct investment: North Sydney Oval, Sydney – Saturday 11 January (11.30pm)
• The second foreign direct investment: Junction Oval, Melbourne – Monday 13 January (11.05pm)
• The third overseas direct investment: Bellerive Oval, Hobart – Thursday 16 January (11.05pm)

CommBank Women’s Ashes IT20 Series

• First IT20: SCG, Sydney – Monday 20 January (8:40am)
• The second IT20: Manuka Oval, Canberra – Thursday 23 January (8:40am)
• The 3rd IT20: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide – Saturday 25 January (8.10am)

CommBank Women’s Ashes Test Match

• One-time test: MCG, Melbourne – January 30 to February 2 (3:30am)

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