Key events
WICKET! Sciver-Brunt c Mooney b King 35 (England 84-5)
Alana King gets the key wicket of Nat Sciver-Brunt. The England veteran has been cautious when facing King but has to reach too far away from her body as the leg-spinner pitches the ball outside leg-stump while Sciver-Brunt looks to whip it away. A leading edge flies to Mooney at cover.
22nd over: England 82-4 (Sciver-Brunt 33, Jones 4) England are within 100 runs of their target as Jones clips a fuller delivery from Gardner through the leg-side. Garth chases hard to save a run.
21st over: England 78-4 (Sciver-Brunt 32, Jones 1) England are taking few risks with King in such blistering form with the ball. Sciver-Brunt finds an early single to deep point, while Jones finally gets off the mark with a cut to the same region. Australia have lifted in the field as they smell fresh blood.
20th over: England 76-4 (Sciver-Brunt 31, Jones 0) Sciver-Brunt drives away but takes a few balls to find a gap for a single off Gardner. Jones is stuck too much on her back foot and is still to get off the mark after facing eight deliveries.
19th over: England 75-4 (Sciver-Brunt 30, Jones 0) King almost bowls Jones with an identical delivery to the one that dismissed Wyatt-Hodge. This time there is a touch too much turn and the ball flies narrowly wide of the off-stump. Just as it did in Australia’s innings, spin is causing England all sorts of trouble at the Junction Oval.
18th over: England 74-4 (Sciver-Brunt 29, Jones 0) Gardner continues to Sciver-Brunt and tries to tempt the England batter with better of flight. But England will need to rebuild now as Sciver-Brunt only takes a single from a well-timed dab through mid-off.
WICKET! Wyatt-Hodge b King 0 (England 73-4)
Alana King rips in a crazing delivery in her first over of the afternoon and sends Wyatt-Hodge packing for a golden duck. The leg-spinner finds a touch of drift then plenty of grip off the turf to pass Wyatt-Hodge’s bat that was searching for a straighter one that instead crashes into her off-stump. Sciver-Brunt had earlier dispatched King’s first ball loosener to the mid-wicket boundary, but this is now very much game on!
17th over: England 73-4) (Sciver-Brunt 28, Jones 0)
WICKET! Knight c & b Gardner 18 (England 68-3)
Ash Gardner strikes immediately after the drinks break as the England skipper tries to turn the off-spinner away to the leg-side. A leading edge pops up back to Gardner for her second simple catch of the afternoon and Australia will feel they are right back in this.
16th over: England 68-3 (Sciver-Brunt 23, Wyatt-Hodge 0)
15th over: England 66-2 (Knight 17, Sciver-Brunt 22) Brown has Sciver-Brunt on the back foot until an attempted yorker strays a touch too close to the batter’s feet and is stylishly clipped to the leg-side. Perry races around the boundary but pulls up short when realising she can’t prevent the boundary. That’s drinks. And time for Australia to reevaluate their plans.
14th over: England 62-2 (Knight 17, Sciver-Brunt 18) A less threatening over from Ash Gardner allows England to pick up four singles without any risk. Alana King can’t be too far away with Australia starting to look desperate for a breakthrough as the sun belts down in St Kilda.
13th over: England 58-2 (Knight 15, Sciver-Brunt 16) Darcie Brown continues and keeps the ball pitched up and just outside the off-stump. Sciver-Brunt finds a single from a straighter delivery and Knight adds one as she cuts with soft hands.
12th over: England 56-2 (Knight 14, Sciver-Brunt 15) Australia call on Ash Gardner after the off-spinner did much of the damage to the England batting line-up in the first ODI. Little luck to start at the Junction Oval though, as Sciver-Brunt steps back to smack a square drive to the rope. Lovely shot!
11th over: England 50-2 (Knight 13, Sciver-Brunt 10) England bring up their fifty for the loss of only two wickets as their most experienced pair take command of the chase. Darcie Brown comes into the attack as Australia turn to pace in search of a much-needed wicket. Sciver-Brunt cracks a fuller ball straight back past the bowler for four as England need another 131 runs to tie the series.
10th over: England 43-2 (Knight 12, Sciver-Brunt 6) Garth continues but Knight dispatches a fuller delivery through square leg to the rope to start the over. Healy comes up to the stumps to pile more pressure on the England batters as Knight defends resolutely from her crease.
9th over: England 38-2 (Knight 7, Sciver-Brunt 6) Sciver-Brunt can’t find a way through the infield sa Sutherland works away at a tidy line outside off. That’s until the bowler pitches one a touch short and Sciver-Brunt punishes her with a back-foot drive to the boundary. That’s one of the better shots of the England innings so far.
8th over: England 34-2 (Knight 7, Sciver-Brunt 2) Garth is proving a real handful for the England batters and – twice! – almost sends Sciver-Brunt on her way. The first opportunity has Sciver-Brunt pushing at a straight delivery outside off that lands short of second slip. The next is a cracking delivery as Garth angles the ball into the batter. If anything, that one has done too much. Garth has 2 for 11 from her four overs and surely Healy keeps her going with more wickets needed to drag Australia back into the contest.
This match feels evenly poised after a couple of England wickets but John Starbuck likes what he sees.
“It looks like England have at least given themselves a chance. Good news for such as me, following the excellent OBO because my medical condition means I cannot sleep. Well done.”
Thanks John, hope you’re doing well.
7th over: England 33-2 (Knight 7, Sciver-Brunt 1) DROP! Annabel Sutherland comes into the attack to bowl to Knight and almost strikes immediately. But that was a half-chance at best. Beth Mooney at second slips dives high and to her right, gets a decent hand to the ball but is unable to drag it in. The ball races away to the rope but Australia can’t have too many complaints with that one.
WICKET! Bouchier c Gardner b Garth 17 (England 27-2)
Kim Garth gets another as Maia Bouchier attempts to punch a straight one over the leg-side infield. A leading edge takes the ball to Gardner at point for a simple catch. The England opener had just survived a lbw appeal and review that was passing down leg but is unable to make Australia pay. Garth almost picks up another but a cracking delivery is too good to find Knight’s outside edge.
6th over: England 29-2 (Knight 3, Sciver-Brunt 1)
5th over: England 27-1 (Bouchier 17, Knight 2) Bouchier starts to open up at anything away from her body. SIX! A shorter delivery is pulled over the deep square leg and beyond the rope, and on the other side a blazing swipe sends the ball over gully for a boundary.
4th over: England 15-1 (Bouchier 7, Knight 2) Garth works away outside Knight’s off-stump with the England skipper happy to leave anything too wide to worry about. Knight clips to mid-wicket for a couple without any risk.
3rd over: England 13-1 (Bouchier 7, Knight 0) Schutt continues to keep Bouchier playing cautiously with Healy up at the stumps as the England opener plays and misses at a couple. Bouchier can’t be held back for too long though as the aggressive right-hander dances down the pitch and pulls a shorter delivery over mid-wicket.
2nd over: England 8-1 (Bouchier 3, Knight 0) After a couple of wide balls Garth straightens up and has the ball swinging around. Beaumont is almost caught at point after trying to use the movement back into her to nudge the ball to the on-side, then is out later in the over when trapped dead in front from much the same delivery.
WICKET! Beaumont lbw Garth 3 (England 8-1)
Kim Garth gets the early breakthrough after Alyssa Healy has no hesitation to send a lbw appeal upstairs for a review. The Australian pacer swings the ball from outside the off-stump as Beaumont moves across and tries to clip it away onto the on-side. But there is too much movement and if not for the front pad the ball would have cannoned into middle stump.
1st over: England 2-0 (Bouchier 2, Beaumont 0) Megan Schutt finds her line outside off and just back of a length as the usually assertive Maia Bouchier starts watchfully. A swipe narrowly misses the edge before the opener dabs a square drive almost to the rope to get the chase underway.
Martin Pegan
Thanks James and dare I say thanks to England and their spin twins for breathing life into the Women’s Ashes just as Australia looked set to put together an ominous total at the Junction Oval that might net them two more points and a 4-0 lead in the series.
But after Alyssa Healy (29), Phoebe Litchfield (29) and Ellyse Perry (60) led the way to propel Australia to 131 for two in just the 24th over, Sophie Ecclestone (4 for 35) and Alice Capsey (3 for 22) sparked a collapse as the hosts were skittled for 180. It is Australia’s lowest ODI total since 2009.
It was expected that the pacers would have more of an impact with a green tinge to the pitch and a grey hue in the sky, and England won’t be expecting a comfortable chase with Australia blessed with variety in their attack. Openers Tammy Beaumont and Maia Bouchier are making their way out to the middle with the Australians trailing behind and Megan Schutt with ball in hand. Let’s get into it!
James Wallace
Seven wickets fell to spin in the middle overs as England put the skids on Australia and then ramped up the pressure. Capsey and Ecclestone the star performers and an all round better showing in the field to boot.
Australia will be disappointed with their efforts, especially as Ellyse Perry looked set for a big one before falling LBW to Capsey for 60, the part time spinner taking three wickets in consecutive overs to tilt the game England’s way. Kudos too to Heather Knight for making the decisive bowling change.
There’s plenty in the pitch for Australia’s bowlers but England have given themselves a brilliant chance of levelling up the series. Time for a spot of lunch for the players and a meeting with the pillow for me. Martin Pegan will be here shortly to guide you through the chase. Thanks for your company and comments, ta-ra.
Australia all out for 180!
Lauren Bell skittles Kim Garth to close out the innings, England will need to score 181 runs to level the series!
44th over: Australia 180-9 (Garth 9, Brown 4) Two singles off Filer as Australia eke out every run. A reminder that if England win this game then both sides will be level on 2 points apiece with four white ball games left worth 2 poinst each The pink ball Test closes out the series and is worth four points, the series needs to be alive for that historic occasion.
43rd over: Australia 178-9 (Garth 8, Brown 3) Bell can’t find the final wicket, over to Lauren Filer.
42nd over: Australia 174-9 (Garth 6, Brown 0) No five-fer for Ecclestone as Brown shuts up shop and blocks the over out. A fantastic spell though from England’s talismanic spinner, 4-35 off ten overs and her best figures against Australia.
WICKET! Schutt c Wyatt b Ecclestone 0 (Australia 174-9)
Schutt tries a hack against the spin and gifts an easy catch. Australia capitulating in Melbourne. England need one more to finish the job. Ecclestone has three balls left… Darcie Brown takes guard.
