3rd T20 International Preview & Prediction

When is England vs Australia taking place? Saturday, July 8th, 2023 – 18:35 (UK)

Where is England vs Australia taking place? England vs Australia will take place at Lord’s, London

What channel is England vs Australia on? England vs Australia will be televised live on Sky Sports in the UK

Where can I stream England vs Australia? Sky Sports subscribers in the UK can stream England vs Australia live on Sky Go.

LAST MEETING
England beat Australia by 3 runs

THE LOWDOWN

ENGLAND

After having consistently closed the gap between themselves and Australia, England finally overcame them in the second T20i at the Kia Oval, keeping the women’s Ashes alive for another game. They were unlucky to have been beaten at Edgbaston but this time round, England closed out the game really well after once again losing the toss and being asked to bat first. The foundations were laid early on, the opening wicket putting on 57 runs from the first 6.4 overs but Danni Wyatt ploughed on and batted for over three quarters of the innings, striking 76 from just 46 deliveries with 13 fours. Sophie Eccleston also deserves huge credit for a crucial cameo at the back end of the innings, scoring 22 from 12 balls.

A score of 186/9 represented an excellent score and whilst Australia set off like a train, it was the spinners who proved critical to England’s success. Eccleston, Sarah Glenn and Charlie Dean managed to tie down Australia and take wickets. Dean also forced the run out of Tahlia McGrath, a massive moment in the match. After such a good performance, Dean is expected to keep her place in the England team, with scoring boundaries on a big ground such as Lord’s unlikely to be straightforward.

AUSTRALIA

Australia remains on course to retain the women’s Ashes, but one more victory is still needed to make sure of it. They’ll have been disappointed to lose at the Kia Oval, particularly after their openers gave them a good platform to push on and perhaps chase down 187. Beth Mooney and Alyssa Healy put on 59 runs after 6.2 overs, but the huge frustration from their point of view is that neither went on to put a massive individual score on the board, Mooney falling for 22 and Healy 37 with Tahlia McGrath being run out in-between those two dismissals. Although there was some serious late resistance from Ellyse Perry, who hit 51 from just 27 balls, the experienced all-rounder was left with too much to do from an Australian point of view and the visitors ended falling three runs short of England.

The defeat is unlikely to see Australia panic and it would be a surprise if they were to change anything, unless anyone within their camp is suffering from a mystery injury. Bowler Megan Schutt was hugely expensive in the second T20i, having been taken down by Danni Wyatt but she is a quality bowler and will surely be persisted with. The big-hitting Grace Harris has had a disappointing T20i series so far and will be desperate to make amends with the bat at the ‘Home of Cricket’.

THE PREDICTION

The door has been left ajar ever so slightly for England and the question now is whether they can smash through it. T20 cricket is clearly their best format and a victory here would see questions be asked of Australia ahead of the ODI series. The belief is strong among the home camp and the spinners have dealt well with the hard-hitting Australian batters. With the momentum with them, back England to keep the women’s Ashes alive going into the ODIs with another win in this one.