England all-rounder Georgia Elwiss has spoken of her team’s pride at batting out the final day of the Test match at North Sydney Oval, securing a draw and in turn keeping their hopes of winning the Women’s Ashes alive.
An Australian victory would have taken them to eight points in the multi-format series – an unassailable lead given there are 16 points up for grabs and the hosts hold the Ashes – but a draw leaves the score at 6-4 going into the T20s.
Elwiss played a big part in securing the draw, batting throughout the day alongside captain Heather Knight to put on 117.
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GeorgiaElwiss
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- Age: 33
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A share of the spoils means England need to complete a clean-sweep of the T20s to reclaim the Ashes, a task that – while difficult – was only made possibly by today’s defiance.
“We knew going into today it was going to be a really hard day’s play and we were going to have to really fight to keep ourselves in the series,” said Elwiss.
“The wicket was getting slower and lower and it was really difficult to score but credit to Tammy and Loz. The way they played last night and taking us to the close with no wickets lost gave us a really good platform for today.”
For Elwiss and her partner Knight, it was all about breaking the day down into chunks, making 100 overs more manageable.
“We knew the importance of the first session and we had to really break it down, over by over.
“Heather and I kept saying to each other, ‘ball by ball, ball by ball’, just trying to take it one step at a time.”
Elwiss was also keen to praise the side’s resilience, something that Knight and coach Mark Robinson have highlighted on numerous occasions.
“The way the game was set up today was all about us fighting and keeping our wickets in hand.
“We needed to really value them and we’ve done that brilliantly. The resilience we’ve shown over the whole Test match has been amazing.
“The innings that Ellyse Perry played was outstanding but for our bowlers to keep plugging away and churning the overs out was great.
“We never let our standards slip in the field either and we can take great heart from that.
“I think it shows that we fought all the way through this Test, hopefully we can take some momentum going into the T20s.”
It was a special day on a personal level for Elwiss, who’s had to be patient for her opportunity in the side.
Her first-innings effort was also an important contribution, but while she was happy to play her part she was quick to praise her colleagues.
“I’m happy to contribute. I was quite nervous going into the match because I hadn’t played for a while.
“For me it was about valuing my wicket and making sure the team was going nicely.
“Today was all about batting with Heather and getting to those small targets.
“It’s an easy wicket to bat on once you’re in so that was really important.
“I’m pleased to make a contribution but I’m more happy about the team.”
It's a draw. The captains shake hands and England stay in the #WomensAshes.
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) 12 November 2017
Three T20s to come, starting on Friday.
Well played, @Heatherknight55 and @Gelwiss. https://t.co/nQL4xbXQI5 pic.twitter.com/s9vZJKBMrm
While day four may have been a nose-to-the-grindstone day of defiance, day three was noteworthy for Ellyse Perry’s excellence and a carnival atmosphere in the crowd.
Across the four days 12,000 people have come to watch and Elwiss thinks it was another important landmark for women’s cricket.
“Absolutely. It’s the first time that women have played a day-night Test match, it’s the first Ashes day-night Test and – from a personal point of view – it’s the first time I’ve played a Test in Australia.
“Even when Ellyse was getting to her 200 and you had Megan Schutt at the other end trying to block it out, the noise was as loud for her as it was for Ellyse.
“It was an amazing atmosphere and the fans were really engaged – I even received my first abuse from the Aussie crowd!
“It’s great that we’ve seen that many people coming into the Test match over the last four days and I think it’s further evidence that the women’s game is going from strength to strength.
“If we can continue that and get good crowds and coverage across the T20s then that can only be good for the game.”
The challenge now moves on the shortest form of the game and England will need to be faultless, winning all three games to win the Ashes.
It’s a task that Elwiss thinks her team are up to: “We’ve not played much T20 cricket over the last couple of years but the girls know their T20 games really well.
“It will be a case of revisiting that this week and everyone loves going out there and whacking it so I think you’ll see us playing with a smile on our face.
“We’ll come out with a real tempo and every game we play for England we try to win so we’re looking forward to it.”