England bid to topple Australia and inject ‘bang’ into Women’s Ashes opener

Lauren Filer’s ability to “bang the ball in” has earned the pace bowler an unexpected place in Heather Knight’s side for Thursday’s Ashes Test. The England captain is seeking an aggressive attack that can take all Australia’s wickets to secure a first result in a women’s Test since 2015.

“Myself and Jon [Lewis, the coach] are on the same page about how we want the team to play,” Knight said. “When I started out playing Test cricket I felt I had to go super-defensive, it was all about survival. I want all the girls to have in their minds how they’re going to take the game forward with the ball or with the bat.

“She [Filer] is one of the quickest in the country and she gets bounce. She can move the ball both ways and she can bang the ball in. We need a team that’s going to take 20 wickets.”

Danni Wyatt, after representing England in 245 white-ball matches over 13 years, will at last be handed a Test cap when the match starts. “She’s really chuffed,” Knight said.

“Probably at one point she felt like she was never going to get a Test cap, but we’ve picked her because we want her to play exactly how she does in the middle-order in ODI cricket. She’s one of the best players and the best attackers of spin in the world game.”

Alice Capsey, who had been widely expected to make her Test debut, was released from the squad on Tuesday and will feature in the concurrent T20 series between England A and Australia A.

England Tammy Beaumont, Emma Lamb, Heather Knight, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Sophia Dunkley,Danni Wyatt, Amy Jones, Sophie Ecclestone, Kate Cross, Lauren Filer, Lauren Bell.

Australia (probable) Phoebe Litchfield, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath, Alyssa Healy, Ash Gardner, Annabel Sutherland, Alana King, Georgia Wareham,