Summary

  • England hammered by 72 runs in final T20 of Ashes series - report

  • Mooney anchors Australia with unbeaten 94 off 63 balls

  • England slump to 48-7 and never recover

  • Australia, who have already won Ashes, now lead 12-0

  • One-off Test at MCG begins on Thursday (03:30 GMT)

Live Reporting

by Sam Drury & Mike Peter

  1. England bowled out for 90 as Australia surge towards clean sweep

    Knight stumped as England all out for 90

    That is it from us after England's dismal Ashes tour became that much more dismal.

    Read Ffion Wynne's report after a miserable batting performance saw them bowled out for 90 as they sank to a 72-run loss.

    Australia are now 12-0 up and one win away from a 16-0 clean sweep.

    We'll be back in the early hours of Thursday morning for the start of the one-off Test at the MCG as Heather Knight's side try to avoid that fate.

    There is plenty more cricket before that, starting with England men's second T20I against India this afternoon. Make sure you join us for that one!

  2. At the halfway stage, England were right in the mix. Chasing 163 was not going to be easy but it was definitely not insurmountable.

    That's what we thought anyway. As it was the wickets just tumbling and tumbling and tumbling...

    Capsey out caught behind after review

    England in 'awful trouble' after Sciver-Brunt wicket

    Kemp holes out to Harris leaving England six down

    Smith run out for one as Australia close in on victory

  3. 'This was a moment to stamp our authority'

    England lose Dunkley in second over

    Australia fast-bowler Darcie Brown on TNT Sports: "To come out at Adelaide Oval and bowl like I did was really cool.

    "This team has a lot of hunger, we are really motivated from the World Cup and the previous Ashes series. We didn’t play how we wanted to then so this is a moment to stamp our authority.

    "It was a relief to contribute and be out there. I wasn’t sure I was going to get a look in with all of the girls bowling so well so it was nice to contribute to team win.

    "Beth Mooney has been so consistent this series for us. It’s awesome to have her in our line-up. Everyone is calm and chilled when she is out there in the middle.

    "We will celebrate this white-ball win. There is still one more game to go so there are all eyes on that now. We will take some time to reset before we go again."

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    Jon Lewis' ill-advised claims that the Aussies are better because of their outdoors culture will no doubt lead to his demise. The fact is, Hartley is right - our players are nowhere near fit enough and in the right shape compared to the Aussies. It puts us on the back foot straight away.

    Phil, Beckenham

    The interview Jon Lewis gave is looking even more hollow. And all this talk of fighting and best yet to come from certain players is embarrassing. They aren’t close to Australia, they are even the same galaxy. Time for a reality check. This is poor side with poor leadership.

    Mark B

    I’m really enjoying watching Australia thrash England in these shorter games but the Test should have been at the start of the series. There probably would have been stronger interest coming off the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and it would have been a guaranteed live fixture unlike next week’s dead rubber. With so few women’s Tests played at all, it feels like a wasted opportunity.

    Liam, Sydney

  5. 'Unfortunately, we've been outplayed'

    'What a catch!' Voll's spectacular effort removes Ecclestone

    More from England coach Jon Lewis, speaking on TNT Sports: "We had a really good preparation period in South Africa, we played some really good cricket across that tour, came out victorious across the two white-ball series and the Test match.

    "There isn't a lot of time, we got back on 20 December and got out here on 3 January. The players need a bit of time over Christmas to de-load and de-compress over from the tour. We had one game leading in and it got rained out.

    "It was really important for us to get into the Australians early in this tour. The first two games in particular, the game at North Sydney and at the Junction Oval, we had some opportunities to get some points on the board and once this team got some momentum against us and got some victories, especially that victory at Junction when they turned the tables on what we felt was a score we should have got, I felt like the momentum has just gone with the Australians.

    "They're a really good cricket team, once they momentum and they get on top of you it's really hard to turn the tide.

    "We had a T20 World Cup in Dubai to think about too. Pretty much from the point you finish the Ashes your focal points are the next World Cup and the next Ashes series. And we've been working hard to develop our young players in particular while obviously maintaining the senior group and keeping the balance of the side with some experience in there which we feel we've got.

    "Unfortunately, we've been outplayed, and that's sport. We've been outplayed on this tour so far and the Australians, like I keep saying, are a really tough outfit to beat who haven't lost a series here for a long, long time. We'll have to go away and work even harder than we are at the moment."

    Does he see himself as the coach to take the team forwards?: "Yes, I do. We're a developing cricket team with a lot of young players, I've got a lot of skills in that area. There are some really good examples of how some players have developed across this tour and in the last couple of years when I've been in charge of the team.

    "I'm really passionate about growing the game and growing women's cricket. We've got a really good group of people and some really good players and we just haven't shown it on this tour so far."

  6. 'Australia spinners have got on top of us'

    'England are crumbling' Wareham takes two wickets in an over

    England coach Jon Lewis speaking on TNT Sports: "We're really disappointed as a group. That was a tough watch, we didn't play anywhere near our best cricket. We've got a lot of work over the next few days to make sure we can front-up at the Test match at Melbourne.

    "In this series in particular, the T20 series, we wanted to be as proactive as we can against the spinners, the same against the pace bowlers. What I will say is the Australian spinners have bowled incredibly well, they've been really accurate and spun the ball hard, the two leg-spinners. They've got on top of us and we haven't really been able to deal with it.

    "We thought long and hard about how, and how to be proactive in terms of using our sweeps and using our feet but the players unfortunately just haven't been able to break the shackles against them.

    "I've been really impressed with Australia's bowling unit, they've been incredibly accurate, really disciplined, backed-up obviously with some really athletic fielding. I think that's been quite a big difference in the sides.

    "We've got a really young bowling attack, a lot of our bowlers are really inexperienced and under the age of 23-24. So we've got a lot of young players who are developing cricketers against quite an experienced team and a really fine team on their own soil.

    "We're a really hard-working cricket team, we're really passionate about playing for England and supporting England, and we'll go away and re-group and we'll work really hard and look forward to what is a really exciting Test match down in Melbourne. Unfortunately the series is gone but we'll look to put in a really good performance there."

  7. How stat?!

    Kieran Parmley
    Cricviz analyst

    England's heaviest T20 defeats in terms of runs:

    • 93 runs vs Australia, Chelmsford 2019
    • 72 runs vs Australia, Adelaide 2025
    • 57 runs vs Australia, Brabourne 2018
    • 57 runs vs Australia, Sydney 2025
    • 52 runs vs Australia, Canberra 2011

  8. 'A great way to finish the white-ball series'

    Australia celebrate a wicket against EnglandGetty Images

    Australia stand-in captain Tahlia McGrath: "I really enjoyed that win especially in front of the home crowd. Adelaide is a special place and it was a great way to finish the white-ball series.

    "It was a tricky wicket, we weren’t expecting that. It looked like Moons [Beth Mooney] was batting on a different wicket to everyone else. She got us to a competitive total. And then Georgia Wareham played her role with the ball, she was outstanding.

    "The Test is a completely new challenge and we have to get used to playing four days of cricket. We are really looking forward to that. A day-night test at the MCG, it doesn’t get much better."

  9. Get Involved

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    England can moan and make excuses as much as they like but it doesn’t change the fact that Australia are a far fitter, disciplined and focused team. Some of our batters just look awkward. Our bowlers have no discipline and the fielding is shoddy and laboured. You know as an Australian batter that as soon as it goes in the outfield it’s a boundary whereas England are having to hit it harder due to the Aussies chasing down everything. Knight should just be allowed to concentrate on her batting (a la Root) as surely she can’t come back from this mauling to add to other woeful leadership decisions over the past 18 months/two years.

    Stevo

  10. 'Hopefully there’s a few more runs left in me'

    Beth MooneyGetty Images

    Player of the Match, Australia's Beth Mooney: "It was nice to hit a few runs out of the middle and I had a few brilliant partnerships out there especially with Volly [Georgia Voll] at the start.

    "I was battling for some runs early in this series. I went back to the drawing board and worked out how I wanted to play with the coaches. Fortunately it has come off tonight and hopefully there’s a few more runs left in me.

    "I enjoy the responsibility, I have been lucky to get a few different roles in my career, whether that’s opening or behind the stumps. I like to be able to offer different options to the team.

    "The conditions were harder than we thought and things slowed down through the middle. We tried to manipulate the field as best we could and I felt like we came with real intent.

    "A century in the Test match would be amazing but we can’t look too far ahead. I am looking forward to a few days off and then getting that baggy green on again.”

  11. 'We lost momentum'

    Heather KnightGetty Images

    England captain Heather Knight: "They're playing well, outstanding innings from Beth Mooney. I thought we bowled pretty well. The pitch was decent but when you lose all those wickets it's hard.

    "I think they went into the wicket with a lot of slower balls, they were clever with how they bowled. We lost momentum, losing wickets. We've got to draw a line under the T20 series and try and win the one-off Test.

    "We haven't put our batting and bowling together. There's a lot of learning to do, we're gutted, we need to learn a lot from this Australia team."

  12. Aaron Bryans
    Test Match Special commentator

    England's nightmare is now a full-blown horror show.

  13. Get Involved

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    We may not be challenging the Aussies. But we are certainly challenging the headline writers to come up with synonyms for how bad we are

    Mike Kelcey, Romania

    For all of us deeply invested in and willing on the England Women, this has been a bad tour. The post match nonsense about getting closer and losing key moments has to stop. And reports of shooting the media messenger are very disappointing. They have failed in the two big challenges in the last year and no amount of bilateral wins make up for it. Alex is right, we are mad because we care! Australia are brilliant, but England need a fundamental reset starting with the coach.

    Jane, Yorkshire

    England are a batter light, and a bowler not good enough… Also, I don’t know what Jon Lewis is doing as coach - but can he stop it?

    Russ, Upton

  14. Alex Hartley
    Former England bowler on BBC Test Match Special

    That has been the worst performance out of the six in this series. England had no answers, they lost consistent wickets.

    England lost four wickets while Heather Knight faced two balls and I really feel for the captain.

  15. Australia win by 72 runs
    Breaking

    England's nightmare tour of Australia hits a new low.

    They lose for the sixth game running to go down 12-0.

    Not only were they beaten tonight, Beth Mooney outscored them on her own.

  16. wicket

    WICKET

    Knight st Mooney b McGrath 40 (Eng 90 all out)

    That'll do it.

    Heather Knight's resistance comes to an end as she moves down the track and tries to hit Tahlia McGrath through the off side.

    She misses and, fittingly, it's Beth Mooney who wraps this game up with a regulation stumping.

    Knight stumped as England all out for 90

  17. Alex Hartley
    Former England bowler on BBC Test Match Special

    It has been a horrific tour for England. There will be an inquest into England cricket after this.

    They are so much stronger than South Africa and New Zealand in bi-lateral series and yet at Ashes and World Cups, they crumble.

  18. Eng 89-9

    England have avoided their lowest total in T20 cricket.

    Take what you can from this one, folks...

  19. How stat?!

    Kieran Parmley
    Cricviz analyst

    McGrathGetty Images

    If you include Ellyse Perry, Australia's pace bowlers (Schutt, Garth, Brown and Perry*) are the only Australia players to not take a catch for them in this T20I series - a sign of their well-rounded fielding unit.

    *And Perry has two run outs to make up for it.

  20. Eng 85-9

    Three from Annabel Sutherland's over.

    Lauren Filer is the last batter for England, joining Heather Knight, who must be wondering what on earth she has seen from her side tonight.

    The England skipper is unbeaten on 38 from 35 balls. Hard as it is to believe, this could actually have been much worse for the visitors...