From England’s early days of cricket through to their maiden ICC Women’s World Cup title win in 2009, England have at times struggled to maintain their historical edge against Australia in the England Women’s National Cricket Team Vs Australia Women’s National Cricket Team rivalry.
Key performers like Jan Brittin and Clare Taylor helped rebuild their team under Karen Smithies while mixing experienced performers with emerging talent to foster resilience and competitiveness in the England Women’s National Cricket Team Vs Australia Women’s National Cricket Team battles.
| Date | Format | Match | Result | Key Highlights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Sep 2025 | ODI (Warm-up) | England Women vs Australia Women | England won by 4 wickets | England chased 247; Alice Capsey starred with 88 runs. |
| 22 Oct 2025 | ODI (World Cup) | England Women vs Australia Women | Australia won by 6 wickets | Australia chased 244 successfully; Annabel Sutherland was Player of the Match. |
| 16 Jan 2025 | ODI | Australia Women vs England Women | Australia won by 86 runs | Ash Gardner scored 102; Alana King took 5 wickets. |
| 14 Jan 2025 | ODI | Australia Women vs England Women | Australia won by 21 runs | Australia defended 180 runs successfully. (ESPN.com) |
| 20 Jan 2025 | T20I | Australia Women vs England Women | Australia won by 57 runs | Beth Mooney scored 75; Australia dominated the chase. |
The history of the rivalry
Australia and England Women have played a pivotal role in driving the advancement of women’s cricket since 1934, when their rivalry first emerged as one of its cornerstones.
Both teams have faced off numerous times during Test matches with each other; the Women’s Ashes being perhaps its most famous competition.
Since its start, this longstanding rivalry has resulted in intense matches that often end in draws; both sides remain balanced, making the Ashes one of women’s cricket’s premier trophies.
Betty Archdale led her young England team on its inaugural Ashes series debut during 1934-35. Although presented as a goodwill tour, it was widely seen as an attempt at rebuilding diplomatic ties after the Bodyline scandal had shaken men’s cricket during this era.
Archdale and her team received a warm reception from Australian public opinion; spectators, local mayors, and newspapers all declared this tour successful.
England ultimately claimed victory after drawing their initial two Tests at Adelaide. This match witnessed many firsts, such as Myrtle Maclagan becoming the first woman ever to score a century in women’s Test cricket; she batted for all of Day Three until reaching an outstanding score of 119 not out – still England’s highest Test score ever!
Since 1989, every year between these countries has witnessed the Women’s Ashes. The competition is determined by a points system: four for a Test victory and two for limited-overs matches won. England have so far won six Ashes while Australia have taken 10 victories with eight draws between them.
Both teams have made great strides forward since those early days. At the 2009 World Cup held in Australia, England beat New Zealand, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka to advance to the final. Charlotte Edwards, Caroline Atkins and Sarah Taylor scored prolifically with bat while Holly Colvin and Katherine Brunt excelled with ball.
Recent years have seen both sides develop an intense rivalry across all formats of cricket. Matches tend to be hard-fought affairs dominated by strong all-round performances from both sides;
Australia have displayed high batting intensity while England have made consistent improvements in their bowling game despite closely-fought matches; Ellyse Perry’s dominance of shorter codecs keeps England at the forefront of this rivalry.
The first Test match
On December 28-31, 1934 in Brisbane, the inaugural Test match between these sides took place and England emerged victorious, thanks to Myrtle Maclagan’s magnificent 119 not out in the second Test match.
This victory marked an important step forward for women’s cricket and showed just how fiercely each side competed against one another.
This match was also notable because it marked the first time ever that a women’s team visited Australia, marking an important step forward for international cricket as well as strengthening ties between two nations that would become even stronger as bilateral visits occurred in future decades.
England made an excellent start in their first ODI against Australia, winning the toss and scoring 245 runs in their first innings – led by Claire Taylor’s two gritty fifties – winning by 5 wickets with Katherine Brunt and Anya Shrubsole taking crucial wickets to claim victory.
Australia struggled in response, reduced to 134-6 after their top order faltered, with batsmen not performing up to expectations and ultimately falling by 7 wickets against England courtesy of Katherine Brunt’s crucial wicket-taking.
Katherine Brunt and Shrubsole’s crucial wickets ensured victory was eventually secured by England after Katherine Brunt took crucial wickets off Australian bowlers during Australia’s reply innings collapse – Katherine Brunt took 3 crucial wickets during England’s innings victory!
England overcame their defeat to reach the inaugural ICC Women’s World Cup Final at home the following year. Following an initial strong start, they found themselves trailing 21-4 before Annabel Sutherland and Ash Gardner united for a six-wicket win!
This was an important landmark for women’s cricket and set the foundation for years of dominance within the one-day format.
Bilateral series were held regularly between teams throughout this decade, with England emerging victorious twice in World Cups as well as three ODI titles to cement its dominance within women’s cricket.
After suffering through an uneven start in London, England rebounded brilliantly in Sydney with an outstanding display from Isa Guha who took nine wickets overall while Myrtle Maclagan’s impressive 119 not out was enough to put her ahead as top batswoman of this series.
The one-day international series
After drawing 1-1 with Australia in the Test series, England faced off in two one-day internationals in Sydney and Perth. Both games ended with victories for Australia who showcased their deep batting ability by amassing totals of 249-8 and 271-6;
England struggled to keep up but with Heather Knight and Amy Ellen Jones providing notable contributions; later they fought back from 24-3 and 68-4 to secure victory by way of an exceptional 180 run partnership between Annabel Sutherland and Ash Gardner which helped lead them home with 10 overs remaining!
After winning their three ODI matches in Mumbai, England went on to dominate in both Twenty20 World Cup matches in Mumbai – winning both matches by an innings score.
Katherine Brunt took three wickets as England bowled New Zealand out for just 77 in their opening match, while Holly Colvin, Anya Shrubsole and Jess Cameron all contributed with the bat as key contributors for England.
Though England lost to Sri Lanka, they managed to progress into the semi-final against defending champions New Zealand, where they faced off.
Once again they struggled to meet the run rate required of them – only Sarah Taylor contributed significantly – but Brunt bowled well while Holly Colvin and Emily Smith played economical batting to limit New Zealand to 215-8; eventually England beat them at Lord’s by five wickets with Claire Taylor leading with an unbeaten 76.
England made significant adjustments following their tournament debut, adding Georgia Elwiss to their squad and starting their tournament off on a winning note with a win against Sri Lanka despite missing Meg Lanning and Laura Marsh due to injury.
After defeating Sri Lanka at group stage level, England played against South Africa at home; winning toss and being put into tight spots by winning hosts winning toss; Katherine Brunt took 3-29 and Taylor hit her 5,000th ODI run during this encounter!
England made quick work of Pakistan in their final group game and easily advanced to the final by defeating South Africa.
An outstanding performance saw England bowl South Africa out for just 77 runs while Taylor and Wyatt shared another unbroken stand that led them comfortably towards 82-3 with six overs remaining.
The World Cup
England and Australia meet every four years in a World Cup competition that has produced some exciting matches between them.
Their last meeting ended up being one of the tournament’s highlights with Australia edging out England by 10-3 in an enthralling final matchup.
Both England and Australia have long dominated world rankings, with England dominating both ODI and WT20I cricket while Australia have taken over Test cricket supremacy.
England began this tournament by defeating Pakistan 2-0, although their performance wasn’t exactly convincing; then followed it up with an emphatic nine-wicket victory against India, though Danielle Wyatt’s injury proved costly to them in this match-up.
As they struggled to build on this victory, New Zealand edged them out close in the second group stage game before recovering with an emphatic win against Bangladesh despite Tammy Beaumont’s dismal performance during this competition.
Emily Smith and Beth Mooney scored half-centuries to propel them past Sri Lanka and secure a semi-finals spot, in a tight game where neither side were able to make an immediate impact with the bat.
England saw their second semi-final against New Zealand as an opportunity to shine, and Lydia Greenway scored an extraordinary unbeaten 104 from just 73 balls, recalling her legendary innings against Australia just weeks prior. For this effort she was named player of both matches and series.
In the final, England outwitted New Zealand by outsmarting them more systematically; Greenway again stood out as the mainstay in an innings bursting with runs, boundaries and big hits from him and partner Alex Hales – setting the pace and tone for what became their victory by four wickets at North Sydney Oval.
