England's women's cricket team has dealt a big blow as their fast bowler Kate Cross has been ruled out of the crucial one-off Test of the women's Ashes series. The Test match, a historic day-night affair, is set to begin on Thursday, January 30 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Cross has been unable to recover from a back injury that previously sidelined her from the ODI portion of the tour.
Kate Cross ruled out of Women's Ashes
England captain Heather Knight confirmed the news and expressed her disappointment at Cross's unavailability for such an important fixture. Knight acknowledged Cross's hard work and dedication in her efforts to regain fitness. The team is now considering either fellow pacer Ryana MacDonald-Gay or an additional spinner as Cross's replacement in the playing XI for the day-night Test. The series is set to start from January 30 and will coincide with the 90th anniversary of women's Test cricket
"Kate Cross is unfortunately not going to be playing. She's been amazing. She's worked so diligently to try and get over her (back) injury. Worked really hard, but she hasn't quite been able to get back to her pace and her performance level. Really gutted for her, because she's a key member for us, and it's been really great to have her back around the group actually the last couple of days, she's a huge member of the team and a leader in this group,” was quoted as saying by the ICC.
Kate Cross's Test career includes eight matches, during which she has taken 25 wickets at an average of 30.72, including one four-wicket haul. Her most recent appearance for England was in the third ODI of their tour to South Africa in December 2024.
While England face a setback with Cross's absence, Australia has received a boost with the return of captain Alyssa Healy and all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner. Healy has recovered from a foot injury that kept her out of the recent T20I series against England, and Gardner has been declared fit after recovering from a calf niggle. Speaking to the media before the match, Healy confirmed her availability to play but noted that the final playing XI was yet to be determined.
"I'm good to go. We'll make a final decision on what the XI looks like over the next little period ... but I feel like I'm ready to go, so we'll wait and see what happens. The final XI hasn't quite been decided upon just yet, but I'm standing here in front of you without a moon boot, saying I'm ready to go,” said Healy.
England's women's team has struggled on this tour, losing all six white-ball matches played thus far. They are now facing the daunting prospect of a 16-0 clean sweep across all formats, a scenario never before seen in the history of the multi-format women's Ashes series. A win in the Test match carries an important four points, while a draw would award each team two points. Notably, England went winless in the 2022 series in Australia, they still managed to secure four points overall due to a drawn Test match and two T20 washouts.