Women Have Been Thrown In Deep End...

In theory, the Test match component of the multi-format Women’s Ashes is the highlight of the series and something to savour.

It is badged as the opportunity where players have the chance to pit their skills against each other in the traditional format of the game; something now only possible in these clashes between Australia and England every two years or so.

In reality, it can end up a lot less than that. This isn’t only due to the fact that the surfaces that have been served up for the last couple of red-ball games between the countries have been nothing short of turgid.

It’s mostly because these professional athletes are being asked to do something for one week that has no relationship to the type of cricket they play at any other time. A short period of preparation, against each nation’s academy squad, is their lot.

This column has long argued that there’s both a demand and a need for multi-day domestic women’s cricket with a view to helping bolster the case for more Tests in time. With the move to professional and semiprofessionalism now well advanced – set to take even bigger strides in 2020 in England with a renovation of the domestic structure, there has never been a better time. To the best of my knowledge, no England or Australian player ever asked about the topic has said anything other than wanting more red-ball cricket – full stop.