England can point at luck but Australia are the team that turn up and win | Geoff Lemon
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Heather Knight can feel frustrated by the umpires and the rain, but her team have made too many mistakes. When you’re down, circumstances can conspire to make sure you’re out. Across the first four matches of the Women’s Ashes, England had nobody to blame except for Australia for being better than them. A wan total batting first in the first ODI, a botch of chasing an even smaller one in the second, then conceding massive scores in the third ODI and the first T20 to be no chance in the chase. For the second T20, chasing another high total, England could shake a fist at the sky, losing on rain calculation when dragged off the field with five balls to go.
![[A dejected Heather Knight after the umpires took the players off the pitch.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/c3a97eeafe50c705ed8b3b740c08751a38e5fc8e/0_0_3486_2324/master/3486.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
To be realistic, England were unlikely to score 18 from the final five to make 186. But it was possible. Annabel Sutherland was bowling, and Heather Knight had just carved her for four, moving Knight’s own score to a fierce 43 from 19. Sutherland had been banned from the attack earlier in the tour after two high full tosses were called illegal. A six, a fumbled four, a set of five wides: plenty of things can crank up the pressure in the space of one ball.
![[Australia’s players celebrate dismissing England’s Maia Bouchier.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5734857d9ee2212397f394f411f19d381f0be63a/0_0_3235_2156/master/3235.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
So Knight had every reason to be visibly and volubly frustrated when the umpires ordered her from the field, protesting verbally and throwing away her bat. The rain was heavy, but nobody else had to play on that pitch later, and surely bowlers can manage a wet ball for a minute. Authorities will cite safety concerns, but it’s overblown to pretend that players can’t safely get through a handful of deliveries to complete an international fixture.
