‘Hung out to dry’: England’s woeful Ashes campaign continues as Australia turn their attention to potential series whitewash

England’s struggling Ashes team have adopted a siege mentality, with a former teammate given the cold shoulder.

Former England international Alex Hartley says she has been “hung out to dry” by members of the current team after Australia clinched the Ashes on Monday night.

Australia retained the Ashes with a 57-run win over England in the first T20 at the SCG when the side’s clinical edge in the field was on display.

England’s fielding has been disappointing all series and was on show on Monday when players consistently dropped catches and made poor attempts to stop the ball.

It’s been one of the most obvious points of difference between the two teams and is not a new point of criticism. The side has previously been called out for a perceived lack of fitness and professionalism.

Hartley suggested after the side’s disappointing T20 World Cup performance in October that the players were not fit enough and couldn’t match the athleticism of a team such as Australia.

England’s response on the field hasn’t done anything to quash those claims but many of the players have shunned Hartley for her comments.

Hartley was a member of the English side that played in the Ashes in 2017, but now finds herself on the outer with some of her former teammates. Picture: AAP Image/Dean Lewins

“Sophie Ecclestone refused to do a TV interview with me today,” Hartley said on the BBC’s TMS podcast after the T20 loss in Sydney.

“I’ve been hung out to dry by the England team – none of them will talk to me on the boundary edge.

“I’m giving my opinion and I’ve been given the cold shoulder from the England team ever since.

“Not all of them have given me the cold shoulder. I don’t want to say that they’ve all been the same because they haven’t.

“But a few individuals – coaches, players – they haven’t looked at me.”

While Hartley said the English players were allowed to respond to her criticism however they liked, she doubled down on her claims.

“I’m entitled to my opinions and they’re entitled to theirs,” she said. “If fitness isn’t a problem, then it’s athleticism from a few, isn’t it?”

England’s fielding standards have been below par during this Ashes campaign. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images

It’s been a direct contrast to the way Australia has played throughout the series.

On Monday night alone, the Aussies took two sharp catches inside the first seven deliveries to set the tone for the night.

It’s part of a concerted effort by the Australian team to become as well-rounded as possible, which has included a dedicated coaching appointment for work in the field.

“We’ve just appointed a specialist fielding coach in the group,” Beth Mooney said.

“I think having Gavan Twining on board has made a real difference where he can solely focus on making sure fielders are in the right positions.

“There’s an opportunity for players to be quite specific at training and make sure they’re honing their skills in the position they’re going to be in the field.

“It’s (also) an attitude thing. You see the athleticism of all of our girls in the field.

“They throw the ball in hard to the keeper or the bowler. They throw their bodies around.

“They catch everything that goes up in the air or at least make a real conscious effort to go for things.

“We’re really lucky that there’s a great drive within the group to perform and get better and keep pushing the boundaries out there on what we can achieve.”

Australia has been clinical in the field during the Ashes compared to their English rivals. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images

In the aftermath to Monday’s clash, English media on the ground and remotely via Zoom also posed questions to batter Sophia Dunkley about whether changes needed to be made to the team’s leadership.

“All we can do is stick together now and fight as hard as we can for the last three games,” Dunkley said.

This was meant to be the series that showed the world the gap between Australia and the rest was the closest it’s ever been. If anything, this Australian side has put a rocky year behind it and looks stronger than ever.

England now has the incredibly difficult task of trying to snatch a draw from the jaws of defeat.

It must win the last two T20s – a format which is supposedly the side’s strongest despite what the performance on Monday might suggest – and the day-night Test to come away with a modicum of respectability.

Dunkley was one of England’s best in the first T20, top-scoring with 59 in her first game of the series. Picture: Jeremy Ng/Getty Images

Not only will England be fighting its own disappointing standards in the field that have given Australia almost a free run at retaining the Ashes, it is up against a side that looks to have regained a ruthless edge.

“Hopefully the conversation in the dressing room is we’ve got to play on Thursday like we’re on no points and it’s the start of the series,” Mooney said.

“This group’s hungry to keep getting better … I don’t love putting statements (about whitewashes) out there.

“ I think the cricket karma gods will probably go against me but let’s just get it to 10-0 and we’ll talk about that again.”

Originally published as ‘Hung out to dry’: England’s woeful Ashes campaign continues as Australia turn their attention to potential series whitewash