‘I’ve been in a good place’: Ash Gardner makes triumphant return after scary head knock

Australian cricket veteran Ash Gardner made a winning return to action as the player of the match in game two of the series against New Zealand after a nasty head knock ruled her out of game one.

Ashleigh Gardner of Australia and team mates await the decision of a video review during game two of the Women's T20 International Series between Australia and New Zealand at Great Barrier Reef Arena. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

Ash Gardner has made a triumphant return to the field in game two of Australia’s WT20 series against New Zealand, spinning them to a 30-run victory on Sunday evening.

Gardner missed the first game of the series due to a head knock she suffered in the pre-game warm up on Thursday evening, clashing heads with teammate Georgia Wareham.

But the 27-year-old didn’t miss a beat upon her return, making a valuable 18 (19) batting at number four, before helping to bowl her country to victory in New Zealand’s innings, picking up her team’s best figures 3-16 on her way to player of the match honours.

“It was obviously really nice to get back out there. It’s been a weird few days as it's pretty unusual to have a head collision in a warm-up so that was one I had to wrap my head around,” Gardner said.

“But I’ve felt really good the past couple of days, I’ve had a few head knocks in the past so I know when I’m concussed and when I’m not.

“We went through all the protocols but I was very confident I was going to play today.”

Ashleigh Gardner of Australia bowls during game two between Australia and New Zealand. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

Gardner was the driving force for the Aussies’ success with the ball, but she said the team overall did “a magnificent job” with ball in hand.

“Everyone who got a chance with the ball played a role for us, depending on what the situation asked of them,” she said.

“That was really pleasing for us to see with now one game remaining before the (T20) World Cup.”

Despite their success, which saw the Aussies secure an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series with one game remaining, Gardner said there remained plenty of areas for improvement for the side, particularly on the batting side of things.

“I think there was some poor decision-making there that cost us some wickets, when Alyssa (Healy) and Ellyse (Perry) got us to where they did we were probably looking for 160-plus,” Gardner said.

Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy put on the key partnership for Australia in game two. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)

“We were probably 20 runs off of a par score, to give credit where it’s due they bowled pretty well through those middle overs.

“It was a good wicket but it was also a bit tricky to get yourself in on, so we probably needed to give ourselves a bit more time to get set before going after them.”

The Aussies will look to make those adjustments in time to produce a clean sweep of the series when game three rolls around at Allan Border Field on Tuesday evening.

Originally published as ‘I’ve been in a good place’: Ash Gardner makes triumphant return after scary head knock