‘Hope they’re taking us lightly’: Healy’s Ashes warning as young gun primed to open in Test debut

Nottingham: Australia’s Ashes captain Alyssa Healy has warned England not to underestimate an evolving side, as Phoebe Litchfield is primed for a Test debut at the top of the batting order.

The 20-year-old Litchfield is set to open alongside Beth Mooney, while Healy, who has enjoyed watching Litchfield develop for NSW and Australia, slots into the middle order in recognition of her captaincy and wicketkeeping duties.

Phoebe Litchfield is poised for her debut at the top of the Australian order.Credit: Getty Images

Healy saved her most pointed words for England, following comments by young fast bowler Issy Wong that this may be a good time to face Australia, following the retirement of Rachael Haynes and in the enforced absence of Meg Lanning. The previous Ashes Test between the two sides finished in a memorable draw at Canberra’s Manuka Oval. The new series will start with the sole Test at Trent Bridge, offering plenty of possibilities for a result pitch.

“I read the quote, and then I actually read the whole piece instead of just what she said, and it was actually a glowing endorsement for our group, but people chose to take those couple of sentences which was funny,” Healy said.

“I don’t think we can hide from the fact we’ve come into this Ashes series and there is no Meg Lanning, no Rachael Haynes. We’ve lost a lot of experience but I’m completely comfortable with the troops we’ve got sitting in the change room, that what they’re going to bring to this series is just as good as what we’ve ever done.

“I’m hoping they’re potentially taking us a little bit lightly because I think you do that at your own detriment. The group we’ve got in the change room are incredibly good at their job, and hopefully we can show them just that.”

The team’s evolution is typified not just by Litchfield, but also the emergence of Tahlia McGrath as a top-quality all-rounder and as vice-captain. Annabel Sutherland’s batting continues to grow, while Georgia Wareham and Alana King offer contrasting but dangerous wrist spin options in addition to the longstanding threats of Megan Schutt and Jess Jonassen.

“We’ve made a real conscious effort when we have had opportunities to blood some young players or give them some experience or opportunity that we’ve made that decision,” Healy said.

“I think that’s put us in good stead for the next 10 years, that there’s players waiting in the wings who are ready to go, they’ve tasted playing for Australia and they’ve wanted to do it again.

“It’s really crucial to be looking at the future and working out some sort of succession plan and that’s been going on behind the scenes. If I look at the England team, they’ve had a really big turnover all at once, which makes them quite dangerous at the same time, because there’s a lot of unknown about their group.”

Litchfield is the team’s precocious young talent, much as the likes of Healy and Ellyse Perry once were in a side stocked with older heads such as the team’s now coach Shelley Nitschke.

Healy noted that Litchfield’s knowledge set her up nicely to cope with the technical and mental rigours of a Test match.

“For someone so young she knows a lot about her own batting and her own technique,” Healy said.

“That’s really cool and really important for someone coming into the international game, that they know a lot about their game and what they can and can’t do. I think she’s right across that, and most importantly she absolutely loves batting.

Alyssa Healy and Mitchell Starc.Credit: Getty

“So from our point of view, the longer she stays out there the better, because that’s exactly where she wants to be. I think she’s done a bit of top-order batting throughout her career and has the technique to do that.

“On the flipside she’s got the gears that she can go up and down and through throughout the ebbs and flows of a Test match and also a one-day game. She’s got that ability to find the boundary when she needs, but also to knuckle down and tough out some gritty little periods.”

As for husband Mitchell Starc’s selection status after he missed the first men’s Test at Edgbaston, Healy smiled as she chose her words carefully: “All I’ll say is there’s a lovely slope at Lord’s for a left-armer ...”

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