Here is how Geoff Lemon saw Australia overcoming a 15-year low to claim victory while England crumbled in the second women’s ODI in Melbourne.

Raf Nicholson’s match report has landed to wrap up a fun and chaotic afternoon at the Junction Oval. Until we do it all again on Friday …

48th over: England 153-9 (Jones 43, Bell 1) DROP! Sutherland has a chance to finish the match and what a way that would have been to do so. Jones cracks a straight drive back at the bowler as Sutherland gets hands to it as much to protect herself as claim the last scalp. A full toss is scooped to the fine leg boundary as a free-hit is called. Jones can’t make Australia pay with the next delivery. Another full toss is called a no-ball with Australia claiming Jones had stepped too far down the pitch to warrant a free-hit. They have a strong claim. Sutherland is out of the attack, McGrath to bowl the final ball of the over as Jones lofts it to deep square leg but inexplicably refuses to take a run that would keep her on strike to start the next over.

47th over: England 153-9 (Jones 43, Bell 1) Jones steps back and swipes away to the off-side but can only start the over with a single. Bell is all about defence as the No 11 keeps the ball out including from a pair of cracking yorkers.

46th over: England 152-9 (Jones 42, Bell 1) A maiden from Gardner to Bell as the Australian spinner finishes with 1 for 23 from her 10 overs. England need 29 from six overs as the required run-rate climbs above a run-a-ball.

45th over: England 152-9 (Jones 42, Bell 1) Schutt to the tailender Bell but the pacer is unable to find a way through. Bell guides a wider ball to third to move off strike but Jones is unable to turn it over again from the last two deliveries thanks in part to Australia’s energetic fielding.

44th over: England 151-9 (Jones 42, Bell 0) Gardner returns as Australia look to finish off the tourists. Jones pulls to deep midwicket where Perry’s chase, stumble and tumble somehow keeps the ball inside the rope to save two runs. It’s all on Jones now and she slogs hard to deep midwicket but refuses the run. Same again but this time the shot is a touch finer to deep midwicket and England look for two as Bell has to reach to sneak into her crease after a hard and flat throw from King. Sharp fielding from Gardner off her bowling keeps Jones at the non-striker’s end for the next over as Australia close in on victory.

42nd over: England 146-8 (Jones 37, Filer 7) DROP! SIX! And it’s all happening. Healy dives hard to her right but can’t get her glove around a thick edge from Filer as it bounces away for a single. Jones sends the next ball over the long-off rope, after earlier clipping the first ball of the Garth over away to the leg-side as the batters look for two but are restricted to a single. That gives Australia a good look at Filer but somehow she slices a ball off her stumps to third for a single. 35 runs needed.

41st over: England 135-8 (Jones 28, Filer 5) Jones looks to block out most of the Schutt over before taking a single from midwicket with two balls remaining. Filer looks comfortable enough and could take a run off the last ball with a controlled edge but England are happy for Jones to face up to Garth again.

40th over: England 134-8 (Jones 27, Filer 5) England will take whatever runs they can find now. A lofty drive from Filer finds an inside edge and sneaks between Healy’s legs to the rope. Garth’s yorker beats everyone as well as the stumps for four leg byes. England are still in this with 47 runs needed from the last 10 overs, but will likely need Jones to farm the strike and steer them home.

39th over: England 126-8 (Jones 27, Filer 1) Two in the over for King and it’s perhaps most remarkable that the leg-spinner didn’t claim another to make it a five-for. After dismissing Dean and Ecclestone with consecutive deliveries, King comes about as close to a hat-trick as you can without grasping one. The ball does too much out of the deck and climbs across the face of Filer’s bat and wide of the off-stump. Filer gives up another chance with a cracking drive that hammers through Garth’s fingers standing at short mid-on. That would have been some catch! But it leaves King with the no-less impressive figures of 4 for 25 from her 10 overs.

38th over: England 125-6 (Jones 27, Dean 3) Dean just gets her bat in the way of a straighter ball from Garth to find an inside edge for a single. Jones is happy to block out the rest of the over.

37th over: England 124-6 (Jones 27, Dean 2) Jones keeps King out while playing off the back foot but has little choice but to trust in Dean with more than 50 runs still to get. Dean looks as comfortable as any of the England batters have against King when turning the first ball she faces around the corner for another single.

36th over: England 122-6 (Jones 26, Dean 1) Garth puts this contest on a knife’s edge with a much-needed wicket for Australia. A 36-run stand between Capsey and Jones had steadied the good ship England but they are now relying on their bowlers to level the series. Dean is no slouch, and is generally a tough wicket to take even if the spinner rarely scores briskly.

35th over: England 120-5 (Jones 25, Capsey 14) Australia turn to their main strike bowler of the moment for the first over after the drinks break. King works away at a testing length with plenty of turn out of the pitch but the England batters are this time able to find runs off the back foot.

34th over: England 116-5 (Jones 22, Capsey 13) Garth impressed with the new ball and is now called back into the attack with Australia needing wickets to pull themselves back into the match. The pacer very nearly strikes with her second delivery that smacks into Capsey’s front pad as the umpire is quick to raise the finger. A review shows an inside edge onto the pads has rescued the England batter. Jones is almost the one to make way instead off the last ball of the over after swiping at wider delivery that flies hard and flat to Gardner at point but the chance is grassed! That could well be a turning point. But it is most certainly drinks.

33rd over: England 113-5 (Jones 20, Capsey 12) Schutt sends four fuller balls Jones’s way for a series of dot balls before the England keeper steps back to pull a shorter delivery through midwicket. If anything, the batter hits the ball too hard and only finds a single.

32nd over: England 112-5 (Jones 19, Capsey 12) Sutherland is pulled from the attack after barely threatening while wickets are at a premium for Australia as England creep to within reach of their target. Gardner gives the ball plenty of air as Jones can only find a single with a hurried sweep that ends up at long-on.

31st over: England 111-5 (Jones 18, Capsey 12) Schutt relieves King but the relief will be all England’s. Healy is up at the stumps as the batters turn the strike over a few times with ease. The match is meandering a little towards the next break (in all likelihood, that’s just me) but Australia could do with another breakthrough before then.

30th over: England 108-5 (Jones 16, Capsey 11) Chance! Litchfield is again involved at cover and it’s hard to tell if the Australian got hands to that or not. She might have with a harder dive forward but there was little time to react as the ball bounced in front of her. Capsey starts the over with a sublime cut shot through point and to the rope.

29th over: England 101-5 (Jones 14, Capsey 6) King almost has another as Capsey drives on the up. Cries of ‘catch it’ but the ball sails wide of Litchfield at cover.

28th over: England 100-5 (Jones 13, Capsey 6) Sutherland gets her angles wrong as a wide heads down the leg-side as fine keeping from Healy limits the damage. Capsey clips her first boundary of the innings off her pads and wide of King at deep fine leg to bring up the 100 for the tourists.

27th over: England 94-5 (Jones 12, Capsey 2) King keeps tossing the ball up but both batters refuse to take the bait. Jones cuts a single off the one delivery in the over that falls shorter. King has 2 for 17 from six overs, so still a while to go if England are hoping to just see off the leg-spinner.

26th over: England 93-5 (Jones 11, Capsey 2) Sutherland is thrown the ball as Australia can rely on their bowling depth and variety to turn the screw on England. Still no Tahlia McGrath though, even as the all-rounder has been batting at No 7. Jones picks up a couple of singles including one from a ripping yorker that almost sneaks under the bat.

25th over: England 90-5 (Jones 9, Capsey 1) A high risk high reward shot from Jones under the circumstances as King gives the ball plenty of flight and the England keeper sweeps away. A feather touch takes the ball to the fine leg boundary. Jones picks up another run with a nudge to cover.

24th over: England 85-5 (Jones 4, Capsey 1) A maiden from Gardner to Capsey as England have plenty of overs up their sleeve with 96 runs still to get but the concern suddenly the number of wickets they have in hand after losing 3 for 16.

23rd over: England 85-5 (Jones 4, Capsey 1) King has helped to turn this match with some masterful leg-spin that has pulled the rug out from under the England chase that had looked so promising at the drinks break. Two new batters at the crease and the England tail are now within Australia’s sights.

22nd over: England 82-4 (Sciver-Brunt 33, Jones 4) England are within 100 runs of their target as Jones clips a fuller delivery from Gardner through the leg-side. Garth chases hard to save a run.

21st over: England 78-4 (Sciver-Brunt 32, Jones 1) England are taking few risks with King in such blistering form with the ball. Sciver-Brunt finds an early single to deep point, while Jones finally gets off the mark with a cut to the same region. Australia have lifted in the field as they smell fresh blood.

20th over: England 76-4 (Sciver-Brunt 31, Jones 0) Sciver-Brunt drives away but takes a few balls to find a gap for a single off Gardner. Jones is stuck too much on her back foot and is still to get off the mark after facing eight deliveries.

19th over: England 75-4 (Sciver-Brunt 30, Jones 0) King almost bowls Jones with an identical delivery to the one that dismissed Wyatt-Hodge. This time there is a touch too much turn and the ball flies narrowly wide of the off-stump. Just as it did in Australia’s innings, spin is causing England all sorts of trouble at the Junction Oval.

18th over: England 74-4 (Sciver-Brunt 29, Jones 0) Gardner continues to Sciver-Brunt and tries to tempt the England batter with better of flight. But England will need to rebuild now as Sciver-Brunt only takes a single from a well-timed dab through mid-off.

15th over: England 66-2 (Knight 17, Sciver-Brunt 22) Brown has Sciver-Brunt on the back foot until an attempted yorker strays a touch too close to the batter’s feet and is stylishly clipped to the leg-side. Perry races around the boundary but pulls up short when realising she can’t prevent the boundary. That’s drinks. And time for Australia to reevaluate their plans.

14th over: England 62-2 (Knight 17, Sciver-Brunt 18) A less threatening over from Ash Gardner allows England to pick up four singles without any risk. Alana King can’t be too far away with Australia starting to look desperate for a breakthrough as the sun belts down in St Kilda.

13th over: England 58-2 (Knight 15, Sciver-Brunt 16) Darcie Brown continues and keeps the ball pitched up and just outside the off-stump. Sciver-Brunt finds a single from a straighter delivery and Knight adds one as she cuts with soft hands.

12th over: England 56-2 (Knight 14, Sciver-Brunt 15) Australia call on Ash Gardner after the off-spinner did much of the damage to the England batting line-up in the first ODI. Little luck to start at the Junction Oval though, as Sciver-Brunt steps back to smack a square drive to the rope. Lovely shot!

11th over: England 50-2 (Knight 13, Sciver-Brunt 10) England bring up their fifty for the loss of only two wickets as their most experienced pair take command of the chase. Darcie Brown comes into the attack as Australia turn to pace in search of a much-needed wicket. Sciver-Brunt cracks a fuller ball straight back past the bowler for four as England need another 131 runs to tie the series.

10th over: England 43-2 (Knight 12, Sciver-Brunt 6) Garth continues but Knight dispatches a fuller delivery through square leg to the rope to start the over. Healy comes up to the stumps to pile more pressure on the England batters as Knight defends resolutely from her crease.

9th over: England 38-2 (Knight 7, Sciver-Brunt 6) Sciver-Brunt can’t find a way through the infield sa Sutherland works away at a tidy line outside off. That’s until the bowler pitches one a touch short and Sciver-Brunt punishes her with a back-foot drive to the boundary. That’s one of the better shots of the England innings so far.

8th over: England 34-2 (Knight 7, Sciver-Brunt 2) Garth is proving a real handful for the England batters and - twice! - almost sends Sciver-Brunt on her way. The first opportunity has Sciver-Brunt pushing at a straight delivery outside off that lands short of second slip. The next is a cracking delivery as Garth angles the ball into the batter. If anything, that one has done too much. Garth has 2 for 11 from her four overs and surely Healy keeps her going with more wickets needed to drag Australia back into the contest.

This match feels evenly poised after a couple of England wickets but John Starbuck likes what he sees.

“It looks like England have at least given themselves a chance. Good news for such as me, following the excellent OBO because my medical condition means I cannot sleep. Well done.”

Thanks John, hope you’re doing well.

7th over: England 33-2 (Knight 7, Sciver-Brunt 1) DROP! Annabel Sutherland comes into the attack to bowl to Knight and almost strikes immediately. But that was a half-chance at best. Beth Mooney at second slips dives high and to her right, gets a decent hand to the ball but is unable to drag it in. The ball races away to the rope but Australia can’t have too many complaints with that one.

5th over: England 27-1 (Bouchier 17, Knight 2) Bouchier starts to open up at anything away from her body. SIX! A shorter delivery is pulled over the deep square leg and beyond the rope, and on the other side a blazing swipe sends the ball over gully for a boundary.

4th over: England 15-1 (Bouchier 7, Knight 2) Garth works away outside Knight’s off-stump with the England skipper happy to leave anything too wide to worry about. Knight clips to mid-wicket for a couple without any risk.

3rd over: England 13-1 (Bouchier 7, Knight 0) Schutt continues to keep Bouchier playing cautiously with Healy up at the stumps as the England opener plays and misses at a couple. Bouchier can’t be held back for too long though as the aggressive right-hander dances down the pitch and pulls a shorter delivery over mid-wicket.

2nd over: England 8-1 (Bouchier 3, Knight 0) After a couple of wide balls Garth straightens up and has the ball swinging around. Beaumont is almost caught at point after trying to use the movement back into her to nudge the ball to the on-side, then is out later in the over when trapped dead in front from much the same delivery.

1st over: England 2-0 (Bouchier 2, Beaumont 0) Megan Schutt finds her line outside off and just back of a length as the usually assertive Maia Bouchier starts watchfully. A swipe narrowly misses the edge before the opener dabs a square drive almost to the rope to get the chase underway.

Thanks James and dare I say thanks to England and their spin twins for breathing life into the Women’s Ashes just as Australia looked set to put together an ominous total at the Junction Oval that might net them two more points and a 4-0 lead in the series.

But after Alyssa Healy (29), Phoebe Litchfield (29) and Ellyse Perry (60) led the way to propel Australia to 131 for two in just the 24th over, Sophie Ecclestone (4 for 35) and Alice Capsey (3 for 22) sparked a collapse as the hosts were skittled for 180. It is Australia’s lowest ODI total since 2009.

It was expected that the pacers would have more of an impact with a green tinge to the pitch and a grey hue in the sky, and England won’t be expecting a comfortable chase with Australia blessed with variety in their attack. Openers Tammy Beaumont and Maia Bouchier are making their way out to the middle with the Australians trailing behind and Megan Schutt with ball in hand. Let’s get into it!

Seven wickets fell to spin in the middle overs as England put the skids on Australia and then ramped up the pressure. Capsey and Ecclestone the star performers and an all round better showing in the field to boot.

Australia will be disappointed with their efforts, especially as Ellyse Perry looked set for a big one before falling LBW to Capsey for 60, the part time spinner taking three wickets in consecutive overs to tilt the game England’s way. Kudos too to Heather Knight for making the decisive bowling change.

There’s plenty in the pitch for Australia’s bowlers but England have given themselves a brilliant chance of levelling up the series. Time for a spot of lunch for the players and a meeting with the pillow for me. Martin Pegan will be here shortly to guide you through the chase. Thanks for your company and comments, ta-ra.

44th over: Australia 180-9 (Garth 9, Brown 4) Two singles off Filer as Australia eke out every run. A reminder that if England win this game then both sides will be level on 2 points apiece with four white ball games left (worth 2 points each). The pink ball Test closes out the Ashes and is worth four points, the series needs to be alive for that historic occasion at the MCG.

43rd over: Australia 178-9 (Garth 8, Brown 3) Bell can’t find the final wicket, over to Lauren Filer.

42nd over: Australia 174-9 (Garth 6, Brown 0) No five-fer for Ecclestone as Brown shuts up shop and blocks the over out. A fantastic spell though from England’s talismanic spinner, 4-35 off ten overs and her best figures against Australia.

41st over: Australia 173-8 (Garth 7, Schutt 0) Just a single off Bell, here comes Ecclestone with her last over.

40th over: Australia 172-8 (Garth 5, Schutt 0) Megan Schutt arrives in the middle and Australia still have ten overs left to bat, when was the last time that happened, if ever? It’s a wicket maiden for Ecclestone who now has 3-34 off nine overs. The ponytailed assassin.

39th over: Australia 174-7 (King 13, Garth 5) Alice Capsey’s potentially match tilting spell comes to an end as Lauren Bell is reintroduced. Bell is on the button and there are just two singles off the over, King and Garth looking to get themselves in and use up the overs. They obviously don’t give a fig about a potential earlier bedtime for your flagging OBO scribe. Such a cruel world.

38th over: Australia 170-7 (King 12, Garth 4) Here’s Sophie Ecclestone. She has three overs up her sleeve and stitches together five dots to Alana King. Make that six, it’s a maiden.

37th over: Australia 170-7 (King 12, Garth 4) Capsey continues and gets in and out of the over for just two singles. She has 3-22 off seven overs. England will be hoping she transfers some of this confidence over into her batting.

36th over: Australia 168-7 (King 11, Garth 3) Filer loses her grip of the ball this time and sends down a dangerous beamer to King. She gets a warning from the umpire, another one of those and she’s done for the day with the ball. King can’t get anything on the free hit that follows. Australia rebuilding, if they can get up and past 200 then they are right back in this game, there’s plenty in this pitch and they have the bowlers to exploit it. England dearly want to get these last three wickets cheaply and keep the chase as low as possible.

35th over: Australia 164-7 (King 9, Garth 2) Knight keeps Capsey going, I wonder if she’s tempted to bring Ecclestone back to try and shoot out the final three wickets. Four off the over as King and Garth rotate strike.

34th over: Australia 160-7 (King 6, Garth 1) Lauren Filer is giving it her all out there, she steams in and hits the deck three times in her follow through, resembling fellow pace merchant Mark Wood as her forward momentum throws her off her feet. Three off the over as England look to blow away Australia’s lower order.

33rd over: Australia 157-7 (King 5, Garth 0) Capsey nearly has her third maiden on the bounce but then drops one short and Alana King doesn’t miss out, flaying away for four through point. King and Garth are both aggressive batters who like to get bat on ball and find the boundary, their side need them right now with 17 overs left in the innings.

32nd over: Australia 153-7 (King 1, Garth 0) Kim Garth and Alana King are at the crease, Australia have lost five wickets for 22 runs.

30th over: Australia 150-5 (Gardner 1, McGrath 0) 150 up for Australia but their nose is bloodied. Ecclestone’s seventh over disappears in a flash for just one Ash Gardner single.

29th over: Australia 149-5 (Gardner 1, McGrath 0) Tahlia McGrath joins Gardner. England can suddenly dare to dream of restricting Australia to less than 250. Capsey finishes with a dot to make it a wicket maiden.

28th over: Australia 149-4 (Perry 60, Gardner 1) Ecclestone nearly snares Gardner, the batter looks to be aggressive and attempts a booming drive, dragging her back foot out of the crease in the process. Amy Jones whips off the bails and vociferously appeals. Close! The replays show Gardner just managed to get her foot back in time.

27th over: Australia 146-4 (Perry 58, Gardner 0) Crucial passage of play right now, Ash Gardner joins Perry in the middle.

26th over: Australia 142-3 (Perry 56, Sutherland 9) Ecclestone gets in and out of her fifth over for the cost of just two runs. England still thinking about the catch no doubt, Sutherland is such a dangerous player, if they had pocketed her there then the visitors would have been on top for the first time in the series.

25th over: Australia 140-3 (Perry 55, Sutherland 8) DROP! Alice Capsey comes on to bowl and shells a chance off her first ball! Surtherland bunted a ball back just above head height but the chance caught Capsey off her guard and she snatched at it. That’s a big moment!

Sutherland shrugs it off and plays a perfectly checked drive over mid-off for SIX. That will not make Capsey feel any better, neither will the memory of dropping a dolly in Sydney, England can’t afford to gift lives to this stellar Aussie batting line up.

24th over: Australia 132-3 (Perry 54, Sutherland 1) Annabel Sutherland is the new batter, Ecclestone has a slip in place and finishes the over with a full ball that the new batter drives for a single. England have a sniff.

23rd over: Australia 127-2 (Perry 52, Mooney 10) Sublime batting from Ellyse Perry! She whips Charlie Dean through midwicket for four and then launches an off drive off the next ball to make it consecutive boundaries and bring up her FIFTY. She’s not even halfway to making her average* on this ground.

*103 runs, as you’re asking. I know.

22nd over: Australia 117-2 (Perry 43, Mooney 9) Ellyse Perry uses her feet and lofts Ecclestone back over her head for SIX! That’s some shot, especially off Ecclestone. The Aussies looked to attack the left-arm spinner in the first game and that looks to be the tactic again, they do not want to let her wheel away, join the dots and build pressure.

Ooooft! Nearly a run out as Perry drops into the off side and Mooney comes for the single, Perry hesitates briefly before committing and it would have cost her had Wyatt-Hodge’s throw hit the stumps rather than ricocheting off her bat as she stretched for her ground.

21st over: Australia 108-2 (Perry 35, Mooney 8) Charlie Dean has found her groove, landing the ball on a postage stamp and not giving any width, just two runs off the over.

20th over: Australia 106-2 (Perry 34, Mooney 7) Ecclestone and Mooney size each other up, four dot balls to the bowler and a wrist-snapping cover drive for four by the batter. Proper criggit.

19th over: Australia 100-2 (Perry 34, Mooney 2) Knight brings in a slip to Mooney, I like that intent from the England skipper, her side need to keep taking wickets, the Aussie batting card is longer than a lemur’s tale. Mooney likes to go back and punch through the off side so it’s a good ploy to have a catcher in. Nice over from Dean, just two singles off it and the hundred up for Australia.

18th over: Australia 98-2 (Perry 33, Mooney 1) Ecclestone roared with delight when she bagged the wicket and she roars with something approaching disgust as she bowls too full to Perry who drives through the covers, Maia Bouchier then dives over the ball and it skims away to the fence. The middle overs tussle begins!

17th over: Australia 90-1 (Litchfield 27, Perry 28) Ellyse Perry opens the shoulders, dancing down the wicket and lofting Charlie Dean over long-on for SIX! Sweetly struck, Perry laps Litchfield in the runs and the partnership approaches fifty. Sophie Ecclestone is warming up, England need their star bowler to step up.

16th over: Australia 82-1 (Litchfield 26, Perry 21) Sciver-Brunt is accurate, landing it on a length outside off stump, just three singles eked off the over.

15th over: Australia 79-1 (Litchfield 25, Perry 19) Nicely done from Litchfield as she gets the reverse-ramp out to Charlie Dean and nails it for four.

Talking of ominous. I’ve just heard my toddler mee-maw from the next room. This OBO could be about to get a guest ‘star’. Sleep eh, who needs it… erm EVERYONE.

PleasePleasePleaseLetMeLetMeLetMe… get through this shift unscathed.

14th over: Australia 73-1 (Litchfield 20, Perry 18) Knight brings in a silly mid-off for Litchfield who is struggling to time the ball. Australia take four from the over and that’ll be drinks. Electrolytes, get your Electrolytes!

Silly mid-off eh? The mind wanders back to this…

13th over: Australia 69-1 (Litchfield 17, Perry 17) Bosh! Filer whangs down another short ball but Perry is onto it in a flash, carving over point for four runs. Perry has started very well, ominous signs for England.

12th over: Australia 62-1 (Litchfield 16, Perry 11) Five runs off Sciver-Brunt, Perry picks off a couple of twos into the leg side and nabs the strike off the last ball with a single in the same area.

11th over: Australia 57-1 (Litchfield 16, Perry 6) Filer returns and bangs a few in short, Perry looks uncomfortable to one that bounces sharply and takes her glove but it lands short of slip. Both batters are watchful and use soft hands to drop into the gaps and rotate strike, four singles off the over.

10th over: Australia 53-1 (Litchfield 14, Perry 4) Litchfield picks up her second boundary by driving Sciver-Brunt down the ground. Australia bring up fifty in the tenth over.

9th over: Australia 48-1 (Litchfield 9, Perry 4) Lauren Bell is finding a nice bit of shape out there, she jags one away that Perry inside edges onto her pad. Shot! There’s the class of Perry though, puts the last ball out of her mind and then stands tall to punch through point off the back foot, opening her account with a boundary.

Here comes Ellyse Perry with her ABOVE ONE HUNDRED AVERAGE ON THIS GROUND.

8th over: Australia 43-0 (Litchfield 9, Healy 29) Nat Sciver-Brunt replaces Filer and is greeted by a lighting handed Healy who pulls her first delivery away for four! Three further singles make it seven off NSB’s first over. England need a breakthrough…

7th over: Australia 36-0 (Litchfield 8, Healy 23) Healy nearly drags on first ball with a waft outside off stump, it runs away for a single and brings Litchfield on strike. Suddenly the Aussie openers look in a bit of strife! Litchfield nearly chops on herself and then there is huge appeal for a caught behind but the umpire rightly says no and England, rightly, don’t review. Just the one run off the over.

6th over: Australia 35-0 (Litchfield 8, Healy 22) Litchfield has struggled to time the ball so far, especially in comparison to the positively purring Healy, but she does get a pull shot away off Filer to notch up her first boundary. England haven’t looked that threatening so far, the sun is fully out and the wicket is getting more biscuit coloured by the minute.

“I’m checking in from Salvador, Bahia in NE Brazil, the cradle of capoeira!” says Cressida Evans. “Where, sadly everyone thinks cricket is an offshoot of baseball. Never mind, come on girls!”

The cradle of capoeira indeed! We’ll do well to beat that Cressida.

5th over: Australia 30-0 (Litchfield 4, Healy 21) A tighter over from Bell, dot balls keep Litchfield tied down and the opener attempts a risky trot down and loft over the top, the ball lands over the infield and plugs, the batters come back for two runs.

4th over: Australia 28-0 (Litchfield 2, Healy 21) Filer looks more settled after the ground has been sawdusted and hamered at her end, a decent over is blotted by a half volley at the last, Healy pings it away in front of square for four. Sublime batting from the Aussie captain.

3rd over: Australia 23-0 (Litchfield 1, Healy 17) Another good over for Australia as Healy check drives Bell down the ground for four. The Aussie skipper is in fine fettle. Bell gives away another couple of wides down the leg side and Litchfield gets off the mark with a squeeze to square leg off a decent yorker.

2nd over: Australia 15-0 (Litchfield 0, Healy 12) Alyssa Healy is off to a flier! She pulls Filer’s first ball away over midwicket for four and follows up next ball by crunching the over correction half volley away through the covers for four more. Filer is having some trouble with her landing foot and the ground staff are summoned to do some earth pummelling. Filer’s first ball back is driven for another four by Healy!

The England seamer does not look happy, I think she feels the earth is moving under her feet, and not in a Carole King kinda way.

Lauren Filer will share the new ball.

Andy Roberts is off something of a long run (aptly given his name) in the emails.

“Hey James, Andy in FNQ listening along and loving the early start - cricket underway at 9am is a great start to the day! Looking forward to Healy and co. dominating again, feel they have just a bit too much class across the board for England (or anyone else really). HOWEVER...”

(here it comes… gulp)

“I have a bit of a gripe. I love the Guardian OBO coverage, but am frustrated that for cricket in Australia the Guardian consistently displays the score the wrong way around. If I am watching cricket played in Australia, on a Guardian Australian edition page, the wickets really should be BEFORE the runs. I understand that for cricket in England or elsewhere the reverse is true, but this is match is being played in AUSTRALIA and I access the OBO via The Guardian AUSTRALIAN edition. I hope I can count on you to encourage the editors to make the appropriate changes.”

I sort of see what you are saying Andy but my brain, heart, hell, my soul, just won’t allow me to do it the Antipodean way. Talk about an old dog and new tricks, I can barely get myself into matching socks these days man! `Next you’ll be asking me to catch with my hands facing upwards and start drinking beer out of miniscule receptacles… Just kidding cobbah.

There undoubtedly is a reason why we do it this way, to keep it uniform and all that most likely. The Guardian big dog editors will of course all be reading this right now as they discuss my inevitable and hefty pay rise so maybe one of them will be in touch.

1st over: Australia 2-0 (Litchfield 0, Healy 0) Lauren Bell starts for England with the ball. She bowled well in the first game but shows some signs of nerves early on by spearing a couple down the leg side to give the umpire an early arm stretch.

Bell is into her groove soon enough though, the rest of the over is full as the tall seamer goes in search of some early swing, she’ll have to find it pronto, the sun is starting to burn through in Melbourne. Litchfield defends and it’s just two runs off the first over.

Ben Mimmack is an early contender in the OBO mailbag:

“It’s probably not very interesting, seeing as almost everyone in the US seems to be moving here these days, but I’m following from Dallas, TX. It is far-flung from both the UK and Aus though and still a bit snowy from the winter storm we had last week. Cheers!”

Great to have you on board Ben. I was going to call you ‘cowboy’ then but thought better of it.

The players are coming out as I type – yeehaw!

The weather is a bit overcast in Melbourne which gladdens my heart under a black treacle skied Blighty. More importantly it’ll provide some decent conditions for both Laurens Bell and Filer to make early inroads with the shiny white Kookaburra.

Time to make a pre-play coffee, we’re about 15 minutes away from the first ball. Let us know where you are tuning in from, furthest flung/most interesting location gets an as yet undisclosed prize*.

*OBO infamy not good enough for you eh? Eh?

The ECB have issued a quick update on Kate Cross, it appears she is still not quite fully fit, I’m sure we’ll see her make an appearance in the series before too long.

“Kate Cross has remained in Sydney to train and continue her return to play.”

Both captains mention they want their sides to be more “ruthless” and “clinical” in today’s match. Australia have never lost at the Junction Oval, a fact that Alyssa Healy wasn’t aware of as she was informed at the toss, “thanks for the good vibes before we start” she grins.

On the flip side, England have won the last seven matches in which they have chased… game on!

Both teams are unchanged from Sydney:

Australia 1 Alyssa Healy (c & wk), 2 Phoebe Litchfield, 3 Ellyse Perry, 4 Beth Mooney, 5 Annabel Sutherland, 6 Ashleigh Gardner, 7 Tahlia McGrath, 8 Alana King, 9 Kim Garth, 10 Megan Schutt, 11 Darcie Brown

England 1 Tammy Beaumont, 2 Maia Bouchier, 3 Heather Knight (c), 4 Nat Sciver-Brunt, 5 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 6 Amy Jones (wk), 7 Alice Capsey, 8 Charlie Dean, 9 Sophie Ecclestone, 10 Lauren Filer, 11 Lauren Bell

The men’s Ashes is a long way off in traditional months and weeks notation. Talking about it at this distance is a breach of protocol, a red flag, signal for a weary roll of the eyes. It’s Big Three pandering, disrespectful to more marginalised nations, a diminishing of the contests in between.

It also involves reaching rudely across the Women’s Ashes, which kicked off over the weekend in Sydney, all set to be a genuinely fascinating spectacle. Australia have the numbers, the stars and the endless all-rounders. England have depth, reliable medium pace, dogged spin, and the quickest bowler in Lauren Filer, who was genuinely challenging in South Africa, but struggled to plant her feet during a rain-addled warmup this past week.”

Some pre toss reading for your delectation: