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Captain's knock silences critics

Rachael Haynes put to bed any question she should be in the starting XI as skipper in place of injured captain Meg Lanning with a career-best knock

What a knock that was by Rachael Haynes.

It was a career-best knock, an unbeaten 89 from 56 balls with nine fours and three huge sixes.

It was critic-silencing knock, an innings that put to bed any question she should be in the starting XI as skipper in place of injured captain Meg Lanning.

And most importantly it was a match-winning knock, a score that propelled Australia’s innings from 3-202 at the end of the 40th over to 6-296 10 overs later, a total England came nowhere near.

Her elevation from the sidelines to the captaincy shocked many, and rightly so as it rarely happens in cricket, but she’s now scored 197 runs in five matches since her international return in February after spending four years in the wilderness.

Australia crush England in second Ashes ODI

It’s a remarkable journey that saw Haynes almost quit cricket 12 months before earning a national recall, captaining Australia in a World Cup and now a Women’s Ashes series, and it has not been lost on the 30-year-old.

"That actually did come into my mind at one point when I was batting," Haynes said after play on Thursday night when asked if she’s reflected on her incredible ride.

"I was thinking ‘How good is this, I could be sitting behind a desk'.

"I just want to make sure I enjoy my cricket because sport is pretty fickle, you never know what’s around the corner and particularly on days like that they don’t come around sometimes as often you’d like as an individual.”

Entering the fray in the 35th over, Haynes was greeted by an England side flying high off Heather Knight’s stunning full-length catch at backward point to remove dangerous hitter Elyse Villani for a single.

Few could have predicted the fireworks that followed from the pint-sized left-hander, who crashed her first boundary from the fourth ball she faced and second against Jenny Gunn, England’s best bowler on the day with 4-55.

Knight takes a screamer to remove Villani

The space between point and the wicketkeeper was a popular target, accessed with horizontal strokes against spin and seam bowling, off the front and back foot.

Her three sixes went straight, huge hits that amazed the sprinkling of fans at Coffs Harbour International Sports Stadium, the last a textbook lofted drive that rubbed salt into the wounds having been dropped across the mid-wicket rope on 60 the ball before.

"I’ve been hitting the ball pretty well this year and I think WBBL has really helped that side of my game,"Haynes said.

"I knew I had it within me but it was nice to be able to produce it on this stage and in that moment."

Healy hammers half-century in Coffs

However, the most impressive feature of Haynes’ innings that from the last 22 balls she faced she failed to score off only one delivery.

"Particularly in that scenario you’ve got to try and score off as many balls as you can at the back-end of the innings,” she explained.

"That was my intent, just to try and do it (rotate the strike) if the ball was there for me to hit, to try to get it through or over the field.

"It was nice that it came off."

Sharp Schutt goes bang in Coffs Harbour

Now, with England one loss away from needing to run the table to avoid losing the Ashes for a second-straight series, Haynes doesn’t want to lift the foot off the throat of the tourists.

"We definitely want to roll on as much as we can here,” Haynes said.

"England are a really great team, they’re the current World Cup champions in this format so we’re not going to take anything for granted.

"And I also don’t think we’ve seen the best of them yet.

"We’ll be looking to review this game, recover really well and come out full steam ahead on Sunday."


Commonwealth Bank Women's Ashes

Australia lead England 4-0

Australia squad (ODI and Test): Rachael Haynes (C), Alex Blackwell (VC), Kristen Beams, Nicole Bolton, Lauren Cheatle, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Tahlia McGrath, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Belinda Vakarewa (Test only), Elyse Villani, Amanda-Jade Wellington.

England squad: Heather Knight (c), Tammy Beaumont, Katherine Brunt, Sophie Ecclestone, Georgia Elwiss, Jenny Gunn, Alex Hartley, Danielle Hazell, Laura Marsh, Anya Shrubsole, Sarah Taylor, Nat Sciver, Fran Wilson, Lauren Winfield, Danielle Wyatt.

Schedule


First ODI Australia won by two wickets

Second ODI Australia won by 75 runs (DLS method)

Third ODI Coffs International Stadium, October 29

Coffs Junior Cricket Association Partners: Coffs Harbour District JCA, Nambucca Bellingen JCA, and Clarence River JCA

Day-Night Test North Sydney Oval, November 9-12

First T20 North Sydney Oval, November 17

North Sydney Charity Partner: McGrath Foundation

Second T20 Manuka Oval, November 19

Third T20 Manuka Oval, November 21

Canberra Charity Partner: Lord's Taverners ACT