The Women's Ashes Explained

A rivalry as old as the men's game

The Women's Ashes is the contest between England Women and Australia Women, mirroring one of sport's oldest rivalries. The women's version began in 1934–35, just over 50 years after the men's Ashes started in 1882. Like its male counterpart, the Women's Ashes is contested alternately in Australia and England, and it holds the highest prestige in women's international cricket outside of a World Cup.

The multi-format points system

Since 2013, the Women's Ashes has used a combined multi-format points system that allocates a fixed pool of points across a one-off Test match, three ODIs, and three T20 Internationals. The Test is worth up to eight points (4 for a win, 2 each for a draw). Each ODI and T20I is worth two points (2 for a win, 1 each for a tie or no result). The series total is 24 points; the team with the most points at the end retains or reclaims the Ashes. If points are equal, the holder retains.

Australia's dominance

Australia Women have dominated the Women's Ashes in recent decades, winning consecutive multi-format series from 2015 through to the 2020s. The Southern Stars — led by players like Ellyse Perry, Meg Lanning, and Alyssa Healy — have built one of the most complete women's cricket squads ever assembled. England's most recent Ashes win came in 2005 and 2008, though close multi-format series in 2019 and 2023 (which England drew on points, retaining the Ashes) showed the gap narrowing.

Why the Women's Ashes matters

The Women's Ashes drives the highest attendances and broadcast audiences in women's cricket outside World Cups. The 2023 Ashes Test at Trent Bridge drew a sell-out crowd and was broadcast live on the BBC — the first women's Test to receive such coverage in the United Kingdom in decades. The series has been instrumental in the growth of women's professional cricket in both countries, with the launch of the Women's Big Bash League in Australia and The Hundred in England partly fuelled by Ashes interest.