The England-Australia rivalry is as fierce as it has ever been – and the Lionesses have copped an early salvo ahead of their World Cup semi-final showdown with the Matildas.
Pat Cummins has some advice for England Lioness goalkeeper Mary Earps.
“Stay on your line.”
Just weeks after the Jonny Bairstow stumping controversy blew up in the Ashes, another flashpoint in the Australia-England rivalry beckons on Wednesday night with the stakes rising even higher for the women’s World Cup semi-final.
When an English journo cheekily asked the Test skipper at a CA sponsorship announcement on Tuesday whether it was time for England to stay in their crease against the Matildas, Cummins’ was only too happy to climb in on the banter.
“Yeah, play by the rules. I agree,” Cummins said, before complimenting the journo on the creativity of linking Earps to Bairstow and the spirit of cricket brouhaha.
“It is in terms of my career (the rivalry between Australia and England is) as strong as I can remember. People go on Instagram and Facebook or WhatsApp and seem to be pestering English or Aussie mates all the time.
“It seems like the banter is at all time high levels that I’ve ever experienced.”
Fellow Test star David Warner took it one step further, tweeting a cheeky sledge at the English team that referenced one of the most contentious calls in the fifth Ashes Test.
“An early good luck to the @TheMatildas Just keep an eye out in case the Poms ask to change the ball (laughing emojis) @TheBarmyArmy”
It’s hard to argue with Cummins that the velocity of sport’s greatest rivalry has gone to another level over recent months, following the Ashes, the Netball World Cup final and now the football World Cup showdown to end all showdowns.
Few can understand as well as Cummins’ what goes on the line for the Matildas on Wednesday night.
A first-ever appearance in a World Cup semi-final is big enough, but for it to be against England adds another layer.
Cummins admits that for Australian athletes – winning or losing against England in the big contests is career defining, no matter what the sport.
“Yeah, it does seem to be that way. The big ones like rugby, cricket, league, soccer now, netball, Australia and England seem to be two of the top teams competing at the top level and have that oldest history when it comes to sports,” Cummins said.
“There’s nothing more satisfying as an Aussie than getting one up on your English mates.”
Following the Ashes, Cummins has only just arrived back from a family holiday in Europe to appear at a Cricket Australia sponsorship announcement on Tuesday with digital technology company HCL Tech.
But even in mid-air, Cummins didn’t miss out on the extraordinary tension that was the Matildas’ quarter-final penalty shootout triumph over France.
“I watched it on a flight and fortunately they had it,” Cummins said.
“I was there with my headphones on cheering, cheering on. I was nervous. We were flying somewhere over Europe and I was screaming out.
“About 50 per cent of the people I could see sitting near me were watching it.”
Australian women’s cricket captain Alyssa Healy was part of sporting history at the MCG in 2020, when 86,174 fans packed into the MCG for the women’s T20 World Cup final.
That watermark for women’s sports attendance would be beaten if the FIFA World Cup finals were being staged at the MCG, but the slightly smaller 83,500 capacity of Stadium Australia in Sydney will see the cricketers hold onto their record.
But Healy isn’t protective over it and is relishing the explosion of women’s sport across the board.
“I think the competition is awesome. If they break the record then it makes us think about what we’re going to do next. I’d happily hand over that record if it’s going to drive cricket to do something new,” Healy said.
“It’s really cool. I reflect on my golf club at home actually and what it’s done within that. There’s a population there that didn’t really watch a lot of women’s sport when we (Healy and husband Mitchell Starc) first joined the club and I was there on Saturday when the club was (overcome) with the people watching the Matildas game after a round of golf.
“I just look at that and how much it’s grown and continues to drive sport.
“It’s really exciting and the Matildas are definitely the talk of the country at the moment and we’re really proud of that.”