England's Lauren Filler: 'I don't want to hurt anyone, but it's fun to get a few helmets' | Women's Ashes
IYou don't often hear a fast bowler describe himself as a “smiley face”, especially with the Ashes series around the corner. But she is still days away from spearheading England's attack in Australia, which is exactly what 24-year-old Lauren Filer claims is her signature feature. “I was a little too giggly to be that terrible fast bowler,” she said. “In South Africa I tried to look down on someone and I laughed because I couldn't.”
Instead, her approach is to “let my bowling do the talking” – as Loud did in last month's Bloemfontein Test. On the second day, Filler unleashed two horrific spells of hostility with the new ball, which reached a speed of 78 mph and hit players on the helmet twice – a rare act of aggression in the women's game. “I don't want to hurt anyone, but it's always fun to get some helmets or gloves,” she said.
South Africa's Shabnim Ismail is the only bowler to hit 80 mph in international women's cricket, making Farrar the fastest bowler in the world ( Ismail retires in 2023). Farrar has never played in Australia before, but the hard, bouncy pitch might suit her – and England are relishing the prospect of seeing their old foes bombarded with something short.
“All the other girls loved it,” Farrar said. “Sophie Ecclestone loved watching me bowl because she said there was always something going on. Whether it was a four-wicket or a wicket or someone getting hit on the head or whatever, it was fun. I try not to get bored.
Her career was anything but. August 2022 was a low point: she had just graduated from Cardiff Metropolitan University with a degree in sports science but was struggling to score a hundred at Trent Rockets. To make matters worse, she was sacked by Tesco mid-match because she became too involved in cricket. “They sent me a letter during the Centenary and my parents opened it. I didn't find out until later because they didn't want me to know until after the cricket – they decided not to add any more pressure. Whatever. How, I was going to leave because I wanted to focus on cricket but they beat me to it.
Quick guide
Female ashes: everything you need to know
exhibit
fixtures
ODI: January 12 (Sydney), January 14 (Melbourne), January 17 (Hobart)
T20s: January 20 (Sydney), January 23 (Canberra), January 25 (Adelaide)
Testing: January 30 to February 2 (Melbourne)
points system
Two points are awarded for a win in a white-ball match, four points are awarded for a win in a Test match, and points are shared if the match is tied, drawn or abandoned. The team with the most points in the end wins. If both teams are tied on points after the Test match, defending champions Australia will retain the Ashes – as they did after an 8-8 draw in 2023.
How can I follow it?
The series will be broadcast in the UK on TNT Sports and Discovery+, with broadcast commentary available on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra or on the BBC website and BBC Sounds app, with the first game taking place on January 11 at 11.30pm GMT Start in minutes. In Australia, the show will air on Seven and 7plus and Fox Cricket and Kayo from 10:30am (AEDT) on January 12, with broadcast coverage by Fox Cricket and ABC Radio. Willow TV will air the Ashes in the US starting at 6.30pm ET or 3.30pm PST on Saturday.
What’s new this year?
This is the eighth time the Women's Ashes will be decided on a points-based basis and like the previous seven series, there will be 3 ODIs, 3 T20s and a Test. But there's a big change in the schedule: Tests will end the series for the first time. Previously, it was either scheduled at the start or played between ODIs and T20s. Since the winner of a Test match is awarded twice as many points as the winner of any other match, it can have a huge impact on the series decision – although four of the seven Tests have been drawn, no team has lost Tested and won the Ashes – so putting it at the end makes it more likely that the outcome of the series will remain unknown until the end. On the eve of this series, players from both sides have called for further modifications to the schedule for the next series in 2027, calling for three Tests to match the number of ODIs and T20s. In 2023, the ECB announced the venues for England's next two home Ashes Tests, with Headingley Stadium in 2027 and Fortis Bowl in 2031.
Was everything a bit rushed?
England manager Jon Lewis criticized the schedule, which has two games played in different cities with just one day between them. “My preference is for more space between games, and so is the player's preference,” he said. If the Test matches go ahead, the series will last 10 days over 22 days, during which the teams will fly at least 2,635 miles between the host cities. When the last Ashes match was played in England in 2023, the series lasted 27 days and the total distance between venues was 490 miles. The final series in Australia was the shortest of the seven-match series in this format, taking just 20 days but using only three venues, minimizing travel time.
Do women use the same venues as men?
Some times. The opener will be played at the 10,000-capacity North Sydney Oval instead of the SCG used for the first T20 match, with the first of Melbourne's two games set to be played at the 7,000-capacity North Sydney Oval. Junction Oval takes place. But all three venues used for next winter's men's Ashes are on the agenda, as well as those used for the previous men's series, with women's Test cricket finally returning to the MCG for the first time since 1948-49. A ground day and night test. Simon Burnton
Fortunately, Western Storm stepped up and offered her a professional contract in November. Filler has had time over the winter to reshape his action under the tutelage of England fast bowling coach Matt Mason and Somerset's Jack Brooks. At the start of the new year, England captain Heather Knight suddenly became uncomfortable when she noticed her Stormers team-mates were bowling at her at speed in the net. One thing led to another and Farrar found herself going from obscurity to bowling in front of 10,000 fans in the 2023 Trent Bridge Test that kicked off the Women's Ashes series.
Are you nervous? “I felt like I should have been really nervous, but I think because I didn't think I was going to compete and it was just a chance for me to show what I could do, there weren't a lot of expectations.” Indeed, no one expected she would be drafted — especially Australian. “They don't know who I am!” The next thing they knew, she had Ellyse Perry ducking and diving and was eventually caught at No. 99, costing her her third Test hundred.
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Farrar further established his credentials against Sri Lanka later this summer and was named Player of the One-Day International series after taking eight wickets. Although she missed out on the chance to play in the T20 World Cup in October, her international future looks secure: she signed her first England Central contract last month. She has spent the past 18 months working on improving her accuracy and avoiding the mistake of being obsessed with speed at all costs. “I look back at the Ashes Test now and I think: 'How did I get the wicket?' Because actually, I didn't bowl consistently at all,” she said. “The Sri Lanka series was good for me because it showed that it doesn't have to be all about pace.”
Still, the elusive 80 mph barrier was a carrot for the chase that she couldn't resist. “Matt Mason wants me to bat every time he sees me bowling,” she said. “At a race in South Africa he read the speed gun wrong and texted me: 'You've hit 80!' It was 119km/h and he read it 129km/h. I was The response was: “No, I didn’t. “He said, 'Are you sure?'
So could this happen during the Ashes? “Maybe. I've been faster over the past few years…” She was smiling again now – which seemed to be her red flag. Australia better watch out.
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