I guess it's some sort of comfort to know that we didn't play our best and still only lost by three runs: Alyssa Healy

Australia succumbed to their first defeat in the ongoing Women's Ashes 2023 after a thrilling encounter at The Oval. Australian skipper Alyssa Healy reflected on her side's loss, admitting that the visitors were a bit lacking in all departments and eventually paid the price for it. 

A record crowd of nearly 20,328 odd people in London witnessed England get off the mark in the iconic series after posting 186 runs on the board, the second-highest total conceded by the Aussies in the format. Despite a stiff tally on the board, the visitors made a match of it, thanks to star all-rounder Ellyse Perry's belligerence. 

Despite being second best for much of the game, Australia fell short by just three runs in London, handing England their first points of the series. While stand-in skipper Alyssa Healy was quick to highlight her side's shortcomings in the contest, she is confident of getting back to winning ways in the final T20I of the series at the iconic Lord's.

"It felt like we were slightly off in every facet of the game again - and we mentioned that after the last game - but we were probably a little bit worse again tonight. I guess it's some sort of comfort to know that we didn't play our best and still only lost by four runs. We'll just pinpoint it over the next day and a half, and hopefully put it all together for Lord's," Healy said after Australia's narrow loss.

The reigning T20 World Champions rarely finish on the losing side but their stand-in skipper Alyssa Healy feels that the team are allowed to lose a game every now and then as it serves as a learning curve for the players. They are leading the series six points to two and will be hoping to further solidify their tally ahead of the three-match ODI series. 

"We're allowed to lose games of cricket. England also came out at the start of the series and said this is their strongest format. So you've got to potentially think they're going to challenge you at some point, and they did tonight. It's the game of cricket. You win some, you lose some. Fortunately for us, we haven't lost a lot. But in saying that, hopefully we learn a lot more out of the loss tonight," she added.