The women’s Ashes is being played separately from the men for the first time since the points-based system was introduced, with the last edition in 2023 considered the high-water mark in terms of on-field quality and off-field support from fans in England.

Early forecasts suggested a wash-out for Sunday’s clash, but the likelihood of rain in Sydney has lowered significantly, which should help attract a big crowd as the Australian and English teams battle it out for the first two points on offer.

The last series ended in a draw, with the points split 8-8, after Australia won the first and only Test match before losing two of three games in both the ODI and T20 components – something England captain Heather Knight said she suspected had “scarred” their opponents.

The anti-climactic feeling at the end of it, as Australia celebrated retaining the Ashes despite falling short of an outright victory, was something Healy said the team was keen to avoid – particularly on home soil.

“I don’t want to annoy anyone and talk about moral victories,” she joked.

Loading

“The way it petered out at the end [hurt]. We put a lot of work into that Test match … but England threw a few things at us [in the ODIs and T20s] we hadn’t seen before and probably took the game on a bit more and put us on the back foot.

“We’re well-prepared for that now. Leaving England, I think the girls were like, ‘We don’t want that to happen again.’ [A drawn series] is not a great feeling for both sides … we’ll hopefully get the job done outright this time.

“They are a big team, a big emotional team in that regard, and if you let them get in front, then they’re really good at staying out in front. We’re hopefully coming tomorrow throwing the first punch and saying good luck catching us. If we can just manage our emotions and manage our bodies in particular, I think we’ll go a long way to winning this.”

Healy is one of Australia’s most-decorated cricketers, and has won seven World Cups across all formats, but has not captained her country to a series victory in the Ashes.

With another 50-over World Cup to come in October, this year is shaping as a huge and potentially legacy-defining period for her and the team.

“It wouldn’t bother me if I was captain or not, I’d just like to win both of those things,” Healy said. “It’s obviously a big 12 months for our group … but you look at this series in isolation and it is a big one for us.”