BIG NEWS this morning - Australia's influential Head Coach Cathryn Fitzpatrick has shockingly quit the role just months before the Women's Ashes in England.
Fitzpatrick was a giant of the game as a player; and as a coach is rightly credited with being a massive part of why the Southern Stars currently hold both World Cups - e,g. it was Fitz's fielding strategies, as much as the slow pitch, which strangled England in the last World T20 Final in Bangladesh.
But having announced that Fitzpatrick will not be renewing her contract in May, Australia will have to go into the Women's Ashes with a new and inexperienced coach; while on an individual level, players like Lanning and Cameron will have to face-up to life without their mentor. It will be a bigger challenge for them than they probably realise; and hands England a wildcard advantage in an Ashes Series which is set to be a test of nerve and steel as much as cricketing ability.
EDIT: The last WWT20 was in Bangladesh, not Sri Lanka!
It's a curveball which gives England a bit of a psychological advantage! Can't wait for this series to start.
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