\n<\/p>\n
Connor reaffirmed her belief in the group of players – but accepted they are still playing catch-up with Australia’s superior domestic set-up.<\/p>\n
This is despite major investment in the women’s game in recent years, such as spending \u00a319m a year on the domestic game and raising international match fees to equal their male counterparts.<\/p>\n
In Australia, professional domestic women’s cricket has existed for longer than in England. The first contracts in Australia came about in 2017, in England this was in 2020.<\/p>\n
England have not won a trophy or Ashes since the landmark 2017 World Cup win, leading to concerns progress has stalled.<\/p>\n
An inability to perform under pressure has been a recurring theme for England since the T20 World Cup semi-final defeat by South Africa in 2023.<\/p>\n
“It’s not so much about what you’re paid, but it’s about the experiences you’ve had that you then take on to an international stage,” Connor said.<\/p>\n
“I think one of the things we’re wrestling with is performance under pressure and that’s what knockout tournaments are, whether it’s a semi-final or a final or even a must-win group game.<\/p>\n
“We’ve got to work out how to fast-track that learning, because you can see it in Australia as a group. You can see that their ruthlessness, their decision making, their skill execution under pressure is at a different level, and part of that I believe comes from many of them having an eight-year career already as a professional cricketer.<\/p>\n
“I believe if we get that right, that will translate into winning key moments and key games on the biggest stages of Ashes and World Cup.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n