‘We weren't able to break the shackles’ – Heather Knight

The final didn’t go to plan at all, Australia winning convincingly by eight wickets to leave Knight and her team disappointed, but the ICC Women’s World Cup 2017-winning captain was ready to admit that England “probably didn't play our best cricket tonight”.

“We just kept losing momentum in the innings, I guess, with those wickets. Never really got the big partnership together that's going to push us on,” she said of the batting effort, which ended at 105 with only two players – Danni Wyatt and Knight herself – getting into double digits.

“I'm definitely proud of how the girls performed. Proud that we made it to another final. We came in with a very inexperienced side, and some of those players that came in – like Sophia Dunkley, Kirstie Gordon – have stepped up and performed outstandingly.

“It's obviously moving forward a real positive for us, but it's raw at the moment. We've got to get back home and reflect on where we go potentially as a side.”

Did England believe at the halfway stage that they stood a chance despite just 105 runs on the board?

“You have to. You have to believe that you are still in the game and you've got a chance. And the girls fought so hard all tournament, so we knew that wasn't going to be the issue, but we needed early wickets to put pressure on them,” said Knight. England did send back Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney early, but that’s as good as it got for them.

“I think when you lose a game that convincingly, it's not as hard to take. I think we were completely outplayed today. We know we didn't bring our best game,” pointed out Knight.

“But we've got to take the good things that we have from this tournament. I couldn't be more proud of how the girls have fought, the character we've shown. But we didn't have enough on the pitch today to make it there. But we'll let it sink in a little bit, reflect and then make a plan moving forward.”