England captain Heather Knight sets sights on landmark summer of Ashes cricket

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Heather Knight is setting her sights on a landmark summer of Ashes cricket, after joining fellow England captain Ben Stokes on a Tower Bridge projection.

Giant images of Knight and Stokes were beamed on to one of London’s best known sights on Wednesday as part of the countdown to the men’s and women’s series against Australia.

Stars of the Lionesses football team adorned famous locations including the Royal Opera House, the National Portrait Gallery and Battersea Power Station ahead of last year’s European Championship and Knight is hoping to echo their triumphant performance.

Tickets sales for the women’s series have already passed a combined 70,000 – doubling the overall attendance in 2019 and guaranteeing record attendances – and an England win over a formidable Australia side could go a long way to lifting the status of Knight’s side to new levels.

“I remember seeing the Lionesses on London landmarks ahead of the Euros last year and thinking that was very, very cool – so it’s really nice to be a part of it this summer. It’s not every day of the week that you see yourself projected on to Tower Bridge!” Knight told the PA news agency.

“When I made my England debut in India in 2010 it was in front of one man and his dog. I was a student and I literally had to tell my tutor I’d be gone for a month. It’s changed so much since then.

“The girls who are making their England debuts now are in a totally different world and this summer we’re looking at grounds like Edgbaston, The Kia Oval and Lord’s and some of them could be nearly full.

“Like Leah Williamson and her team last year, it would be nice to think that we’ve brought a few people into the game this summer.

“I’m really proud of how far cricket has come. We’ve got more distance to go but this is a huge year for women’s cricket and hopefully the scale of the Women’s Ashes will help inspire a few more girls to come and watch us.

“Like the Lionesses last summer, I think we have the chance to bring a lot of people with us.”