Australia faces a resilient Ashes fightback

England women’s team coach Jon Lewis shared how artificial intelligence (AI) played a crucial role in their success during the Ashes this summer. Thanks to AI company PSi, which ran numerous match simulations, the team was able to celebrate victories in both the One Widow and Twenty 20 cricket series. Lewis, who is now based in London, explained that the simulations provided valuable insights and data for the players in different scenarios. He first encountered this technology while coaching the UP Warriorz team. Lewis stated that they can now analyze the strengths and weaknesses of different teams, helping them make informed decisions about their lineups. They can send their cricket lineup to PSi, which runs millions of simulations per team and throughout the game. Lewis believes that this practice is common among franchise clubs worldwide. He was inspired to introduce it to the England women’s cricket team after discussing it with Steve Borthwick, the coach of England’s men’s rugby union team. Other teams, such as the Wigan Warriors rugby league team and Wigan Athletic Football Club, also use this technology. However, Lewis emphasized that AI is not the sole factor in their team selection process. While it proved useful during the Ashes, they also consider other factors. One challenge they face is the lack of comprehensive historical data about women’s cricket. Nevertheless, Lewis is confident that as more competitions are played at the franchise and international levels, better data will become available. The team’s focus is on playing well and using AI as a tool to enhance their performance. Overall, they are pleased with the positive outcome of their collaboration with PSi during the match against Australia last season.