'We are so capable of beating the Aussies, and I think we are going to,' Sophie Ecclestone

Champion England left-arm orthodox Sophie Ecclestone is extremely proud of the way the English side fought back in the recent 50-over World Cup.

In the recent WC held in New Zealand, the then defending champions England came back admirably to qualify for the finals after losing their first three fixtures.

The Heather Knight-led unit went on to win their last 4 group games to qualify for the semi-finals, where they defeated a red-hot Proteas team.

Ecclestone, who claimed 6-38 in the semi-final, opened up about her side's fight and resilience despite a horrendous start to their campaign.

In an exclusive conversation with OneCricket, Ecclestone said:

"I think it was just that we'd get well and obviously had to win every other game, everything was frozen, and all the games were almost a knockout game. I think we did well as a group, and the credit goes to all the girls who made it to the finals and worked so hard for each other. We are proud of each other and try to give our best for each other and the team too."

England eventually came unstuck against a power-packed Australian line-up to relinquish the title in the finals.

However, Ecclestone refused to admit that Australia are far ahead of England, stressing on the fact that the first game between the two sides in the World Cup was closer than many assumed.

"I think there's a lot of people say that there is a big gap between Australia and England on paper, but if you look back at the World Cup game, our first game was against them, and we lost by ten runs, and I think it was a 300 plus game and I think it was such a close game, and it gets forgotten about if we talk about the final game, Australia obviously won that game, but Elizabeth did really well, we would have been a lot closer than everyone thought and it was a lot closer," she said.

"Yeah, I think they are a great team, but we are also a great team, so I think it's on the day if someone turns up and has a big day out there, that obviously helps, Heally had a great day out there on that final, and that surely got them the win, so it's just on the day. We are so capable of beating the Aussies, and I think we are going to!" added Ecclestone.

Australia rode on a breathtaking 138-ball 170 from Alyssa Healy to post a mammoth 356 in 50 overs in the final. And while Nat Sciver did her best courtesy of a whirlwind 148* (121), it didn't prove to be enough as the Aussies romped home by 71 runs to clinch yet another title.

Watch the whole interview here: