Women's Ashes teams excited for MCG Test opportunity

Australia and England are thrilled with the opportunity to play a women's Test at the MCG, even if the crowds don't pack out the stadium immediately.

The Ashes will conclude with a historic pink-ball match, starting on Thursday, in the first women's Test at the MCG since 1949.

Cricket Australia has been reluctant to publicly announce a crowd target, but did everything they could to promote the match.

Having watched husband Mitchell Starc perform in front of packed crowds, Australia captain Alyssa Healy is eager to be involved at the MCG.

It will be Australia's first appearance at the MCG since they famously won the T20 Women's World Cup final in front of 86,174 fans in March 2020.

"I've sat here every year, every Boxing Day, watching Mitch run out and thinking what a cool opportunity that would be," Healy said.

"The Melbourne sporting fans, but not just Melbourne, Australian sporting fans seem to all want to get behind it.

"I think it's going to be great atmosphere and hopefully people just turn up and want to watch."

England are facing an unprecedented 16-0 points whitewash in the multi-format series.

Captain Heather Knight is hoping the lure of playing at the MCG can spark her team into action.

"In Australia, there aren't that many of the medium-sized grounds that we have in England, those sort of the 20,000 grounds," she said.

"There's not a huge amount of those (in Australia), probably apart from Hobart and Canberra, you've got your massive stadiums or your slightly smaller venues.

"But the chance to play a Test match at the MCG, it's just iconic.

"We'd much rather do that and then have the ambition in the future to continue to grow the crowds and bring people in.

"The chance to play a Test match at the MCG is certainly one that I wouldn't turn down."