Southern Stars skipper Rachael Haynes says there is no slowing down the tidal wave of women's cricket and believes there will be sold-out stadiums next time Australia host the Ashes.
England won an epic finale in Canberra to ensure the series finished drawn on Tuesday but Australia retained the Ashes as the reigning champions.
The women played in front of record crowds and television audiences throughout the seven-match series and Haynes said she was blown away by the public support, before backing the women's game to keep growing.
"When I started playing we would walk into empty stadiums and maybe your mum and your dad would be in the crowd, but in this series you couldn't walk up and say hello to your family without being swamped," Haynes said.
"It's been quite overwhelming the amount of support we've received from the Australian public and it's been great to be an athlete and part of this series.
"It's been great to experience and I think it's only going to grow from here and you know there's been great momentum not only behind our team but women's sport at the moment.
"Hopefully next time we're selling out stadiums... it's a great time to be involved and there's real momentum behind our team, we've had some wonderful crowds and long may it continue... so yeah hopefully next time we're playing packed-out stadiums."
The Ashes were decided in a points-based multi-format series which included three one-day internationals, one Test match and three Twenty20 internationals.
The series finished 8-8 after England stunned Australia winning the final two T20s in the capital, but Haynes said she was happy with the format and their overall performance.
"The way it's structured at the moment is really good, it tests your skill across all three formats of the game which is a real challenge to adapt to as a player," Haynes said.
"The points system is great and it's really exciting to be part of as a player because the series is alive the whole time you're playing.
"It's been a long series and if you take that game [on Tuesday] in isolation we probably look at it a bit negatively, but we've played some really good cricket throughout the series, it was just disappointing to finish on that note."
Haynes said the team was taking the series as a win and that it was important to celebrate their accomplishments.
"It's been a huge honour to captain this side and something I've really enjoyed, it's definitely had its challenges at different points in time but to be able to be part of this team and retain the Ashes has been great," Haynes said.
"We did enjoy last night and there were some weary eyes this morning but that's what it's all about, you don't often get to be part of an Ashes series, so when you do win you need to enjoy it."
THE ASHES
Thursday: First Test - Australia v England at the Gabba, Brisbane. Play starts at 11am AEDT.
