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As the hosts attempt to erase a 2-0 deficit and avoid a series defeat as soon as possible, stand-in captain Tammy Beaumont has challenged England to “come out fighting” in their third T20 match at The Oval on Friday.
Due to Nat Sciver-Brunt’s groin injury, Beaumont was called up to the T20 side under Charlotte Edwards after falling out with previous coach Jon Lewis.
In Tuesday’s second T20 match, England lost 2-0 to France, and Sciver-Brunt will need to be evaluated to see if she will play for the rest of the series. She will have a scan to see if she is fit for the series.
Being 2-0 up and with our captain and best batter out of the team, Beaumont, 34, said, “It’s not the best situation.”
“Panic is the worst thing we could do at this time, though. We firmly believe that we can win and fight back.
Heather Knight, a former England captain, has a hamstring injury that has kept her out of the entire summer, and she is already without another key batter.
Maia Bouchier, who England dropped after the Ashes defeat at the beginning of the year, has been given the call to play in a batting line-up that is put on a lot of pressure.
Bouchier has scored 242 runs for Hampshire this season, which ranks him as the seventh-highest top-scorer in the Women’s T20 Blast this year.
Sciver-Brunt had a class-leading 66 in England’s first T20 at Trent Bridge, while Beaumont had a 54 in Bristol.
When Sciver-Brunt left the field at Bristol, Dunkley served as vice-captain. Beaumont says she will lead the way in the future, but the current situation calls for a little more experience.
India have been in excellent form ahead of the 50-over World Cup, which they will host this autumn, so England must take a tough test to turn the series around.
However, Beaumont, who led Welsh Fire in The Hundred, believes that England will benefit from the challenge because much of the narrative surrounding their Ashes hammering and poor World Cup performance was focused on the lack of pressure they encounter in international cricket after those matches.
We have been discussing the need for more challenge for a while. We are aware that our results in major tournaments like the Ashes haven’t been what we want, Beaumont said.
“That won’t get better until we are pressured more severely in bilateral series,” he said. It may have come as a surprise because it occurred relatively early.
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- Women’s Cricket Team of England
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