‘Into the pressure cooker again’ – assessing England’s World Cup chances

A summer of soul-searching for England women was born out of a winter of turbulence.

South Africa’s humiliating defeat in the T20 World Cup group stage was avenged for a disastrous exit, only for a major implosion down under as Australia suffered a 16-0 defeat in the multi-format series.

With the departure of Charlotte Edwards and Jon Lewis and Heather Knight, things had to change.

They thrashed West Indies in their first series, but fans and media who had previously seen this story before did it with a shrug. The Indian team’s struggles resisted more than just a quick fix, as evidenced by the T20 and one-day international series defeats that followed.

They are now about to re-enter the pressure cooker.

Australia, the defending champion, are unquestionably the favorites, while India, who have improved steadily over the past two years, are the closest competitors, especially on their own soil.

Despite their inconsistencies, England face South Africa in a tricky match on October 3rd, which is a difficult match for them to take lightly.

However, it’s unlikely that Edwards’ side has ever been subjected to this level of scrutiny before given the increased investment in the women’s game and its ever-expanding professionalism.

The players’ potential is never in doubt; it’s just how strong they are under pressure.

They were subjected to a lot of scrutiny in the media following the T20 World Cup and the Ashes, but it appeared as though they were unaware of what might come if the same issues arise during this World Cup.

These issues include how they handle pressure situations or must-win situations, as well as their batting weakness against spin and a pressing need to improve their fielding.

There is little chance that England will win this tournament given the changes and harm caused by the Ashes, but how they play and have they learned from mistakes will determine how much the fallout will be.

There will be no urgency to go back to the drawing board if they are simply outplayed by a better side, which is most likely India or Australia, but if there is little improvement in those areas, Edwards and Sciver-Brunt will face criticism.

With three group-stage defeats and a final result, the 50-over World Cup in 2022 overcame many of the flaws.

Sciver-Brunt’s all-around performances will help determine England’s fortunes, as well as supporting her first tournament as head coach.

She will at least have the support of Knight’s return from injury, giving them more stability and maturity in the middle order than they did this summer when they faced India. She is their sole savior with the bat.

Given the weakness of the bowling attack, it was difficult to overtake Amy Jones and Tammy Beaumont from their back-to-back stands of more than 200 against West Indies, but Edwards made no mistake by switching England’s opening partnership.

With a stand of 54 sandwiched between eight and seven partnerships, they were much less convincing against a superior India.

Only Knight, Beaumont, and Danni Wyatt-Hodge have 10 or more ODIs to their name in India, but England are more familiar with the circumstances from the Women’s Premier League, a T20 franchise competition.

Since Sciver-Brunt hasn’t bowled since the Ashes because of an Achilles issue, much will depend on how many overs they can deliver.

Lauren Bell, Lauren Filer, Em Arlott, Charlie Dean, Linsey Smith, and world number one Sophie Ecclestone are left as the quicks and Sarah Glenn, Charlie Dean, Linsey Smith, and world number one Sophie Ecclestone are the spinners, according to Edwards’ bold decision to omit the experienced Kate Cross from the squad.

Bell has quickly become one of the first names to appear on the England team sheet over the past two years, but there are still many unknowns about the conditions in both India and Sri Lanka, where their group matches are scheduled to take place at four different locations.

England could find themselves with a seamer light or lacking in Cross’ experience if the surfaces lack the required amount of spin, with Arlott and Filer still looking for consistency in international cricket, especially in the early stages.

The three-match series between India and Australia, which came before the World Cup, provided exactly that if England and the rest wanted to assess their current state in order to compete.

Before India showed what they can do best by crushing the world champions’ heaviest ODI defeat in the second, Australia won 2-1 and claimed a convincing victory in the series opener.

The decider was a record-breaking run-fest, with Smriti Mandhana’s 125 from 63 balls making the highlight, with Australia scoring 412 and India scoring 369.

Delhi, which does not host any of the tournament’s games, may serve as an example of what is to come.

Despite the encouraging signs of runs for Sciver-Brunt, Alice Capsey, Emma Lamb, and Sophia Dunkley, it’s unlikely that Edwards or any other member of the team will become complacent from the defeat that England have since won both warm-up games.

Edwards cited England’s intelligence, long batting, and confidence in their game plan as saying. They might achieve all of the above, but it won’t be enough to defeat two teams that appear determined to raise the bar for women’s cricket.