England Face Uphill Battle at 2025 Women’s Cricket World Cup Amidst Squad Questions
MUMBAI – England’s prospects at the 2025 Women’s Cricket World Cup are facing scrutiny as they navigate a challenging tournament with a squad balancing experience and inexperience. Head coach Jon Lewis shoulders the pressure of his first major tournament in charge, with much resting on the all-round contributions of Nat Sciver-Brunt.
Sciver-Brunt’s batting form will be crucial,often serving as a key run-scorer for the team. The return of Heather Knight from injury offers welcome stability and maturity to the middle order, a dimension noticeably absent during their summer series against India.
Recent warm-up matches have yielded mixed results. While England posted strong opening partnerships exceeding 200 against West Indies, these were achieved against a weaker bowling attack. Performances dipped substantially against India, with a top score of 54 sandwiched between low partnerships of eight and seven.
england’s limited experience playing ODIs in India presents another hurdle, with only Knight, Tammy Beaumont, and Danni Wyatt-Hodge having played 10 or more matches in the country. However, participation in the Women’s Premier League T20 franchise tournament may offer some familiarity with the conditions.
The bowling attack’s effectiveness hinges on Sciver-Brunt regaining full fitness and bowling capacity following an Achilles injury sustained during the Ashes. Lewis has opted to omit experienced seamer Kate Cross from the squad, placing reliance on Lauren Bell, Lauren Filer, and Em Arlott as pace options, supported by spinners Sarah Glenn, Charlie Dean, Linsey Smith, and the world-number-one ranked Sophie ecclestone.
Bell has established herself as a key player, but uncertainty surrounds the nature of the pitches in India and Sri Lanka, where England’s group games will be played across four venues. Should the surfaces offer limited assistance for spinners, England could find themselves short on seam bowling options and lacking Cross’s seasoned expertise.
The squad features only one new addition as the Ashes – arlott – highlighting a lack of established depth to challenge the current core players. A complete overhaul of the team was considered unlikely given the tournament’s scale and the need for experienced personnel.
