England have not played since their semi-final loss to South Africa at the Women’s World Cup in India. They will not play again until a one-day international and T20 series against New Zealand, starting on May 10, before hosting the T20 World Cup in June and July.
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It’s a point of reflection for Charlotte Edwards, who took over last April with the team at its lowest point, possibly the lowest in its history.
The Ashes had lost 16-0. Coach Jon Lewis and captain Heather Knight had been fired. The team’s physical fitness and professionalism were in question.
“They had very little confidence,” Edwards tells BBC Sport.
“That was probably the only thing that really stood out and that Ashes in Australia was very difficult for some of the players to overcome.”
Questions about fitness and its subsequent impact on his fielding dominated the beginning of Edwards’ tenure.
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In his first weeks, he said players would be “responsible” for their fitness and introduced minimum standards.
“Establishing some really clear professional standards that I expect and expect as a group was really important,” Edwards says.
Edwards added that each player has an individual development plan and that “I can’t speak highly enough” of the team’s reaction to the changes.
“We were the best team in the World Cup and to turn that around as quickly as we did since the Ashes is testament to the hard work that has been put in by the group and also the coaches,” he says.
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However, the loss to the Proteas left the feeling that little had changed. At the decisive moment, England had softened. Again.
Later, a comment from Edwards about having to “look to the future” stood out.
This winter has given me that opportunity.
While her senior players were away before Christmas in the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) in Australia, Edwards was in the UK. He worked with other of his recent teams, but also with the following ones and the U-19.
Instead of matches, England have organized three training camps over the coming months, the first of which will take place this week in Oman.
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Another follows in South Africa before the country’s top 30 players travel to the United Arab Emirates for an inter-team series.
“We’re going to pit the best against the best and get a very, very clear indication of where the next group of players are,” Edwards says.
Wicketkeeper Kira Chathli, 18-year-old spinner Tilly Corteen-Coleman, both from Surrey, Essex batsman Jodi Grewcock, Hampshire wicketkeeper Rhianna Southby and Warwickshire all-rounder Charis Pavely are all in Oman in a clue as to who could be next in line.
They will be joined by Maia Bouchier, Alice Capsey, Lauren Filer, Danielle Gibson, Freya Kemp, Em Arlott, Issy Wong, Mahika Gaur and Emma Lamb, all of whom have previously been internationals.
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Other notable absences can be easily explained.
Captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, Lauren Bell, Sophie Ecclestone, Danni Wyatt-Hodge and Linsey Smith are in the Women’s Premier League in India, while others such as Amy Jones, Tammy Beaumont, former captain Knight and Sophia Dunkley will have time off after the WBBL, as will 18-year-old Hundred sensation Davina Perrin.
But deciding when to look to the next generation can be the hardest part for any head coach in any sport, especially with a World Cup looming.
Edwards will be the coach who makes that decision in a current generation that has led the women’s game for a generation.
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“We’re trying to create that competitive advantage now for our players so it’s not all done and dusted who’s on the team,” he says.
“I talked to the players the other day about that. I told them that everyone in this room is in the fight to play in a World Cup. It doesn’t matter if you’re 18 or 35.”
Of course, opportunities may come to others sooner because of gaps that need to be filled.
Edwards mentions the need for a “bowling all-rounder”, a boost for players like Kemp, 20, who has spent three years plagued by stress fractures in his back, and Gibson, who missed the World Cup with the same problem.
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The lack of left-handers has been an issue since Lydia Greenway retired in 2016, to the extent that former fast bowler Tash Farrant was sent from the commentary box in India to provide a left-hander for the bowlers to practice with.
Kemp, the highly-rated Grewcock, and 21-year-old Pavely have an advantage there.
“I don’t want easy picks,” Edwards says. “I want it to be difficult.
“I want people to knock on the door and say ‘you have to pick me’ and hopefully that’s where we get to the end of Abu Dhabi.”