The ECB have revealed the England and Overseas player rosters for KSL2, with moves for a number of players, including for England’s two Danielle’s: Hazell heading across the Pennines to captain the Thunder, and Wyatt moving down south to the Vipers.

It has also been announced that both Charlotte Edwards and Arran Brindle will be returning for the Vipers; but not Lydia Greenway, who effectively therefore confirms her retirement from the “spotlight” level of the game, though she may yet appear for Kent this season in a “player-coach” capacity.

Two overseas players (at the Stars and the Storm) are still “To Be Confirmed”.

Lancashire Thunder

• Kate Cross
• Danielle Hazell
• Sarah Taylor
• Jess Jonassen (AUS)
• Amy Satterthwaite (NZ)
• Lea Tahuhu (NZ)

Loughborough Lightning

• Georgia Elwiss
• Amy Jones
• Beth Langston
• Kristen Beams (AUS)
• Ellyse Perry (AUS)
• Elyse Villani (AUS)

Southern Vipers

• Tash Farrant
• Danielle Wyatt
• Suzie Bates (NZ)
• Hayley Matthews (WI)
• Dane van Niekerk (SA)
• Charlotte Edwards
• Arran Brindle

Surrey Stars

• Tammy Beaumont
• Alex Hartley
• Laura Marsh
• Natalie Sciver
• Rene Farrell (AUS)
• Marizanne Kapp (SA)
• TBC (OS)

Western Storm

• Heather Knight
• Anya Shrubsole
• Fran Wilson
• Rachel Priest (NZ)
• Stafanie Taylor (WI)
• TBC (OS)

Yorkshire Diamonds

• Katherine Brunt
• Jenny Gunn
• Lauren Winfield
• Sophie Devine (NZ)
• Sune Luus (SA)
• Beth Mooney (AUS)

England have named a huge squad of 24 players for their up-coming training camp in the UAE, which will include 3 one-day matches (NB – not “official” ODIs) against Ireland on 24th, 26th and 28th of April, as well as a number of inter-squad games.

The squad includes all the contracted players except Sarah Taylor; plus 7 faces from the Senior Academy squad, including Berkshire’s Linsey Smith and Kent’s Alice Davidson-Richards. Although neither Smith nor Davidson-Richards have quite “come from nowhere”, neither was really in the England picture a year ago, but as with Alex Hartley, it shows that Mark Robinson’s England are prepared to cast their net a little wider than might have been the case in the past.

As for Taylor, England are clearly still hoping she might make the World Cup – she is back in training, but not at full fitness, and England have stressed that there are no timescales in place – she will be back when she is ready, be that in time for the World Cup, or not.

UPDATE

The ECB have confirmed that the contracted players will not be available for the first two rounds of the County Championship on April 30th/ May 1st; whilst the Academy players will be released on a case-by-case basis.

Full Squad:

• Heather Knight
• Anya Shrubsole
• Tammy Beaumont
• Katherine Brunt
• Kate Cross
• Georgia Elwiss
• Tash Farrant
• Jenny Gunn
• Alexandra Hartley
• Danielle Hazell
• Amy Jones
• Beth Langston
• Laura Marsh
• Nat Sciver
• Fran Wilson
• Lauren Winfield
• Danielle Wyatt
• Georgia Adams
• Hollie Armitage
• Alice Davidson-Richards
• Sophie Ecclestone
• Eve Jones
• Emma Lamb
• Linsey Smith

– Are you passionate about getting more women playing sport?
– Do you have an interest in Cricket?
– Do you have the skills to engage women to go give Cricket a go?
– Can you make a difference?
– If yes, this may be for you!

Oxfordshire Cricket are looking for an enthusiastic Women’s Cricket Maker for the upcoming summer.

The job will run for 5 months, with the aim to give as many women as possible the opportunity to get a bat and ball experience this summer in a fun and social environment.

More details – including how to apply – are available on the Oxfordshire Cricket website, here: http://www.oxfordshire.cricket/news/womens-cricket-maker-wanted-18215/

An England XI will meet Ireland in three 50-over games in the UAE in April, two months prior to the launch of England’s World Cup campaign.

The matches will take place on 24, 26 and 28 April and, while they will not count as “official” ODIs, they will serve as a useful warm-up for England’s players in the build-up to the world tournament, which launches on June 24.

Ireland, meanwhile, are clearly treating the series as an opportunity to blood new talent, with 7 uncapped players included in their squad: Aoife Beggs, Rachel Delany, Louise Little, Lara Maritz, Sophie MacMahon, Leah Paul and Rebecca Stokell.

Ireland squad: Laura Delany (capt), Aoife Beggs, Laura Boylan, Rachel Delaney, Jennifer Gray, Shauna Kavanagh, Amy Kenealy, Gaby Lewis, Louise Little, Lara Maritz, Sophie MacMahon, Lucy O’Reilly, Leah Paul, Rebecca Stokell, Mary Waldron.

England squad: TBC.

Ffion Wynne continues her profiles of some of the top future England prospects.

(Catch up with Part 1 here!)

3. Alex Travers

The great confidence of 16-year-old Alex Travers is remarkable for such a young age. Having played her county cricket at Surrey since the Under 11 age group, the winter of 2016/2017 has been her first in any England set-up, and her enjoyment in the squad is evident in her enthusiasm. “It was quite a big adjustment at first,” Alex explains, “but I learn so much from being around this environment, and I know exactly what I need to do to improve further from being here.”

She speaks highly of the set-up and the supportive nature of the coaching staff, demonstrating its importance in supporting the development of future England hopefuls. Similarly to Charlie Dean, Travers claims that the being a younger member of the squad doesn’t hinder the experience in the slightest, and that challenging herself against the best of her age will undoubtedly improve her skills.

Travers has also been included in the Regional Development Centre of the Surrey Stars, and is highly motivated to participate in the KSL during the next few years of her career. “It would be amazing to play in the Super League and I’d love to play for England eventually. Just from being involved in these camps over the past few months, I feel like I can improve so much,” Alex says.

Despite the high hopes for her future, Travers remains focused and is determined to keep enjoying her cricket as much as she currently does. Having made her way into Surrey’s first XI last summer, Travers’ clear enthusiasm for the game and willingness to learn will undoubtedly make her a regular performer this season, aiding her progression towards her KSL and England dreams.

4. Izzy Cloke

Kent’s young talent Izzy Cloke concludes the trio of 16-year-olds, but this winter already marks her third in any England set-up. This experience is evident in Cloke’s enthusiasm and confidence, as she describes her aim to fully establish herself in Kent’s first XI this summer, after playing her first two games last season. “It’s a really strong team, which made it quite daunting to begin with,” Cloke says, “but Lydia Greenway was captain and she was really helpful in making me feel included. I bowled three overs on my debut at Arundel, which went really well and gave me a lot of confidence.”

Last winter, Cloke emerged onto the Development Programme from the Under 15s, which she describes as initially quite difficult as many of the girls were much older, and had been in the programme together for a while. However, Cloke also states that the supportive nature of the coaches cannot be faulted in providing a friendly and welcoming environment, where the correct amount of pressure is applied without being too overwhelming for the younger members of the squad. Alongside her England experience, Cloke trains alongside Alex Travers in the Surrey Stars Development Centre.

As she is currently studying for her AS Levels, Izzy is firmly focusing on her cricketing and academic future. “Loughborough is definitely one of my university choices,” she explains, “because I really want to stay on an England programme, and it would be useful to combine that with a really good course, but I am looking at quite a few others at the moment.”

Further along the line, Cloke does aspire to be involved in the KSL, as her experience as a spectator watching the Stars demonstrated its status as a great competition, and would really allow her cricket to develop further. With high hopes to progress into the Senior Academy over the next few years, Cloke’s positivity and the maturity of her attitude suggests that her cricket will continue to go from strength to strength.

Ffion Wynne profiles some future England prospects.

Towards the end of a successful summer, notably due to the emergence of the KSL, the England Women’s Pathway introduced a few changes to their system. For what used to be called the England Women’s Development Programme, the Academy aims to prepare young and talented individuals between the ages of 14 – 19 for the Senior Academy, the KSL and hopefully for international honours.

With the professionalisation of the women’s game firmly in place, alongside securing Sky Sports coverage for the next edition for the KSL, the future is looking extremely bright for the England women’s side. With this in mind, we decided to get an insight into the life of an Academy cricketer and catch up with some up-and-coming stars from the Academy to discuss their experiences in the setup and their hopes for their futures in the game.

1. Anna Nicholls

Aged 19, Anna Nicholls is one of the Academy’s older and more experienced members, with plenty of Division One cricket under her belt for Middlesex already. However, with a recent move to Leeds to study Medicine, Nicholls has transferred to Yorkshire for the upcoming season and is hoping for first team selection in order to continue her progress at such a high standard.

A promising batsman and former pace bowler, Nicholls has been around the England set-up for nearly four years, when the Under 15 programme was still in place. “In the Under 15s, we only trained 3 weekends over the winter,” she explains, “but I’ve been in this development programme, which used to be the Under 19s, for a while now and we have camps about once a month plus a summer competition.” For Anna, the best part about the programme is being able to challenge herself against better players, and using scenario practice to improve her knowledge and tactics of the game.

In the 2016 season, her talent was evident from her selection for the Yorkshire Diamonds in the KSL, notably featuring in their final game against Western Storm. Nicholls speaks emphatically about the competition, and describes the incredible experience of being surrounded by such high profile elite cricketers, notably her teammate Alex Blackwell, and the importance of learning from them. The professional environment, and the amazement of Blackwell’s ability to create shots “out of nowhere”, succeeded in inspiring Nicholls immensely.

With an intense few years at medical school awaiting her, alongside cricketing ambitions, the future looks extremely bright for Yorkshire’s latest arrival. “There is definitely a challenge ahead,” Nicholls states, “but at the moment I’m just determined to push my cricket and medicine as far as they can both possibly go.”

2. Charlie Dean

Hampshire’s Charlie Dean has been involved at the county since she was 11 years old, and now at 16, has started her first year in the Academy programme, having progressed from the Under 15 set-up the previous winter. Alongside the monthly England camps, the talented all-rounder trains several times a week with the Hampshire Academy. Despite being a younger member of the squad, she seems unfazed by the challenge. “The environment is really positive and friendly,” Charlie says, “and I think it’s actually making me a much better player being one of the younger ones. It’s good to challenge myself against the older and more experienced girls.”

Dean’s heavy cricketing schedule is boosted by her inclusion in the Young Vipers squad, the development centre for the KSL team. The squad trains every Saturday over the winter, preparing players for long term development into the Super League. With the vast amount of winter training for Hampshire, Vipers and England, it seems that Charlie has a very exciting and promising summer ahead of her. Such promise at such a young age suggests that her progress will develop immensely over the next few years, and with aims for reselection into the Academy before hopefully progressing into the Senior Academy, it seems Dean will be a vital asset to Charlotte Edwards’ Hampshire squad this summer!

Berkshire

All rounder Lissy Macleod has been appointed the new Berkshire captain. With Heather Knight stepping down from the role due to her international commitments with England in a home World Cup summer, Macleod was the obvious candidate to take over, having made over 100 appearances for the Beavers since her debut in 2008, with 14 fifties, 1 century, and 77 wickets to her name. Knight will continue to play for Berkshire where her schedule allows.

Lancashire

England spinner Alex Hartley has re-signed for Lancashire after 4 seasons at Middlesex. Hartley first emerged through the Lancashire youth system, but joined Middlesex to reboot a career which had appeared to be stalled at the time – a smart move, which ended with her being awarded a full England contract off the back of her international debut last summer.

Also heading to Lancashire is England Academy batsman Eve Jones, as the side look to avoid the fate they suffered last time they were promoted to Div 1, when they were sent immediately back down to Div 2 after 8 straight defeats.

Nottinghamshire

Notts – the other newly promoted county in Div 1 – have also been shopping, acquiring Jodie Dibble from Devon, Lucy Higham from Leicestershire and Megan Burton from Wales. Dibble dropped out of the national squad last year, and had a pretty indifferent Super League for the Western Storm; but she is only 22 and it isn’t beyond the bounds of possibility that Notts represents a way back for her to some day add to her one England cap.

Middlesex

Despite the disappointment of not winning a Super League franchise last year, Middlesex have taken the bold step of appointing Danni Warren as their new Head of Women’s Cricket, to oversee both the county and MCC sides. Warren made over 100 appearances for the county between 2002-2015, taking more than 150 wickets.

Having lost Hartley, Middlesex will be looking very much to youth this season, and have promoted both Gayatri Gole and Katie Wolfe from their U19 squad, as they try to improve on last season’s narrow scrape with relegation in Div 1.

Hampshire

Hampshire narrowly missed out on promotion from Div 2 last season, but it will be a different business down at the Ageas Bowl this year. With Charlotte Edwards and now New Zealand captain Suzie Bates also signed up to play county cricket in 2017, Hampshire are clearly making a big long-term play for a future in the women’s game, keeping their eggs in both the KSL and county baskets, ahead of the likelihood of further fluidity* in the structure of women’s domestic cricket in 2019/20.

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* We don’t have any inside info on this; but with the changes coming to The Other Game, we suspect the logical move would be to create parallel women’s teams, and if the Super League is still going in 2021, we’ll eat our own pizzas!!