Women'S T20 International

A total of 165 cricketers are set to go under the gavel in Mumbai on Saturday – including wicketkeeper-batter Jones who has set her base price at the second highest point, around £40,000.

England, meanwhile, will take to the field at the Wankhede Stadium looking to build on an impressive 38-run victory in the opening match of a first tour of India in four years, which also includes a one-off Test match.

Jones accepts the squad was distracted somewhat during the 2023 auction in February, which took place at the same time as a T20 World Cup game against Ireland, which England won by four wickets.

However, the 30-year-old Central Sparks player insists the team will be fully focused on the game on Saturday, rather than who might or might not get bought.

“We had a very similar situation last year in the World Cup, which was completely new for us as a group and was obviously the first ever (Women’s Premier League) auction for women’s cricket,” Jones said.

“I don’t know if it was a challenge last year, it was just something new to consider as a group. I think this year it will be a lot simpler, having done it before our attention will be on the game as much as possible.”

Jones added: “I think there has been big learnings from last year which was a completely new experience for everyone.

“We did sit down and try to address things, like issues that might come of it and it was always probably going to be a little bit of a distraction last year.

“A lot depends on expectation on an individual basis. A lot of us are pretty relaxed about it – that it would be great if it happens, if not, then we are playing so much cricket these days.

“I think that mentality is good. We are really focused on the game that we will have tomorrow, so I think it will be fine.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by We Are England Cricket (@englandcricket)

England batter Danni Wyatt was one of those to not have any takers in the last WPL auction.

Wyatt marked her record 150th T20 international appearance with an impressive 75 off just 47 balls in the opening tour win.

Jones is confident the Southern Vipers batter can put any thoughts of what might happen in the auction this time around out of her mind and just focus on producing another positive display.

“Danni was very open about last year, about really wanting to be a part of it and being sad that she missed out,” Jones said.

“As you would, you look after your friends and it doesn’t really stray from that to be honest, but I think this year is different and we are all managing expectations.

“It would be a cool thing to be part of obviously, but I don’t think we will have the emotions attached to it as such.”

England earlier confirmed Emma Lamb had withdrawn from the Test squad due to a back problem. She will see a spinal surgeon when back in the UK to determine the next steps of her recovery.

Southern Vipers batter Maia Bouchier has been called into the Test squad as a replacement, while Kirstie Gordon also links up with the group having remained in Mumbai after playing for England A in their IT20 series victory last week.

England could clinch their own series win on Saturday ahead of the third T20 fixture on Sunday.

Jones said: “Just to get the first win is almost like a bit of a relief and you definitely build your confidence going into the other games.”

Wyatt hit 75 and Nat Sciver-Brunt made 77, with the pair sharing a match-winning stand in an imposing total of 197 for six.

Sophie Ecclestone ensured their work did not go to waste, rounding out the result with figures of three for 15 on her comeback appearance after four months out with a shoulder injury.

Opener Wyatt began the match by becoming the first English cricketer to reach the cap landmark but soon found herself in a scrap at the Wankhede Stadium, losing two batting partners in the first over of the day and before she had even got off the mark.

Renuka Singh was responsible for her side’s fine start, bowling Sophia Dunkley via a deflection off the bat and then knocking over Alice Capsey for a golden duck as she took out off stump with a beauty.

Wyatt and Sciver-Brunt were unfazed by the double setback and proceeded to put on 138 off the next 87 balls.

Wyatt helped herself to eight fours and two sixes, the first a slog sweep off Deepti Sharma and the second a big swing over long-off charging debutant Shreyanka Patil.

Sciver-Brunt added 13 boundaries of her own as the scoreboard raced along but Wyatt’s 47-ball attack ended with five overs left as she was stumped off newcomer Saika Ishaque.

Captain Heather Knight fell cheaply and Sciver-Brunt was caught behind in the 19th but Amy Jones ensured an action-packed finish by scoring 23 off nine balls at the death.

Sciver-Brunt was back in the thick of things early in the chase, coming on for the third over and forcing an error from the dangerous Smriti Mandhana, who was bowled middle stump.

Shafali Verma collected a handful of fours as she kept India in touch with the required rate but when Freya Kemp had Jemima Rodrigues caught behind in the final powerplay over it was another big boost to the tourists’ cause.

India were relying on a big stand between Verma and Harmanpreet Kaur, the latter briefly looking in rude health before Ecclestone’s arrival spelled the end. The left-arm spinner had not played since dislocating her shoulder in August but needed just one sighter before bowling Kaur via an inside edge.

With five overs left India still needed 74, leaving England to mop up a clinical win as Ecclestone added the battling Verma (52) and Kanika Ahuja to her haul.

England lost by eight wickets after they were skittled for 104 with Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu smacking 55 in quick time to secure victory for the tourists’ with 40 balls to spare.

It levels the three-match T20 series ahead of Wednesday’s decider in Derby and resulted in Knight facing questions over the decision with head coach Jon Lewis to experiment against the eighth best country in Twenty20 cricket.

Sophia Dunkley and Nat Sciver-Brunt were rested while England selected five players aged 22 or younger in Saturday’s XI, but captain Knight defended their right to rotate with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh only a year away.

Knight said: “We want to expose people to international cricket and we were pretty clear that was the goal at the start of this series.

“No one was saying anything at Hove when we smashed 180 off 17 overs so no, I wouldn’t change a thing.

“In a busy summer, we knew there was a slight opportunity to try a few new players. You don’t get a huge amount of opportunities to do that because we haven’t got too many games before that World Cup in Bangladesh.

“It wasn’t about underestimating Sri Lanka at all. It was about what is best for us as a side moving forward and we needed to get some caps into young players to see where they are at.

“We’ve had a bad day, we’ve lost a game of cricket but there will be no big enquiry into it.

“Sri Lanka have played very well and they have given us some humble pie to be honest, but it is a good lesson for youngsters that if you are not quite on it and not able to execute your skills how you want, then you can get punished.”

After posting 186 for four in Sussex on Thursday, this batting display could not have been more chalk and cheese with England reduced to 21 for three inside the powerplay.

Knight and Amy Jones briefly rebuilt before the excellent Inoka Ranaweera accounted for them on her way to figures of two for 25.

When England were faltering on 66 for eight, an unwanted record looked on the cards but Charlie Dean hit 34 to help the hosts beyond their previous lowest T20 total of 87 – posted against Australia in 2015.

Sri Lanka seamer Udeshika Prabodhani ended Dean’s 33-run partnership with Issy Wong and yorked Dean soon after to dismiss England for 104.

Wong would go on to struggle with the ball, producing an array of no-balls in a 10-delivery opening over.

Athapaththu never blinked in the chase though, smashing Kate Cross for 21 before she added another maximum in a scintillating 26-ball fifty that helped the tourists clinch a first T20 win over England at the 10th time of asking.

“We all had a bad day at the same time unfortunately,” Knight reflected.

“I thought they bowled really well, their spinners were impressive and the lengths they bowled. Credit to them but yeah sometimes this happens in cricket.

“We’ve obviously got a very inexperienced side and a lot of people who are learning their trade, so it identifies areas where we need to get better at.

“Even before this game we identified spin as an area where we can keep getting better and with the World Cup in Bangladesh that will be something potentially on the radar out there.

“Look, quite a humbling day but it is now an opportunity for us to hone in on what we can do better moving forward.”

Sri Lanka captain Athapaththu added: “Today was really good for us, we executed the right plans and especially the spinners were really good.

“The wicket was helpful, so finally we won, that’s really good for us. For myself and my team, this is a huge moment for women’s cricket in Sri Lanka.”

Wong was recalled by England skipper Heather Knight for Saturday’s second T20 in the three-match series with Sri Lanka at Chelmsford and while she contributed towards a 33-run partnership with Charlie Dean, she experienced difficulties with the ball.

Three no-balls were sent down during Wong’s first over and she finished with figures of nought for 24 off two overs with Sri Lanka chasing down a target of 105 with 40 deliveries to spare.

Knight, after facing several questions post-match about the selection of the 21-year-old, said: “Matt Mason is working pretty closely with Issy around getting her back to where we know she can be.

“We wanted to get a bit of context around where she is at and Issy wanted some context around where she is at in terms of us playing her.

“She had a couple of really good training sessions and felt in a really good place but she is learning. She has obviously struggled for rhythm this summer and my role is to keep backing her.

“We know what sort of cricketer she can be, which is why we have backed her when she has been struggling.

“Yeah, a tough day and sometimes when you are exposed to it in that pressure situation it can make it tough, but she is a pretty resilient character. She is a positive person so I don’t think it will affect her too much.”

Wong has been conspicuous by her absence all summer throughout an enthralling Women’s Ashes where she sat out all seven matches of the multi-format series.

She initially burst onto the international scene last summer following an exciting 12 months where she caught the eye in the 2021 edition of The Hundred before starring in the Women’s Big Bash later that year.

It led to key roles in England’s unsuccessful pursuit of gold at the home Commonwealth Games along with appearances in all formats for her country during 2022, but despite taking a hat-trick in the inaugural Women’s Premier League in India, she has largely carried the drinks in recent months.

Wong was even used sparingly by Birmingham Phoenix during The Hundred in August and her showing at Chelmsford highlighted her struggles after she overstepped three times during a 10-ball first over while a surprise return into the attack later resulted in a second over littered with poor deliveries.

Knight, who hinted at Wong receiving unhelpful advice on the domestic scene, revealed England’s plan of action for the fast bowler following Saturday’s humbling defeat in Essex.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Issy Wong (@wongi95)

“She has been given five balls at a time in The Hundred and hasn’t had a chance to come back from spells. I guess that’s probably put a lot of pressure on her starting and how she starts,” Knight pointed out.

“As a captain, I am always someone that wants to back players and bring them in. We played her to get some context over where she is at and I wanted to bowl her again.

“I think she has been struggling a little bit for rhythm all summer and then she’s been trying a few things, listening to a lot of different voices, which has probably led to her run-up issues because she didn’t really have those earlier in the summer.

“Issy does have a clear plan over the next month about what she will do with Matt Mason, who is an outstanding bowling coach. They will work very closely to try get Issy to a place where she needs to be.”

Bouchier’s 91 off 56 balls, her second successive half-century, helped England to 177 for three, Charlie Dean taking four wickets as New Zealand were restricted to 130 for seven.

England lost Danni Wyatt, back in the side after playing in the Women’s IPL, early but Alice Capsey and Bouchier – hampered by a quad injury – added 75 in 10 overs.

Captain Heather Knight (21 not out) and Nat Sciver-Brunt (29 not out) smashed 35 off the final 14 balls to set the hosts a daunting target.

That target was made more daunting without captain Suzie Bates, injured in the field, and England struck at regular intervals.

Dean grabbed four for 26, and Brooke Holliday was at the top scoring, with 25 for the hosts.

The win gives England an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series, which concludes in Wellington on Friday.

The world number one white-ball bowler needed surgery after dislocating her shoulder in August while taking part in the Hundred, missing the home series against Sri Lanka and the Women’s Big Bash League in Australia.

But she stepped up her recovery during England’s recent training camp in Oman and is ready to return to action at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.

“Sophie has missed a bit of cricket with the injury she had but she’s going to be fit and firing, so I’m looking forward to seeing her bowl,” Knight said.

“I don’t think bowling will be an issue, she’s been doing really well, but fielding there might be a bit of nervousness. I’ve had injuries myself where it’s about getting over trusting your body.

“I’m sure in the heat of battle Sophie will be fine, she’s tracking really well in training, diving around and things like that, but we’ll keep a close eye on her because she’s obviously a key player for us.”

England have not toured India since 2019 but Knight was among a handful of players who played in the country’s inaugural Women’s Premier League and believes it is the perfect place for her side to develop.

“It feels a long time since we’ve been to India, but now the WPL is a staple in the calendar there’s going to be a lot of cricket here for English players,” she said.

“I always feel I learn a lot about my game playing in Indian conditions. It really tests you as a cricketer in terms of skill level, how you deal with the noise, the heat and the other things that tend to happen in Indian tours.

“It’s a really good place to accelerate development and I’m excited to see how we cope with it.

“I’m really excited to see what sort of crowd we get too. Hopefully we get a few in after the WPL earlier in the year and we can silence the crowd, if there is one.”

England have one doubt for the series opener, with Charlie Dean set to sit out due to illness.