Rosa Simkin (@rosatalksball) – 03/10/24
The England Women’s U19 squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2025 has been named, with head coach Chris Guest selecting 15 players for the second edition of the tournament in Malaysia in January and February next year, following the success of the first edition in South Africa back in 2023.
Order of Contents – The Squad, What To Expect, The Leadership, Some Stand Out Players & Word From Management
The Squad:
Phoebe Brett (Central Sparks)
Olivia Brinsden (Thunder)
Tilly Corteen-Coleman (South East Stars)
Trudy Johnson (Northern Diamonds)
Katie Jones (Western Storm)
Charlotte Lambert (South East Stars)
Abi Norgrove (Southern Vipers)
Eve O’Neill (Southern Vipers)
Davina Perrin (Central Sparks)
Jemima Spence (South East Stars)
Charlotte Stubbs (South East Stars)
Amuruthaa Surenkumar (Sunrisers)
Prisha Thanawala (The Blaze)
Erin Thomas (Northern Diamonds)
Grace Thompson (Northern Diamonds)
Non-Travelling Reserves: Maria Andrews (The Blaze), Sophie Beech (Central Sparks), Daisy Gibb (Southern Vipers), Poppy Tulloch (Southern Vipers) & Annie Williams (The Blaze)
What To Expect:
The tournament will see sixteen teams from around the globe taking part in 15 days of action from the 18th of January to the 2nd February 2025, with 41 matches due to be played. Last time out back in 2023 the inaugral event in South Africa saw England reach the final against India, falling short after an intense semi-final which saw them just edge Australia in dramatic circumstances just a two days prior.
England have been drawn into Group B, with all three of their matches against Ireland, Pakistan and the USA being played in Johor. Following the group stages the top three sides in each of the four groups will advance to the Super Six stage, with the top two sides from each of the Super Six Leagues progressing to the semi-finals. The final will take place on the 2nd of February.
England have also named a group of five non-travelling reserves (as listed above). The reserves will not be part of the travelling group for the official tournament but will take part in the preperation phases and be on stand-by should a replacement be required.
The squad of fifteen will be hoping to follow the successes of a number of the squad from the 2023 edition, with a number of players going on to sign professional deals in the former Regional set-up and The Hundred, with some even going on to make their full international debuts in the recent multi-format white ball series vs Ireland.
“It was really exciting to see Ryana MacDonald-Gay, Hannah Baker, Seren Smale and Charis Pavely feature for the senior team in Ireland after representing the U19s in the first edition of this World Cup in 2023 and this acts as real inspiration for this group and demonstrates how important this tournament can be for a player’s development.” – Chris Guest, Head Coach (U19 Performance Lead)
The Leadership
Chris Guest will act as head coach for the tournament, as he did in 2023 after being appointed the England Women U19 Performance Lead last month. Guest join the England set-up on a full time basis following a successful season with his Regional side The Blaze which saw them lift the Charlotte Edwards Cup (T20 Tournament) back in June! He will be assisted by former England international Beth Morgan and Dan Helesfay. Morgan currently works as Regional Talent Manager for the Southern Vipers in the regional set-up and represented England on an international stage for over a decade with 107 games to her name across formats, also playing a part in the famous double of 2009 with Helsefay working as an assitant coach with the South East Stars and Welsh Fire.
A captain is yet to be named, with last editions skipper Grace Scrivens going on to captain Regional side Sunrisers to their first silverware during their Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy success last month.
“What excites me most about working with the under-19 age group is the constant cycle of new talent and new groups coming through. We’ve named a squad which features some players who have been involved at this age group before and some who haven’t.”
“This World Cup is a part of these players’ journey, not the end or the start and our message to them is to embrace the challenge, evolve ourselves and enjoy the ride. Naturally we want to do well but the programme is about developing these players in the future and for the long-term. – Chris Guest, Head Coach (U19 Performance Lead)
Some Stand Out Players
Davina Perrin: Perrin makes her return to the U19 World Cup side after her role in the 2023 edition. The 18-year-old has been playing at the highest level for the Central Sparks as a top order bat for a number of years and impressed in this years edition of the Charlotte Edwards Cup which saw Sparks reach the semis, top scoring for the side with 245 runs with a best of 79* and a 133.15 strike rate and she made positive contributions in the 50-over format with 223 runs over the course of the season. She also made her debut in The Hundred for the Northern Superchargers, opening the batting and hitting big but struggling to move through the gears.
Tilly Corteen-Coleman: Corteen-Coleman has hit the professional game with a bang, making headlines throughout the season. The now 17-year-olds name was brought to our attention by Charlotte Edwards back in March during the official Hundred draft, with the Southern Brave head coach selecting the left-arm spinner before she had made her professional debut! When her professional playing opportunities arrived for the South East Stars in the Charlotte Edwards Cup she quickly made headlines again in just her third game, taking four wickets in just as many balls vs the Northern Diamonds, ending with figures of 5/19 following a wicket on the first ball of the innings in her second appearence vs Storm. Her form continued throughout the tournament, ending as top wicket taker for the side in a final making campaign with 16. The Hundred saw more headlines, with the scalp of Meg Lanning on debut, with 9 wickets in another finals making 50-over campaign.
Amu Surenkumar: Surenkumar has had quite the week, with the announcement of her move to Warwickshire follwed quickly by the announcement of the opportunity to represent England on a world stage! I’d argue the 17-year-old is one of the rising stars of the game, with the pace bowling all-rounder a part of the Sunrisers squad which lifted the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy last month in Leicester following a succesful campaign. From her perspective, the youngster has struggled for play time this season but shown her potential with both bat and ball in hand when offered the opportunity to do so, bowling econimically in the final with 0/20 from her four and a handful of wickets to her name across formats in the games she has played. She is certainly one of the rising stars of the side and as she attempts to break through to play consistent first team cricket next season in Birmingham, the opportunity to play in Malaysia early next year could, as it has for those before her, provide the perfect pathway for the transition from academy level to professional cricket.
Word From Management – Richard Bedbrook, Head of England Women Performance Pathways:
“It is always an exciting time to be able to name an U19 World Cup squad and all those chosen, including the non-travelling reserve group, can be very proud of this achievement. The quality in the group highlights the work of each of the regional teams across both their senior and Academy environments and I, plus colleagues, are indebted to them on the development work they continue to put in.
“We hope each individual takes a huge amount from the experience they are about to have and uses it to continue developing themselves as a person and player.
“This also goes for the staff group, a number of whom across various roles are also employees of the Regional teams and who will hopefully take huge amounts of experience and enjoyment from being a part of the programme.”
