England women cricketers back in training

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) postponed a series against India, initially scheduled to start at the end of the end of June, because of the coronavirus pandemic.

There had been fears that, with many sports prioritising the return of men’s matches over less-lucrative women’s fixtures, England Women might not play at all this season.

But the ECB have since held talks with Indian and South African officials about staging a tri-series.

A group of 24 players, including several members of the 2017 World-Cup winning side such as captain Heather Knight, are due to resume training on June 22.

All the training sessions will take place in bio-secure environments and in line with the medical guidelines that have applied to the England men’s team ahead of next month’s three-Test series against the West Indies.

“We remain hopeful of playing cricket this summer and it’s exciting for this group of players to be able to return to training,” said Jonathan Finch, the ECB’s director of women’s cricket.

“Hopefully, this is one step closer towards England Women returning to the field this summer,” he added.