Offspinner Charlie Dean is likely to miss England’s opening women’s T20I against India due to a stomach bug that affected several players in the England A camp during the series against India A.
“Charlie Dean is the latest to go down and can take a little bit of time to recover from that,” said Heather Knight, the England captain. “She is the only one that is in potential doubt. We’ll see how she is [as the series progresses].”
England’s spin options include Dean, left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone, and legspinner Sarah Glenn, along with part-time offspinner Alice Capsey. Ecclestone is returning from surgery after dislocating her right shoulder while warming up for a match in the women’s Hundred. Knight said Ecclestone is making good progress.
Ecclestone was part of England’s training camp in Oman before traveling to India. Knight said she is confident that Ecclestone will be able to overcome any issues related to her injury.
Having trained at the Wankhede Stadium, Knight mentioned that the pitches are offering more bounce than expected, which will require players to adjust. She also expected a large crowd and emphasized the importance of maintaining focus in such a setting.
