Key events
Anthems now.
Flower of Scotland up first, which is such a banger!
Dunkley gets an opportunity with Capsey sidelined with illness. Bell’s seam replaces Smith’s spin.
McColl comes into the picture with Chatterji missing out.
No Alice Capsey, you might have noticed. That’s not the only change for England but it is the only enforced switch.
Capsey has been struck low by an illness that has afflicted several English players. Could that impact their performance?
Teams
England: Maia Bouchier, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Sophia Dunkley, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Heather Knight (c), Amy Jones (wk), Danielle Gibson, Sophie Ecclestone, Charlie Dean, Sarah Glenn, Lauren Bell.
Scotland: Saskia Horley, Sarah Bryce (wk), Kathryn Bryce (c), Alisa Lister, Megan McColl, Darcey Carter, Lorna Jack-Brown, Katherine Fraser, Rachel Slater, Abtaha Maqsood, Olivia Bell.
Scotland win the toss and bat first
“Let’s put a bit of pressure on them and enjoy our last game.”
So says the Scottish skipper Kathryn Bryce. Not exactly rooted in hard number crunching, but it’s as good a reason as any to kick off with the willow.
Heather Knight would have batted first as well. She cites the wear and tear on the pitch that’s already been used twice. Could be good for England to chase again.
Some Sunday morning reading:
Barney Ronay on England’s male maestros:
Simon Burnton on the team’s wow factor:
James Wallace on one the group’s less celebrated figures:
Australia all but cemented their place in the last four, but their victory might be filed under P for ‘Pyrrhic’.
Their skipper, Alyssa Healy, limped off as she was steering her team to a comfortably run chase against Pakistan.
Healy could return to full match sharpness but the same is sadly not true for bowler Tayla Vlaemink who dislocated her shoulder while fielding.
Preamble
Daniel Gallan
England have their target in sight. A win today would effectively see them qualify for the semi-finals. But that’s not enough. Arguably the more important objective is to top the group and therefore avoid Australia in the first knock-out game. A win today over Scotland would bring them closer to their goal.
They were excellent against South Africa five days ago, timing their run-chase to perfection. There were splutters against Bangladesh, particularly with the bat, but their impressive battery of spinners secured a comfortable victory.
Of all the teams still in the fight for a semi-final berth from Group B – along with South Africa and the West Indies – England have the lowest run-rate. A better show with the willow today.
Toss and teams to come.
Play to start at 11am BST.
