By Milly McEvoy
England seamer Lauren Bell is confident the momentum built during last year’s Ashes series will carry over and create another historic summer.
Bell was part of the England side that took on Australia across all three formats of the game, including a first-ever women’s Test in England, in a series that broke records for sell-out crowds and TV viewers.
Over 110,000 fans attended a Women’s Ashes game and Bell hopes those numbers will only continue to grow this summer, as Pakistan and New Zealand both tour ahead of the T20 World Cup in October.
Action began against Pakistan at Edgbaston on Saturday, with over 12,000 spectators watching England win by 53 runs, and Bell is chomping at the bit to both take wickets and inspire the next generation.
We are thrilled to announce the launch of The Metro Bank Girls In Cricket Fund together with @ECB_cricket
We want to 👇
• Triple the number of girls’ teams by the end of 2026 ✅
• Increase the number of volunteers & coaches in girls’ cricket ✅
• Create a new generation of… pic.twitter.com/6T2nfVUPnc— Metro Bank (@Metro_Bank) May 9, 2024
“It’s a lot of excitement,” she said. “It’s growing and it’s new for everyone in the team, so it’s really exciting. It shows how far the game has come and we want to push it even further.
“We don’t want to stop where we are now.
“The Ashes last summer was such a success and it has been the platform for women’s cricket to grow. We sold out crowds and there were so many fans there so it got a lot of eyes on women’s cricket and allowed us to show who we are as well as just cricketers.
“They have been inspired from last summer and they want to come back.
“It wasn’t just because it was an Ashes series, they want to come and watch us play cricket. If we keep playing the same brand of cricket we’ve been playing for the last 18 months, hopefully it will get even more people to come and watch.”
The ongoing series against Pakistan is the first time Bell has faced them in her career and she is looking to build on impressive figures of 3-22 in the opener.
“They are really strong, they have had some really good results,” she said.
“A lot of the time we focus on ourselves and not much will change for this series.
“What I do best and what I want to do doesn’t change because it’s what I’m good at. I will just make sure I know the players.
“I won’t have seen many clips so I will see how they bat, any strengths or weaknesses. A lot of it is focusing on me, and if I do what I do best against anyone it will work itself out.”
The three-game T20 series will be followed by a three-game ODI series at the end of May before New Zealand arrive for a five-day T20 and three-day ODI series in June and July.
It is all ideal practice ahead of the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October, where England have eyes on a first title since the inaugural edition in 2009 alongside writing the wrongs of their 2023 semi-final exit.
Bell will also be out to inspire the next generation of cricketers, following the announcement of more support for girls’ cricket through the Metro Bank Girls in Cricket Fund.
Co-designed and jointly funded by Metro Bank and ECB, focuses on recruiting, educating, supporting, and celebrating the people that make girls’ cricket in clubs happen, with the ambition to triple the number of girls’ teams at clubs by the end of 2026.
And Bell believes she can play her role by dazzling with the ball in hand on the international stage to show young girls what they can achieve.
“Women’s cricket is going up and up, I personally can try and have a big part to play in that,” she said. “I feel like the luckiest person, I have the best job.
“Series when you have come home from being away all winter are just so exciting. You get a chance to play in front of home crowds, inspire the main people you are wanting to inspire.
“The fact I am myself hopefully inspires some girls to play. I am a lot girlier than a lot of the other girls, I like getting my nails done, making sure my hair is perfect for games.
“That’s just how I am, that’s hopefully how a lot of girls may see me and think ‘oh I can play cricket and get my nails done’.”
Lauren Bell was speaking on behalf of Metro Bank. Head to metrobankonline.co.uk/cricket where you can discover more about the Metro Bank Girls In Cricket Fund, and help to champion the future of girls’ cricket.
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