Amy Jones sure Charlie Dean ready to captain England if Nat Sciver-Brunt absent

Amy Jones has no doubt Charlie Dean is ready to captain England into the T20 World Cup should Nat Sciver-Brunt miss the start of the tournament.

Sciver-Brunt missed the series win over New Zealand with a tear in her left calf and has also been ruled out of the three games against India, starting at Chelmsford on Thursday.

England remain hopeful over the 33-year-old’s chances of recovering in time but, with the curtain-raiser against Sri Lanka on June 12 there is no leeway for any further setbacks.

And while Sciver-Brunt’s match-winning qualities with the bat are virtually irreplaceable, wicketkeeper Jones has full confidence in Dean after her unexpected spell at the wheel.

Outstanding

“Nat has been around the group, leading in her own way off the field and in meetings, but Charlie has been brilliant in the way she’s stepped up and led the group,” she said.

“She’s been outstanding so that’s been pretty seamless. Hopefully when Nat is ready she comes back and it will be more of the same.

“We’ve got full confidence in Charlie whenever she needs to step up and captain and we know she’ll do an amazing job. Dani Gibson as vice-captain has shown some great leadership qualities too…the leadership group have it all in hand.”

After seeing off New Zealand 2-1, the difficulty rises again against one of the tournament favourites.

India sit just behind second-placed England in the ICC rankings but completed an impressive 3-2 victory when the sides met on these shores last summer.

“A hard-fought series with New Zealand then hopefully another good battle with India is excellent preparation,” said Jones.

“Hopefully we can get on top but we’ll also take a lot of learnings into the tournament having played some high-pressure games that will stand us in good stead.”

Danni Wyatt-Hodge has rejoined the squad after her partner gave birth to their first child but is not available until the second game in Bristol. That means another chance for Alice Capsey at the top of the order, where she could put pressure on Sophia Dunkley.

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