England arrive for Women’s World Cup
England arrived here yesterday to a festive Caribbean welcome, becoming the first international side to touch down for the historic ICC Women’s Twenty20 World Cup which bowls off next month.
The reigning 50-over World Cup champions, coach Mark Robinson said England would be keen on adding a second white ball title to their trophy cabinet.
“You don’t go anywhere and try to lose or to come second so you always plan to win,” Robinson said on arrival.
“We are pleased to be here where the weather is fantastic, so it’s a big bonus to be here. We have been preparing for three to four weeks at Loughborough, so there is the advantage to come here to this lovely island and get some more time in the nets and matches against quality opposition is ideal for us.”
He continued: “We have two official warm-up matches and two other matches so we are looking to use these matches and get the right kind of preparations, which will be invaluable. It’s bit by bit as we move on in the tournament.
“We have the preparations and then we go into the group stage and the first objective will be to get out of the group stage and on to the semis and the final. This is going to be a keenly contested tournament. It is really exciting.”
England were the toast of the cricket world last year when they beat India to win the 50-over World Cup before a capacity crowd at Lord’s.
The triumph signalled a giant step forward for the women’s game, a fact acknowledged by Robinson, and success in the T20 World Cup would be another fillip for the side.
England also have former Jamaica and Windies allrounder Gareth Breese in their ranks as one of the assistant coaches.