Freya Kemp set to bat at No. 5 at Edgbaston in allrounder’s absence
Valkerie Baynes10-May-2024Nat Sciver-Brunt will miss England’s opening T20I against Pakistan at Edgbaston on Saturday after undergoing a “minor medical procedure”, her captain Heather Knight has revealed on the eve of the match.Knight said the absence of allrounder Sciver-Brunt opened the door for left-hander Freya Kemp to bat at No. 5. Allrounder Kemp is in England’s T20I squad purely as a batter as she continues her return from a back problem.”Nat Sciver-Brunt is unavailable tomorrow,” Knight told reporters on Friday. “She’ll be available for the next game. She’s had a minor medical procedure, so this game tomorrow comes a little bit too soon for her.”We obviously played those three T20s in New Zealand without her as well and without a few other players, so that gave us an opportunity to find out about a few people and add to our depth a little bit. There’s some good young allrounders coming through. Dani Gibson has been impressive, particularly with the ball at the back end. Freya Kemp is obviously a massive clean ball-striker and a left-hander which we don’t have a lot of in England, and when she’s back bowling as well, she’ll become a real asset.”There’s some really good talent coming through. It is just about guiding those younger players and keeping them on the right track to fulfil the potential that they have.”Related
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Maia Bouchier enjoyed a breakthrough tour of New Zealand in March, making the most of her opportunities at the top of the order amid the late arrivals of Danni Wyatt and Sciver-Brunt from the WPL as England won the T20I series 4-1.That tour was an important stepping stone in England’s build-up to the T20 Women’s World Cup in Bangladesh in October, as is this visit by Pakistan and the upcoming home series against New Zealand in June and July.”In New Zealand I felt like our T20 game evolved a little bit,” Knight said. “We played on pitches that were slightly more tricky in the powerplay, slightly bigger boundaries, and we had to play a slightly different game. That was really good for us. It probably added a few more tools in our bag and made us be a bit smarter with how we attacked, and how we put pressure back on the bowlers. There was a lot more hitting into pockets, hitting twos, it was harder to hit sixes out there.”I feel like that’s evolved us a lot as a side and evolved our method a little bit. That’s going to be the same in Bangladesh, it’s conditions that we haven’t played a huge amount of cricket in as a squad, so it’s about having as many skills in our cricket toolbox to try and call upon when we need them, and building settled positions. As a bowling unit as well, having different people to bowl in different positions and giving opportunities as and when there is the chance to do that.”Heather Knight during a practice session in Birmingham•PA Images via Getty Images
Meanwhile Pakistan are coming off the back of a disappointing tour by West Indies, who won their T20I series 4-1 and swept the ODIs 3-0. But Knight said there would be no complacency in her side as a result.”They’ve had some good results as well in New Zealand, they won that series away, which is a really good result for them,” Knight said of a Pakistan side captained by Nida Dar since last year, taking over from Bismah Maroof who recently retired from international cricket.”They’ve also got a new captain and a few retirements in their team and that quite often I think brings energy and reinvigorates the team, so we’re certainly not underestimating them at all. They’ve obviously got a few gaps to fill, so it’d be interesting who they bring in and what young talent they potentially bring in. It’ll be a good challenge for us.”The match in Birmingham is the first of three T20Is between the sides, with games in Northampton and Leeds to follow ahead of a three-match ODI series.
