England Women have announced their squad for the tour of India with three Kent players earning a call-up.

Bryony Smith, Alice Davidson-Richards and Katie George – of Surrey, Kent and Hampshire respectively – have been named in the full squad for the first time, while there are also returns for Kate Cross, Kent’s Tash Farrant and Amy Jones.

Meanwhile, Kent’s Tammy Beaumont will be one of the most senior players in the squad.

 

Heather Knight (captain, Berkshire)

Tammy Beaumont (Kent)

Kate Cross (Lancashire)

Alice Davidson-Richards (Kent)

Sophie Ecclestone (Lancashire)

Tash Farrant (Kent)

Katie George (Hampshire)

Jenny Gunn (Warwickshire)

Alex Hartley (Lancashire)

Danielle Hazell (Yorkshire)

Amy Jones (wicketkeeper, Warwickshire)

Nat Sciver (Surrey)

Anya Shrubsole (Somerset)

Bryony Smith (Surrey)

Fran Wilson (Middlesex)

Danni Wyatt (Sussex)

The sixteen-strong group doesn’t feature Sarah Taylor or Katherine Brunt, with Brunt unavailable after injuring her back during the Women’s Big Bash League and Taylor rested.

Coach Mark Robinson is looking forward to testing new players and adding new options to his squad in a year that sees England play host to New Zealand and South Africa and take part in the ICC World T20 in the West Indies.

“We’ve said for a long time that we need to play more games and it’s exciting that we’ve been able to arrange this very competitive series outside of the ICC Women’s Championship,” said Robinson.

“It gives us a chance to see other players and measure their progress and that also means we can rest and rotate. In Sarah’s case, she’s been doing really well and we always targeted this period as one where she can focus on her well-being in preparation for what will be a busy summer leading into the ICC World T20.

“It’s very exciting to have three new faces in the group – and to welcome back a few others. Obviously that means a few have missed out but they can use the time to their advantage and come back more strongly.”

March 22	1st IT20: India v Australia	Mumbai	9am local, 3.30am GMT
March 23	2nd IT20: Australia v England	Mumbai	9am (3.30am GMT)
March 25	3rd IT20: India v England	Mumbai	9am (4.30am BST)
March 26	4th IT20: India v Australia	Mumbai	9am (4.30am BST)
March 28	5th IT20: Australia v England	Mumbai	9am (4.30am BST)
March 29	6th IT20: India v England	Mumbai	9am (4.30am BST)
March 31	IT20 Final	Mumbai	9am (4.30am BST)
April 6	1st ODI: India v England	Nagpur	10am local, 5.30am BST
April 9	2nd ODI: India v England	Nagpur	10am (5.30am BST)
April 12	3rd ODI: India v England	Nagpur	10am (5.30am BST)