A new chapter has begun in England women’s cricket, and Charlotte Edwards is leading the charge. After the team’s devastating 16-0 Ashes defeat and an early T20 World Cup exit, the former England captain has taken over as head coach with a clear message: it’s time to raise standards—and accountability.
One of Edwards’ first priorities is player fitness, which had come under serious criticism during England’s recent failures. Before explaining her plan, she acknowledged the issue directly, “Clearly, we had to touch on the fitness issue,” she said.
She then outlined her initial six-month approach, “When I came in, I said it’s all about individual improvement for the first six months.”
With the 2026 T20 World Cup on the horizon, Edwards stressed the need for immediate personal development, “So before this, the World Cup, it’s about individuals improving as much as they can in that time.”
However, she made it clear she wouldn’t set unrealistic benchmarks from day one, “I’m not going to set fitness standards because there hadn’t been any standards in place, so I felt like I was defeating the object.”
England’s poor T20 World Cup performance last October exposed more than just fitness concerns. Fielding errors and shallow leadership options were critical failures.
The team dropped five catches, lost Heather Knight to injury, and allowed West Indies to chase down a modest total with ease—knocking England out at the group stage. With Knight no longer captain, and questions over depth in leadership, Edwards is establishing a flexible leadership group.
She explained how things will work under Nat Sciver-Brunt, “England will appoint a leadership group under Sciver-Brunt on a series-by-series basis for the next three or four series…”
For the current T20Is against West Indies, Amy Jones, Charlie Dean, and Sophia Dunkley will support Sciver-Brunt. Edwards is clearly looking to build a future-proof leadership team. Edwards is working closely with new selector Lydia Greenway, Clare Connor, and Jonathan Finch to strengthen the squad.
Emma Lamb has earned an ODI recall due to her domestic form—577 runs at an average of 82.42 in the Metro Bank One Day Cup. She replaces Maia Bouchier. Issy Wong, who faced rhythm and run-up struggles after a high at WPL 2023, is back. Another key addition is Emily Arlott, named in both the ODI and T20I squads. She’s yet to debut internationally but has impressed domestically.
Edwards shared her long-standing admiration, “Emily Arlott has put her hand up for a number of seasons but hasn’t been able to get herself into this group…..She’s an outstanding talent in terms of what she offers with the ball, but more importantly, her lower order hitting.”
Edwards wants England to develop not just skill, but also a ruthless mindset—especially in the field. Reflecting on past mistakes, she laid out her new standards, “When we get the opportunity in games, we’ve got to be really, really ruthless.”
Results alone won’t be enough, “We’ll be judging the team on whether we win and how we win and keep pushing ourselves in that respect…” However, she also warned against complacency,”…but we will in no way be underestimating the West Indies.”
Recalling the last T20 loss to them, she added, “The last time we played against them, they beat them in the big game, so we’ve got to be really respectful.”
Edwards is also focused on fielding revival, “Clearly, we want to field really well. That’s an area we’ve worked really hard on over the last few weeks…”
And it’s not just about the now—it’s about long-term planning,”…and hopefully bring energy in that area. We’ve got a 50-over World Cup ahead of us in six months and a T20 World Cup a year ahead…..so this T20 series is about looking at players in different roles and seeing how they perform.”
Edwards promised fresh coaching ideas, and she delivered. Australian Luke Williams is her first consultant appointment for the West Indies series. He brings global experience, having coached Adelaide Strikers in the WBBL, RCB in the WPL, and previously assisted Edwards at Southern Brave.
Charlotte Edwards isn’t just tweaking England Women’s cricket—she’s rebuilding it. With firm plans for fitness, leadership, player performance, and mentality, she’s drawing a clear line between what England were and what they must become. The roadmap is bold. The expectations are higher. And under Edwards, the future finally looks focused.
