Kate Cross sees The Hundred as critical opportunity for T20 World Cup chance

Kate Cross sees The Hundred as critical opportunity for T20 World Cup chance
Kate Cross sees The Hundred as critical opportunity for T20 World Cup chance
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As the cricketing world gears up for the T20 World Cup, England’s Kate Cross remains hopeful about securing a spot in the squad for this year’s tournament. Despite a focus on ODIs, Cross views the upcoming Hundred tournament as a critical opportunity to showcase her skills and make a compelling case for her inclusion in the T20 World Cup squad.

Relentless Pursuit of a T20 Spot

Cross is determined to seize her chance during the Hundred, where she will be opening the bowling for the Superchargers. “Lewy’s said, ‘never say never,’ with T20 cricket, he’s said he’s definitely not ruled me out for future series or games,” she remarked. “But I can just control what I can control, and I know I’ve got the Hundred coming up where I’ll be able to open the bowling and try and finish games off for the Superchargers.”

For Cross, the Hundred represents a platform to demonstrate her capabilities to head coach Jon Lewis. “That’s my opportunity to showcase to him what I can do, and if that’s good enough, it’s good enough, and if it’s not, then I’ll obviously support the girls from quite a distance as I won’t be in Bangladesh,” she added.

Return to Form in ODIs

Recently, Cross made a successful return to England’s ODI side, helping secure an eight-wicket victory over New Zealand in Worcester after recovering from an abdominal strain. Although her current focus is on ODIs, Cross is keen to prove her worth for the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October. Lewis has not ruled her out for future T20 series, and Cross intends to use every opportunity to impress.

“We are probably more focused on the T20 World Cup at the minute, obviously that’s the one more in front of us, but we’re still trying to evolve our 50-over game as well to make sure that we are as well prepared as we possibly can be when it gets to that Ashes series,” Cross stated. “And when we get to the World Cup in India, obviously conditions in India will be so different to what we’re facing at the minute.”

Challenges and Statistics

Cross’s last appearance in a T20I was in late summer last year, and she hasn’t taken a wicket in the format since the Women’s Ashes in 2019. With 11 wickets from 16 T20I matches at an average of 33.72 and an economy rate of 7.22, her T20 career statistics highlight both her potential and areas for improvement. She was not included in the squad for the T20Is in New Zealand earlier this year or the three against Pakistan recently.

In the second ODI against New Zealand, Cross’s performance was notable, taking 1 for 31 from 10 overs and contributing to bowling out the White Ferns for 141, with Sophie Ecclestone claiming 5 for 25.

Future Aspirations and Team Dynamics

If she is overlooked for the T20 World Cup, Cross will aim for the ODI World Cup next year in India. England is currently focusing on the T20 World Cup but also preparing for the ODI World Cup and the multi-format Ashes series in Australia. Cross emphasized the importance of playing to win and adapting to conditions to be well-prepared for big ICC events.

“We’ve worked on developing a ruthless streak since the series against Pakistan, aiming to maintain a winning mindset,” Cross said. “We probably had a series against Pakistan a couple of weeks ago where we maybe didn’t play the kind of cricket that we wanted to. That was something that we chatted quite thoroughly about and how we wanted to go about this series, and that’s probably shown in the cricket that we’ve played.”

The team is still learning to be consistently ruthless, adapting to different conditions and opposition. Cross noted that England has not lost an ODI series under head coach Jon Lewis, indicating some level of ruthlessness in their play. “That’s something that we’re still learning as a group. We’ve still got a lot of young faces around… there’s still a lot of inexperience in the group, and I think everyone now is trying to work out how they individually can be ruthless whilst we’re still trying to be ruthless as a team. I say that… we’ve not lost an ODI series under Lewy yet. So there’s obviously a ruthless element in that.”

Also, see:

How have Pakistan qualified for 2026 T20 World Cup?

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