England coach Jon Lewis has expressed his disappointment at the lack of proper training opportunities at the Women's T20 World Cup after his side crashed out of the group stage following a thumping loss against West Indies in Dubai.
England crashed out of the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup after their six-wicket loss against West Indies in their last group fixture. They were well on course to make yet another semi-final with three wins in as many matches, but the big loss saw West Indies and South Africa leapfrog them on net run-rate to seal a semi-final berth. This is the first time England haven’t reached the tournament's knockout phase in seven seasons, having previously missed it in 2010.
England were sloppy on the field, dropping as many as five catches, all of West Indies opener Qiana Joseph, who struck a match-winning 38-ball 52. This was England's first match in Dubai at this World Cup, having played their first three games in Sharjah. The Dubai International Stadium has lights all around the edge of its roof, also called the 'ring of fire', which has proven to be a massive challenge for fielding sides throughout the tournament.
Lewis points at lack of training at the Dubai International Stadium
Lewis voiced his discontent about the lack of training opportunities at the venue: "No one's had an opportunity to train here (Dubai International Stadium). We've been training in the ICC Academy down the road."
All 10 participating sides have been training at the ICC Academy. Scotland and India are the only teams who have also trained at another venue - Sharjah. Scotland did so earlier during the tournament while India practiced there ahead of their Australia game.
No player gets above eight in England's T20 World Cup campaign, which was on track before a defeat to West Indies knocked them out.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) October 16, 2024
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When asked whether he knew about India's centre-wicket practice session at the venue of one of their group stage games, something which England couldn't do in Dubai, Lewis said: "I didn't know they did that. I didn't know. India can pretty much do what they like, can't they? Is that how it works?"
However, an ICC spokesperson clarified to ESPNCricinfo that, "All other teams had the opportunity of training in Sharjah," but none asked except India. Like England, India didn't practice at the Dubai International Stadium either throughout the tournament.
New Zealand and West Indies are expected to have a training session on Thursday (October 17) ahead of the second semi-final on Friday (October 18). Australia and South Africa will play the first in Dubai on Thursday.
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