Guha aiming to make history

Isa Guha is under no illusions that India are a markedly different proposition on their own turf than in English conditions

Isa Guha has challenged England women to break new ground when their tour of India gets under way next week.

Mark Lane’s side established themselves as the dominant force in the women’s game in 2009 by winning the World Cup, World Twenty20 and the Ashes.

However, they have never tasted a series victory on Indian soil, a fact Guha is keen to rectify when the teams meet in five one-day internationals and three Twenty20s.

England demolished India in the corresponding limited-overs campaign in England in 2008, but Guha told ecb.co.uk: “They play a lot better on home soil, so we’re expecting them to be much tougher to beat over there.

“It will be competitive. They are different conditions and they’ve got some talented players - Jhulan Goswami is the number one bowler in the world, Amita Sharma is a good batsman, Mithali Raj as well. We know how good they are.

“We’ve never won a one-day series in India, so that’s our next challenge. We’ve been working really hard towards that and we’re really looking forward to it.”

If England are to fill in this particular gap on their already glittering CV, they must do so without star batsman Claire Taylor.

She has been arguably the central figure in their unprecedented run of success in recent times, but is sitting out the trip as she takes a six-month break from the game.

“She’s a really important and experienced player for us and the team dynamic is bound to change even though it’s only one player who’s missing,” added Guha.

“But it will be good for us. It gives other players the opportunity to show what they can do someone else will bat at three, so we can see how they cope.

“We want to try different people batting in different positions, which is what Laney is all about anyway. He is really keen on pushing us, and challenging us to go out of our comfort zone. That’s why he’s been so great for the team.”