England Women’s U19s get their World Cup campaign in Malaysia underway tomorrow (Saturday January 18) in Malaysia.
In the last edition of the tournament - the first to be held - Grace Scivens's England team made it all the way to the final, losing to India.
Captain Abi Norgrove, batter Davina Perrin and all-rounder Trudy Johnson tell us what they’re looking to achieve as a team this time round.
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Davina Perrin: I was lucky enough to be selected for the last U19 World Cup, in 2023, when we got to the final against India and it’s a special experience to be a part of two World Cups.
There are a lot of learnings you can take from having previously gone through this experience, like how the World Cup format works and how to play knock-out cricket.
It takes a bit of getting used to playing cricket as competitive as this, against other countries, on surfaces and in conditions that you’ve never experienced before. So having been able to compete in South Africa already, I have definitely found that beneficial and hopefully I can use that to help the group.
When we were out in South Africa, we didn’t know what to expect. We didn’t know what the competition was going to be like, and it actually exceeded our expectations in terms of the amount of media coverage and attention. It’s really exciting to see that, and hopefully it is going to be similar again this time.
Abi Norgrove: I was at University when Guesty [Chris Guest] called me up to ask me to captain the side. I had literally just woken up! It was pretty surreal.
I couldn’t believe it when he told me. I rang my parents up straight away and they couldn’t believe it too.
It is such an honour to be able to lead this group. We all get on so well. We have all bonded really well. I remember watching the last competition and it was amazing to watch, so to be a part of it is a huge opportunity.
Trudy Johnson: Unlike Davina and Abi, I haven’t yet made my England debut so hopefully that will come on this trip.
The first week out here has been really good, we’ve had two warm-up games so far and to get on to the pitch in the shirt for the first time was so special. To officially make my debut would be a massive moment for me.
Being out here is very different to anything I’ve ever done before. It’s been nice to learn from other more experienced girls that have played previously. Having that support around you really helps and I just can’t wait to get going.
Davina Perrin: One thing that we’ve seen so far is some results in the warm-up games that you might not expect. We saw the USA beat New Zealand, and Nigeria nearly got a win over Pakistan.
I think that’s amazing. It’s a real sign of the growth of the women’s game and the trajectory that it’s on. It’s an opportunity to look to the future, with teams like Nigeria here, who I don’t think were involved in the last tournament. We were watching their game against Pakistan and Bangladesh, and we thought they put up a really good challenge for those teams and they looked really promising.
We beat Samoa in our first warm-up game but came out the wrong side of a super over against Bangladesh. You want to win every game, but that was a great experience for us. Particularly as it went to a super over, something that our squad or their team hadn’t experienced before.
We’ve already stepped into a new environment and had new challenges and a super over just adds to that. It shows how exciting this competition can be and we are all really looking forward to taking it head on.
Abi Norgrove: I agree with Davina, the warm-up games where the so-called smaller teams really put up a fight against the bigger teams really shows the growth of the women’s game.
This tournament creates a platform for players and shows that all the nations that are here are here to compete. It is quite a tight competition. We saw that when we faced Bangladesh, who are a really good side and we have got to remember that when we compete against these so-called smaller nations, and take them head on as Davina said.
Trudy Johnson: It's been amazing out here so far. A lot of cricket but also a lot of new experiences.
We normally train in the morning or mid-afternoon, all the usual nets, fielding practice etc. Then we normally have a few meetings around that, and we generally get the afternoon off or in the gym.
I really enjoyed the ICC photoshoot, it was fun because you can be quite creative with it, do any TikToks you want to do and get any photos you want. Overall, it’s been really good so far.
Abi Norgrove: The team did so well last time to get to the final and obviously we’d love to replicate that and go one step further.
Grace Scrivens did an amazing job as captain. My personality is quite different to Grace’s, but I hope to follow in her footsteps.
Down at Hampshire I have been captained by Georgia Adams quite a bit, so I aspire to be like her. She is very cool, calm and collected, so I try to be a captain like her. I’m also trying to do it in my own way and make my own strides. I’ve had lots of conversations about communicating well with the players, quietly and directly.
Davina Perrin: As a team we are very much centred around trying to play a positive brand of cricket, with great intent.
From our training camps and leading into this tournament we have been talking about the three E’s: Embracing challenge, evolving as a team and enjoying the ride along the way. That encapsulates what we stand for as a group and how we are going to tackle this competition.
Abi Norgrove: Obviously we have a lot of very talented players on our team and hopefully we’ll all show what we can do but in terms of the other countries there are a few players to keep an eye out for.
Australia captain Lucy Hamilton is one. We played her in Sri Lanka and thought she was a very good player. She’s an all-rounder, bowler predominantly, but can bat as well.
Davina Perrin: Hasrat Gill is another one, from India. She got picked up in the WPL and has had a good start with the bat here, getting a score in one of the warm-up games. We played against her on tour as well and her leggies are very good too. Off the back of the Malaysia Cup, there is a player from India called G Trisha and she can really hit a ball, definitely one to look out for.
England Women’s ICC Women’s U19 World Cup Fixtures (All fixtures available to watch live on Sky Sports)
Saturday January 18, 2.30am GMT: England Women U19 v Ireland Women U19, Johor
Monday January 20, 6.30am GMT: England Women U19 v Pakistan Women U19, Johor
Wednesday January 22, 2.30am GMT: England Women U19 v USA Women U19, Johor
Saturday January 25-Wednesday January 29: Super Six stage
Friday January 31: ICC Women’s U19 World Cup Semi-Final
Sunday February 2: ICC Women's U19 World Cup Final