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Cricket - 24. January 2008.

Taylor has faith in England


 

England left Heathrow for the trip to the other side of the world on Monday safe in the knowledge that they only have to draw the one-off Test in February to secure they return with the ultimate prize - following their 2005 Ashes success.

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Taylor, who hit 43 in the first innings of the second Test which England won by six wickets during the 2005 Ashes success, was a member of the 2003 England side that drew one and lost one Test, and is determined that this time the trip home will be a victorious one.

Taylor told ecb.co.uk: “We have trained really well and the players are looking forward to it and of course the Test match is one of the key challenges of going to Australia. We did pretty well against them when we played them in England, in 2005.

“It is a case of hitting the ground running and getting as much time in the middle as you can during the training matches and then playing some good cricket in the one-dayers and the Twenty20 match.”


England have left nothing to chance and recently completed a training camp at the National Performance Centre in Loughborough.

Taylor continued: “We had a good run-in to Christmas and I then had a week off with my family over the festive period before the training camp at Loughborough in early 2008. There is only so much training you can do indoors.”

Six of the England side, including Jenny Gunn, are already out in Australia playing state cricket and Taylor reckons this can only be good for the touring side’s chances.

“Experience is going to be very important and we are expecting the girls who have been playing State cricket in Australia to give us the low-down on any new players. Perhaps where they like to hit the ball, she continued.

Both Katherine Brunt and Lynsey Askew are missing with injuries and the penetrative seam bowling that Brunt provides will be especially missed on the hard surfaces of Australia.

Taylor expanded: “We will miss Katherine Brunt - I think it is key in international cricket to have someone with a bit a pace to take the new ball and exploit it and get through to the middle-order.

"So there will be a bit of pressure on Jenny Gunn or Niki Shaw - whoever takes the new ball to pick up some early wickets."


Taylor will be facing Australia once more © Getty ImagesAlthough touring Australia is always an exhilarating experience it is not something new to Taylor who will be making her third trip and hoping to play in a one-day match.

“I have been out to Australia before twice - once in 2000 in a junior tour and I played in two Test during the 2003 England tour - but I am yet to play in one-day there," she stated.

England play a one-off Test at the Bradman Oval in Bowral, starting on 15 February and five one-day internationals at both the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and the Sydney Cricket Ground, plus a Twenty20 international at Melbourne, before heading off for a further five ODIs in New Zealand.

They return home in the early part of March 2008 and hopefully, unlike the recent 777 flight that crash landed at Heathrow, they will not come up short, when it matters.

By Tim Sanderson

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