The October heat of Guwahati will greet England when they open their World Cup campaign against South Africa. For now, though, the desert sun of Abu Dhabi has been their proving ground. England’s bowlers bent their backs against New Zealand in a warm-up fixture, and out of the dust came a figure who has quietly grown into one of their most important cricketers.
Charlie Dean, sleeves rolled up and eyes fixed on her mark, spun her way to 3 for 36 in nine overs. A tidy, telling performance, and one that secured England a three-wicket win.
It felt fitting. Dean has been carrying momentum with her for months. In August, she shouldered unexpected responsibility when Heather Knight’s hamstring injury forced her to step in as London Spirit’s captain in The Hundred.
She led them as far as the Eliminator, only to be stopped by eventual champions Northern Superchargers. Now, the 24-year-old off-spinner with four years of international cricket in her pocket stands on the brink of her second World Cup. And this one will be in India — a dream stage for a spinner.
Before the squad flew to the UAE, Dean summed up the feeling, “It’s a really exciting place to be a spinner.”
But with opportunity comes expectation. She knows the conditions could work in her favour — and against her if she falters, “I guess it comes with a bit of pressure, because you know that the conditions might suit you. But equally, there’s a lot of excitement about the opportunity that that brings.”
She will not be alone. England have packed their squad with spin: Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn, Linsey Smith, and Dean herself. It was that very strategy that cost seamer Kate Cross her place despite her 31 appearances since the last World Cup.
England’s 2022 campaign ended as runners-up in New Zealand, outclassed only by an all-conquering Australia. Three years on, the landscape looks different. India, playing at home, looms as contenders. England, meanwhile, arrives in what Dean calls a “rebirth” phase, “We’re in a bit of a rebirth kind of era with Nat coming in as captain, and Lottie as coach,” she said.
There is optimism in her voice as she speaks of new beginnings, “Hopefully that brings a new lease of life for some of the girls who have been around for a while. So it feels like a really exciting time for us. We’re trying to do a lot of learning and growth in a short period of time, so it feels like a perfect opportunity to see where we’re at.”
The underdog tag does not frighten her. In fact, she seems to welcome it, “Coming in, more as dark horses, is probably a great place for us to be. We know that on our best day, we can beat any team. We just need to pull out all the stops on that day.”
Not long ago, England endured a bruising Ashes series, losing 0-3 in January. The defeats left a mark. Dean admits the pain but insists the side is stronger than they showed, “There is a lot of experience in that team, so hopefully we can bounce back from the Ashes, which was a pretty tough time, but we all know that we are better cricketers than we showed over there. Hopefully we can keep practising and training under pressure and be able to perform in the games that count.”
Charlotte Edwards’ arrival as coach has already begun to steady the ship. The summer against India was proof of that — England lost both series, 2-1 in ODIs and 3-2 in T20Is, but gained from the intensity of the contests.
Dean has been struck by Edwards’ clarity, “Lottie brings in this air of calmness.” And she explains why that matters, “When she explains the game, she makes cricket seem like common sense, and half the time, it really isn’t. The way she thinks about the game is so clear. And that brings clarity to the group as well.”
If batting and bowling form the spine of England’s challenge, Dean believes the heartbeat lies elsewhere — in the field. Costly lapses in the past still haunt them, but she sees a chance to turn that into a strength, “It’s about flipping that narrative and seeing it as a way that we can really show off and prove people wrong. If we see that in little windows, then that’s perfect. Hopefully we can really push towards this World Cup and onwards.”
Few teams can rival England’s record on the world stage. Four titles — in 1973, 1993, 2009, and 2017 — make them one of the most decorated sides in women’s cricket. That 2017 triumph at Lord’s, where they edged India by just nine runs in a match for the ages, still echoes as one of the sport’s great moments.
Since then, the journey has been turbulent. England have played 41 ODIs since their 2022 runners-up finish, winning 25. In 2025, they managed four wins from nine matches, with the Ashes whitewash forcing a reckoning. Heather Knight stepped aside, Nat Sciver-Brunt took the reins, and Edwards began her tenure. The response was encouraging: a 3-0 sweep of West Indies in May–June. But consistency slipped again against India, who left with a 2-1 ODI series win.
And so England will arrive in India, neither favorites nor outsiders, but something in between — a team searching for balance, hungry for redemption, and armed with experience. For Dean, it feels like a moment of possibility. The stage is set, the pressure is real, but the story is still unwritten.
(Quotes sourced from the ESPN Cricinfo)
