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She wasn’t Bangladesh’s only match-winner, but Marufa’s hooping deliveries set the tone for victory

Andrew Fidel Fernando02-Oct-2025Imagine having taken almost 18% of the pace-bowling ODI wickets your country has ever got, all by yourself. Imagine having done all that in less than four years in internationals, before you turn 21. Then imagine that, in your first ever World Cup match, your captain throws you the new ball to set the team’s campaign into motion, and in that tone-setting over, you bowl spectacular deliveries back-to-back to dismiss two batters, one of whom is the opposition’s best.Welcome to the life of Marufa Akter. If you are new here (many of us are), there are two internet pages worthy of your consideration. If you are a numbers person, try this link and note her figures in Asia, in particular. If you’re more of a visual learner (and even if you’re not, this one will still electrify you), try this clip of her taking her wickets.Note that she is not merely “swinging” these deliveries. Marufa is them. Sending them around a corner, like a stock car on slick tyres, drifting around a bend. Like a planet falling into orbit having shot too close to a star.Related

• Young ones to watch: Kranti Goud, Georgia Voll and Lauren Bell prepare to light up World Cup

• Bowlers, Haider propel Bangladesh to second win at World Cup

• Bangladesh coach Sarwar Imran returns to work days after suffering minor stroke

Colombo’s humid conditions are generally good for new-ball swing, and great inswing bowlers have operated here before. But the last time this Khettarama Stadium saw a right-arm bowler send such unplayable bananas down the track, Nuwan Kulasekara was the architect. But Kulasekara played 20 ODIs at this venue. Marufa was doing it in her first ever ODI in the country.”I know my balls swing more, more, more,” Marufa said in English, which is a distant second language for her, roughly six hours after her opening spell. And still “more, more, more” catches the spirit of the amount of swing she was getting. She went on, in English, to try and explain what her last thoughts before she went to bed were: “Always, I’ve been thinking, how to do well in the first match, and be the matchwinner.”Others would take up the mantle and drive home the advantage that Marufa won. Shorna Akter, the only bowler to turn the ball significantly in this match, took three wickets for five runs. Nahida Akter also took two wickets, but for 19 runs, when Marufa gave away 31. There was no doubt as to who had set the tone for this Bangladesh win, however. Those two hooping inswingers should now become articles of excellence in the World Cup lore.Right-arm bowlers bowling inswing to right-arm batters is understood to be one of the oldest hustles in this sport. Many right-armers anyway generate inswing to right-handers, who are taught by coaches from childhood upwards never to keep a gap in between bat an pad.But the best inswing bowlers, like Marufa against Pakistan, upset this paradigm. The best inswing bowlers that gap between bat and pad, starting wide of the stumps, swinging from the hand, but then continuing to swing at increasingly sharp angles.The Marufa ball to Omaima Sohail may perhaps be a life highlight – the cricket ball swerving dramatically past all hard objects until the top of leg stump is found. The next ball was perhaps less impressive, but had more impact. Marufa started this inswinger waaay outside off. Having seen her team-mate’s stumps rattled, Sidra Amin – Pakistan’s best batter this year – maybe felt the need to play. She was good enough to get an inside edge to a ball that was swinging prodigiously; unfortunately for her, it richocheted into her leg stump.After the match, Pakistan captain Fatima Sana said that Marufa’s early wickets had suggested that seamers would thrive on this pitch. But Pakistan’s quicks couldn’t quite find the same impact.’We really enjoyed bowling with the new ball as the ball was seaming around,” Sana said. “Danny [Diana Baig] also felt the same. So we were trying to take early wickets but unfortunately we could take only one wicket each. We saw Marufa bowled well, so we knew there would be help for pacers.”How Marufa develops remains to be seen, but at age 20 she is already making matchwinning contributions. And in her first over at a big one-day tournament, she bowled two deliveries this World Cup could be remembered by.

The doom and gloom currently engulfing Leeds United is strong.

At Elland Road this season, the Whites have looked like a competent Premier League outfit, in all fairness, as was showcased in their 2-1 win over West Ham United to close out October.

But, Daniel Farke and Co cannot rely on their home form all season long to keep them away from the dreaded relegation spaces, with their away record an abysmal read at the moment.

Only three of Leeds’ 11 points so far this season have been picked up on their disappointing travels, with all of their defeats on the road also seeing the top-flight newcomers offer up very little in an attacking capacity.

The 3-0 loss last time out at Brighton and Hove Albion was an alarming reminder of the gulf in quality between Leeds and the likes of Fabian Hurzeler’s Seagulls, with Leeds reduced to a relegation-fodder state at the Amex.

Strangely, though, Leeds have pulled off some memorable bits of business this summer that have stuck out amid all the hopelessness, with Noah Okafor already up to two goals at his new employers, as the Whites are usually prone to a transfer clanger or two.

Ranking Leeds' transfer business in recent history

Switzerland international, Okafor, has already been described as a “class difference-maker” by Leeds content creator Oscar Marrio for his goal-laden displays in West Yorkshire.

Successfully completing five dribbles against the rampant Seagulls, too, it will be interesting to see if the Whites can avoid the drop, courtesy of the risky £18m acquisition bombing down the flanks.

The likes of Sean Longstaff and Anton Stach have also stood out in midfield, after joining from Newcastle United and Hoffenheim respectively, with the energy that Okafor offers in spades also visible in this new duo.

Two Premier League strikes have also already been put away by the ex-Magpies star, and his Croat counterpart, with Longstaff even being labelled as “one of the best signings in the Premier League” this summer by journalist Daniel Storey.

Often, comments about Leeds’ recent purchases haven’t always been so complimentary, with the Whites’ summer business heading into 2022/23 – which ended in a pitiful Premier League relegation – sticking out as being full of blunders.

Luis Sinisterra certainly stands out as being a transfer deal gone wrong, with the £21m winger billed as an “animal” by ex-teammate Juan Cuadrado on this entry to England, only for the Colombian to score a weak five goals in the Premier League donning Leeds white, during what was an injury-ravaged stint.

The likes of Rasmus Kristensen, Tyler Adams, and many more around this same time period aren’t remembered fondly, either, as they all left the Leeds train at the earliest possible opportunity, after relegation was confirmed.

Another name that springs to mind is Helder Costa. Costing £12m to obtain under the great Marcelo Bielsa, he then only made an unmemorable 23 Premier League appearances in West Yorkshire.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin will be praying that he’s not recounted in the same dismissive manner down the line, as the ex-Everton marksman continues to struggle to find his goalscoring groove at Elland Road.

The former England international does have the bonus that he was acquired on a free transfer, so he doesn’t have a weighty Sinisterra-like price tag hanging above his head.

Still, with only one goal coming his way so far this season, he isn’t immune to pelters, with ex-Premier League scout Bryan King even stating recently that he isn’t the “right striker fit” for Leeds if they desperately crave goals to stave off the drop.

It’s too early to judge whether he’s an outright flop, though, but the early signs are concerning. He isn’t alone in being deemed a shaky summer signing, however.

Leeds flop could be seen as one of their worst signings

Heading into top-flight action this season, it was clear Leeds needed to successfully find a long-term replacement for Illan Meslier.

The Frenchman was so error-prone last campaign that £400k recruit Karl Darlow had to be thrown in for the latter matches of the campaign, so their promotion charge wasn’t sabotaged.

Unfortunately, Lucas Perri’s £13.9m arrival this summer from Lyon hasn’t instantly eased the goalkeeping nerves that plagued their Championship promotion story.

The Brazilian stopper joined the building having been branded as an “outstanding” shot-stopper by South American football expert Nathan Joyes, having collected a promising ten clean sheets last season in Ligue 1 action.

He started life in England with two clean sheets collected from his first three Premier League clashes, too, but he has looked worryingly ropey when Leeds have been under the cosh.

In particular, his showing away at Brighton would see journalist Adam Pope criticise the 27-year-old for the amount of “unnecessary” decisions he was making with the ball at his feet that just ramped up more pressure on the all-at-sea defenders on the South Coast.

The table above doesn’t lie, either, when looking at Pope’s comments, with Perri only managing to accurately complete 53% of his passes so far this season, as the likes of Jayden Bogle and Gabriel Gudmundsson were then put under far more strain than necessary at the Amex.

Moreover, Perri has the worst save percentage among the 21 goalkeepers to have played five or more games so far this season in the Premier League, with nine efforts being hammered past the new Leeds number one, despite only facing 18 total shots.

Amazingly, Leeds might well have just been better sticking it out with their trusty second-in-command from last season in Darlow, with the experienced Welshman managing to make 13 saves across his own span of five Premier League encounters.

At £13.9m, Perri is yet to live up to his high transfer fee, with the highly praised Longstaff even coming into the building for a lower fee himself, at the £12m range.

Even Meslier would come away from his 2022/23 efforts in the top-flight with a higher accurate pass percentage average next to his name, with a worry now that Leeds have forked out significant wads of cash on a ‘keeper who isn’t a noticeable upgrade on what they already had.

The same could be said about Calvert-Lewin, arguably, – if you remove talk of transfer fees – with golden-boot winning Joel Piroe up top now frozen out completely, despite collecting a blistering 19 strikes on the way to promotion being clinched.

Thankfully, Calvert-Lewin’s woes in front of goal have been regularly bailed out already by the likes of Okafor stepping up to the mark as a far more impactful new addition.

In between the sticks, though, it’s harder to go under the radar for your mistakes and errors, with a worry that more unconvincing performances from the £13.9m ‘keeper to come could result in Leeds hurtling straight back down to the second tier.

This would be a gigantic disappointment, with Perri once judged as a clean slate in goal, who could break away from the shoddy days of Meslier.

Leeds star was "indispensable" to Farke, now he's as droppable as Aaronson

This Leeds United star who was once dubbed as a necessary cog is now struggling in the Premier League.

By
Kelan Sarson

Nov 5, 2025

The Pittsburgh Pirates thought they'd hit their stride after defeating the St. Louis Cardinals in a three-game series which ran from June 30 to July 2. The Pirates didn't surrender a single run all series against their division rivals and then set off for the Pacific Northwest in hopes of staying hot against the Seattle Mariners.

Fresh off their three consecutive shutouts in their sweep of the Cardinals, Pittsburgh's bats were unable to stay hot. In a stunning turn, the Pirates proceeded to drop all three games of the series against the Mariners and failed to put up a single run of their own.

According to Opta Stats, that's the first time in MLB history a team has had "back-to-back series of three-plus games with a sweep of shutouts for and against, in either order."

That's baseball for you.

Paul Skenes, who was named a National League All-Star on Sunday, started the rubber match of the series in Seattle. He struck out 10 across five scoreless innings before being removed at just 78 pitches. The Pirates surrendered a home run in the sixth inning and lost the game, 1–0.

They'll hope to avoid making it four straight shutouts when they take the field on Monday against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.

Marcus Stoinis takes 2 for 0 to break crucial Superchargers stand between Harry Brook and Graham Clarke

ECB Media10-Aug-2025Trent Rockets beat Northern Superchargers by five wickets at Trent Bridge to continue their 100 percent start to The Hundred this season.In front of their home fans for the first time this campaign, Rockets – who beat Birmingham Phoenix at Edgbaston on Friday – restricted Andrew Flintoff’s Superchargers to 128 for 9 from their 100 balls and won with relative lack of alarm, though Superchargers did well to take the game deep.Runs were perhaps expected given the weather and the manner in which Superchargers women’s team batted in the day’s first game, but on a dry surface the ball gripped and few batters seemed able to bat with much freedom. That meant the Rockets never ran away with the chase but they had enough to see it home with four balls to spare.With the ball, spinners Akeal Hosein and Rehan Ahmed took two wickets apiece for the hosts and never allowed the Superchargers to get going, though it was Australian allrounder Marcus Stoinis who broke the most crucial partnership, that of top-scorer Harry Brook and Graham Clarke, who put on 56. Stoinis would go on to take two wickets in two balls, and conceded no runs from his five balls.It was a similar tale when it was time for Superchargers to defend, with Imad Wasim taking two wickets in two balls, and three overall, and Adil Rashid giving next to nothing away alongside two wickets, but Stoinis and Adam Hose scrambled Trent Rockets home with four balls remaining in front of 13,497 happy home fans.Meerkat Match Hero Akeal Hosein said: “I was grateful for that start [two early wickets] and thankful to be able to put my team in a winning position early on.”I think both ends of the wicket played differently. The top end here where I started off, it was a bit sticky, it gripped a bit, and then when I went on the other end it was a bit low and skiddy, so it’s about just working out what works well at each end and sticking to that plan for as long as possible.”It’s a happy bunch. It’s a talented bunch as well, and we have one goal in mind. Whenever the ball is thrown to us, it’s our opportunity to make it happen for the team. It’s very good to have a good group of bowlers. So even if it doesn’t go your way on that day, you know you’ve got your brothers to cover you.”On the close finish, he added: “I walked across from the dressing room with all confidence. I had no pads on, you know? So that’s the confidence I had in the boys to get over the line. But with that being said, it was closer than we would have liked, but we were glad to get over the line.”

Mathis Albert made history for the U.S. U-17s, firing a decisive 39th-minute strike to seal a 1-0 win over the Czech Republic and a perfect group-stage record – the first in program history. The victory at ASPIRE Academy in Doha capped three straight wins in Group F, sending the Americans into the knockout rounds with maximum points.

• Albert's finish caps historic group stage

  After entering as a halftime substitute for Jamir Johnson, Mathis Albert made an immediate impact, breaking the deadlock with a well-placed right-footed finish from inside the box following an excellent assist from Máximo Carrizo.

  The 23-year-old forward, who had been threatening the Czech defense throughout the second half with multiple attempts, finally found the breakthrough that proved to be the difference in a tightly contested match. Albert's goal continued his impressive tournament form, having already showcased his technical ability with three successful dribbles in earlier group matches.

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  Defensive resilience complements attacking flair

  The United States' perfect group stage record represents a significant milestone for the program, which had never previously won all three group matches in any U17 World Cup appearance. Coach Michael Nsien's squad demonstrated remarkable balance throughout the group phase, with Albert's winner against the Czechs complementing earlier victories over Tajikistan and a strong European opponent in their opening matches.

• Knockout round contenders

  The perfect group stage record not only secures the United States a favorable position in the knockout bracket but also signals the continued development of American youth soccer on the international stage. With players like Albert and creative midfielder Nimfasha Berchimas the U.S. team has demonstrated both technical quality and tactical maturity beyond their years.

  As they prepare for the Round of 16, the young Americans will look to build on their historic group stage performance and make a deeper run in the tournament than any previous U.S. U17 squad.

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• Tournament success highlights promising generation

  The perfect record achieved by this U17 squad provides a timely boost for U.S. Soccer's youth development pipeline as the nation prepares to co-host the 2026 World Cup. The standouts from this tournament could potentially gain future opportunities with the senior side in the years to come. 

With the PSL clashing with the IPL, partial player availability was not a concern for the first time

Danyal Rasool13-Jan-2025The PSL moved into the IPL window this year, to improve the quality and availability of overseas players they’d be able to sign. On that count, the calculated risk they took appears to have paid off, with the roster for the tenth edition of the PSL including the widest array of high-profile overseas players they have managed in the post-covid era.David Warner, Daryl Mitchell, Jason Holder, Rassie van der Dussen and Kane Williamson were among the biggest names the PSL signed up at the draft this year, held at the sprawling Hazuri Bagh at Lahore Fort. While the ceremony itself was a stuttering, protracted affair, which, from start to finish, lasted a whopping seven hours, the cack-handed packaging should not detract from what may be a very decent product after all.For the first time, partial player availability, so often a hindrance during earlier editions, was not a concern. The only other cricket during the time the PSL will be played – between early April and late May – is IPL 2025. The IPL auction has concluded, and any players left over are definitively available, effectively meaning every player in the draft had communicated their complete willingness to participate in the PSL in full.Related

• Islamabad United vs Lahore Qalandars to kick off PSL 2025 on April 11; final on May 18

• Ihsanullah reverses decision to retire from all franchise cricket

• PSL 2025 draft – Williamson among seven New Zealanders drafted; Warner, Mitchell among Platinum picks

• English players want NOC clarity after signing PSL deals

• PSL set for IPL clash after move to April-May window

The decision did not come without trade-offs; Rashid Khan, for example, signed a three-year contract with Lahore Qalandars in 2023, but will instead be at the IPL. But players from Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, so often unavailable because the PSL’s traditional February-March window clashed with their home international season, were signed in droves.New Zealanders, in particular were popular; more than half of the platinum picks at the draft were Kiwis: Finn Allen, Mitchell, Adam Milne, Michael Bracewell, and Mark Chapman were all picked in the highest category, with all of them first-time PSL participants. They were topped up in the supplementary pick with Williamson and Kyle Jamieson, also first-timers.Salman Agha, Shadab Khan and Babar Azam share a light moment on the sidelines of the PSL draft•PSLOver the years, it has been overseas power-hitting the PSL has relished, each franchise comfortable that there was enough domestic fast bowling to go around without being spread too thin. That changed this time: Milne, Sean Abbott, Jamieson, Nahid Rana, Holder, Corbin Bosch, Alzarri Joseph and Josh Little were among the overseas quicks snapped up.That may partially be explained by the availability of players who might otherwise not been options for the PSL, but perhaps also hints at the waning confidence in local fast bowling talent among the franchises.There were departures and farewells for players who have become synonymous with a particular franchise. Faheem Ashraf left Islamabad United having been a one-franchise player until now, winning three titles. If there was a general indication his star was waning, Quetta Gladiators clearly thought otherwise; they used their wildcard on him to pick him in the Platinum category, rather than the Silver he had been assigned.There was movement out of the Gladiators, too. Sarfaraz Ahmed, their captain for the first eight seasons and player for each of the last nine, was not part of the draft; Gladiators owner Nadeem Omar said he would be involved with the franchise in a “new role”.Mohammad Hasnain, meanwhile, also leaves the Gladiators to link up with Multan Sultans. Poignantly, Ihsanullah, Sultans’ quickest bowler until 2023, was left unpicked after an independent review found the PCB’s botched handling of an elbow injury had done him significant harm. Sultans’ owner Ali Tareen said last week medical consensus was he would never hit those speeds again.Meanwhile, there was a splitting up of one family. Last year, Naseem Shah and both of his younger brothers, Hunain and Ubaid, played for United; Hunain went on to hit the winning runs. This time, Sultans plumped for the youngest, with Ubaid leaving the defending champions to join the 2021 winners.Last year, the PCB told ESPNcricinfo was to co-exist with the IPL rather than compete with it. The PSL draft this time around may have wanted organisation and production quality, but did offer a little glimpse into what that might look like once April rolls around.

Regis Le Bris has responded to mounting speculation linking Sunderland with the signing of Marseille's Matteo Guendouzi. While the Black Cats boss did not commit to an approach for the ex-Arsenal midfielder in the January transfer window, he spoke positively of their relationship. Le Bris was managing Lorient's B team as Guendouzi was coming through the ranks at the French club.

• Guendouzi to reunite with Le Bris at Sunderland?

  The 49-year-old manager revealed that he and his former player keep in touch. Le Bris gave Guendouzi his first foray into senior football back in 2016. The defensive midfielder pushed on from his time Lorient's reserve team, establishing himself in the Ligue 2 outfit's starting XI before making the switch to Arsenal for an undisclosed fee.

  Their close relationship and Sunderland's excellent start to life back in the Premier League could be enough to convince Guendouzi to trade Rome for Wearside. Guendouzi joined Lazio from Marseille in on a permanent basis in 2024 after an initial season-long loan spell, for a reported fee of €15 million (£13.2m).

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  Black Cats boss coy on official approach

  Despite their positive relationship, Le Bris was coy about the speculation, suggesting the club had not committed to an approach in the coming transfer window. He said: "We still have connections with players and Matteo is one of those players. I worked with him (previously) in Lorient so we stay connected. But at the minute it’s too early to speak about the January transfer window."

• Guendouzi not surprised by Le Bris' Sunderland success

  Based on his previous comments, a reunion would please Guendouzi, who has credited Le Bris for his impact on his career. Since leaving Lorient in 2016, Guendouzi has made 312 senior appearance in club football and represented his country 14 times. 

  The 26-year-old said Le Bris' success on Wearside comes as no surprise to him. Since taking over at the Stadium of Light, the Frenchman has exceeded all expectations leading the Black Cats back to the Premier League for the first time in eight years. Sunderland have punched above their weight so far this term, taking points from Arsenal and Chelsea. Le Bris' side are currently fourth in the table. 

  "Honestly, his results at Sunderland don't surprise me," Guendouzi said recently. "A year with him is perhaps the equivalent of three with other coaches. You learn a lot about yourself. Without him, I wouldn't be where I am today."

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  Will Guendouzi make a return to the Premier League?

  Guendouzi could well look at at a return to England as a chance to right some unfinished business. He flashed moments of promise in Unai Emery's side, however, he was quickly sidelined by Mikel Arteta. 

  Joining a massive club like Arsenal with limited senior experience at the age of just 18 presents a steep learning curve for any player. There were moments of discipline that suggested a player that needed to mature to excel in the world's toughest domestic competition. Now at 26-years-old, Guendouzi could well fancy a reunion with his ex manager, and his midfield running mate Granit Xhaka. For that to happen, the Black Cats will likely have to exceed the €15m fee Lazio paid 18 months ago. 

  In the meantime, Guendouzi will have to focus on his duties for the two-time Italian champions. The Biancocelesti currently sit in ninth place in Serie A. They return from the international break when they host Lecce on Sunday. 

Surenkumar makes fighting fifty in rain-affected run-chase at Edgbaston Community Ground

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay07-Sep-2025Essex secured some belated joy from their disappointing Metro Bank Women’s One-Day Cup campaign with a 31-run (DLS) victory over Warwickshire at the Edgbaston Community Sports Ground.Put in, the visitors totalled 235 for seven from 32 overs either side of a long rainstorm which arrived in the 13th over. Jo Gardner top-scored with 47 (34 balls) while Bears captain Georgia Davis took four for 35.Facing a revised DLS target of 232 from 32 overs, Warwickshire mustered only 204 for eight in murky light despite an accomplished maiden half-century from 18-year-old Amu Surenkumar (56, 54). Her team-mates were unpicked by an attack led by Abtaha Maqsood (three for 34) and Esmae MacGregor (three for 38) as Essex recorded only their second win in 12 50-over games this season.On a gloomy morning at Portland Road, Essex got off to a flier as opening batters Ariana Dowse (36, 44) and Grace Scrivens added 67 from 61 balls before falling in successive overs just before the rain. Scrivens chipped Phoebe Brett to mid off before Dowse nicked a waft at Davis to wicketkeeper Nat Wraith.After a lengthy interruption, Essex resumed with only 32 overs now at their disposal and again lost wickets in consecutive overs. Sophia Smale lifted Hannah Baker to long off and Fiona Miller missed a sweep and was lbw to Davis.Jodi Grewcock (39, 34) and Gardner restored some momentum with a stand of 69 in 49 balls before Davis hit Grewcock’s middle stump through an attempted cut. Six balls later, Warwickshire’s captain was at long off to take a catch sent up by Gardner off Surenkumar who repaid her skipper in the next over by catching Eva Gray at long off to supply Davis’ fourth wicket.Essex needed some late impetus and Sophie Munro (36, 19) and Amara Carr (17, 12) provided it with a punchy unbroken stand of 55 from the last 29 balls.Warwickshire’s reply began briskly with a stand of 40 in six overs between Meg Austin and Bethan Ellis but they both fell, bowled and lbw respectively, to lovely, flighted deliveries by Maqsood. Munro quickly followed up with the big wicket of Davina Perrin who chopped to backward point.Surenkumar and Abbey Freeborn added 52 in 50 balls before the latter walked across her stumps to sweep MacGregor who hit the exposed timber. Much depended on Surenkumar who hit a six and five fours on her way to a run-a-ball half-century but when she swung Maqsood to deep mid-wicket, Warwickshire’s lower order needed to find 73 from 44 balls. The departure of Issy Wong, who lifted Munro to long leg, left Essex to ease home to a rare victory.

England seamer shows she belongs after four-year wait to make her England debut

Valkerie Baynes23-May-2025Em Arlott’s player-of-the-match performance in just her second game for England felt like a long time coming, but the two well-documented false starts to her international career are just part of the story.Arlott took 3 for 14 in a remarkable four-over spell at Hove, including 18 dot-balls that helped reduce West Indies to 81 for 9 in the second T20I. After their nine-wicket victory, however, she revealed that she had been battling anxiety for years. So much so that, had she been handed her cap on either of the two previous occasions she was called into the England squad, she wasn’t sure how she would have handled it.”Everything’s kind of happened at the right time,” Arlott said. “With where I was at before, it’s probably not quite a publicly known thing, but I’ve struggled with anxiety in the past and probably, if I played before, I think I would have been a different person and player on the pitch. Whereas now I feel like I’ve really worked on that away from the game. I am coming into this with a lot more confidence and actually believing that I’m good enough to be here.”Arlott made her international debut aged 27 on Wednesday, taking 1 for 28 in the first T20I in Canterbury.In her latest match, she accounted for West Indies’ strongest batters, Hayley Matthews – who scored 100 of her side’s 146 in that opening game – and former captain Stafanie Taylor, returning from injury to bolster the line-up. At one point in her spell, Arlott had three wickets for seven runs in the space of 14 balls, with the two big names falling either side of Zaida James, well caught by Sophia Dunkley at short midwicket.Arlott also took a catch off spinner Charlie Dean to remove Shemaine Campbelle, who was also returning from injury as West Indies tried to find support for Matthews with the bat.Her debut had come after call-ups to England’s squads to face India in 2021 and South Africa the following year, when she had to leave the camp before the series began because she was suffering the after-effects of Covid. That last near-miss left her fearing that the chance to play for her country might have passed her by.Arlott’s latest call-up came off the back of a strong start to the domestic 50-over competition. Her 14 wickets for Warwickshire has her joint-second on the Metro Bank One Day Cup wicket-takers list, while her pivotal 130 against Essex didn’t go unnoticed by Charlotte Edwards, the new England Women’s head coach who has placed increased emphasis on domestic form as a selection tool. Personally, Arlott said a stint with Western Australia in the WNCL over the winter had also played a key role in getting her to this point, along with a lot of work to manage her anxiety.Related

• Charlotte Edwards banishes 'F-word' in bid to turn England's image around

• The names in the frame as England women's new era begins

• Charlotte Edwards to introduce new fitness standards for England Women

• Dunkley, Knight seal redemptive win as England outdo Matthews' brilliant 100*

• Em Arlott makes up for lost time as England romp to nine-wicket rout

“I had to reflect a lot on what I could control in my life,” she said. “The last time I came into this environment, I don’t think I believed I was good enough so I didn’t really expect anybody else to believe that I was good enough. I’ve always struggled going into newer teams and not knowing people and having to adjust. The teams that I’ve played for at regional level have both been based in Birmingham, so I’ve been quite fortunate that I haven’t really gone anywhere else.”I just challenged myself. In the winter, I went to Perth and I didn’t know anybody and just made myself have to do something uncomfortable. Actually it’s been really nice that a lot of people have come up to me being like, ‘you’re a different person than you were 12 months ago’, I think in terms of confidence and – not necessarily cricket, but just as a person – I think I’m more content with who I am, and not really caring how people take that.”I’m really proud of myself getting to this point. It has been a long old journey to get here and it was never promised that I would even get here. I’ve just tried to control what I can in my life, my career. I felt like if I just kept working hard, then hopefully when I got that break I would take it with both hands, and run with it and not look back.”Arlott paid tribute to her team-mates for their support, as well as Edwards after a slightly awkward phone call to confirm her selection to both the T20I and ODI squads for West Indies’ visit .”I’ve just bought a puppy and he was being a nightmare, and bit me two minutes before she called me, so I was a bit flustered,” she said. “I’m not going to lie, I cried because he bit me really hard. So he was being a nightmare and then she obviously popped up on my phone and I was like, ‘what the hell is this about?’ She said some really nice things about how I’ve been going. I didn’t really respond, I was a bit flustered because of the dog, but I didn’t want to tell her that. It was all just a wild five minutes.”But she’s been great and it was nice that I’ve been rewarded for being consistent. I just kept chipping away at regional level because, for a long time, I felt like it went unnoticed no matter how well I did or didn’t do it. It was really nice that she’s come in and I’ve had a couple of years to almost prove myself and actually be able to sit there and go, that’s enough, which is nice.”Arlott said the focus on domestic form was a marked turnaround under Edwards’ leadership.”It makes people feel like, ‘why can’t it be me?’,” she said. “It’s always been contracted players and you can guess the squad that’s going to get picked and probably one or two extras that are doing well. It just means that people are getting picked that are in form, rather than necessarily contracted, which can only be good for us. Maybe squads look different from series to series, but I think that’s great and it shows how far we’ve come.”The true test of how far England have come since the Ashes defeat that sparked so many changes – including Edwards’ appointment as Jon Lewis’s successor – might have to wait until India arrive later in the season. But the distance Arlott has travelled is now clear to see.