At a glance
- Former England Women’s wicketkeeper
- Appointed England Men’s fielding coach
- Short-term cover for Carl Hopkinson
Sarah Taylor, the former England Women’s wicketkeeper, will serve as the Men’s Test fielding coach for the New Zealand series starting in June.
Rob Key, England Men’s director of cricket, confirmed her appointment. England appointed her on a short-term basis to cover for Carl Hopkinson, who is currently working with the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
Taylor’s career
Sarah Taylor was considered one of the best wicketkeepers in the world, male or female. She played in 226 games for England across all formats in a 13-year career, including a key role in their World Cup win in 2017.
She has since used her experience coaching in the men’s game with Sussex and Manchester Originals. Her appointment to the Test squad appears to mark the first time a female coach has worked with a senior men’s international team.
Key said:
“I just think she’s one of the best in the business at what she does. She’s been outstanding, and she’s worked with Andrew Flintoff and Ed Barney [performance director].They can’t speak highly enough of her. So from what we can see, she’s one of the best in the business.”
England’s fielding lapses during the Ashes were thought to be pivotal in their 4-1 series defeat. They dropped 11 catches over the series, close to near one chance in five. The decision not to take a fielding coach to Australia was one part of their preparation that came under scrutiny.
England brought Hopkinson back as fielding coach in the aftermath of the Ashes. They also appointed Troy Cooley as their first full-time bowling coach since Jon Lewis left in 2022.
However, Hopkinson’s conflicting schedule had opened the way for Taylor’s historic appointment. Key said:
“We’ve been thoroughly, unbelievably impressed with [Taylor] and the way that she goes about her business.”
“Carl Hopkinson, as is the nature of the cricket world that we have at the moment, he’s working with Mumbai Indians. He has a lot of stuff that he does for them, so we’ll still use him at some point, just not for this series.”
England play New Zealand in three tests, starting on 4th June at Lord’s. The second test is at the Oval and begins on 17th June, with the third test at Trent Bridge a week later.
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