England quick Lauren Filer will again look to show up the warmth on India as her side aim to level the T20 series at Old Trafford.
Filer took a few key wickets – including India’s star batter Smriti Mandhana – as England went on to shut out a nail-biting five-run win on the Oval to finally get a result on the board following two chastening defeats.
With Nat Sciver-Brunt out injured, Charlotte Edwards‘ side are again set to be captained by Tammy Beaumont for the crucial fourth match – when India will probably be aiming to place the series to bed ahead of the last T20 international at Edgbaston on Saturday.
Filer – whose fastest delivery reached 79.4 miles per hour on the Oval on Friday – has no issues with using her pace to maintain India on the back foot as much as possible.
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Using Pace
“I knew that I’d have the opportunity to push near 80 (mph), I kind of touched on 78 occasionally within the last yr,” Filer said on a media Zoom call ahead of Wednesday’s match at Old Trafford.
“For me on Friday, the beauty of it was the undeniable fact that it was more consistent and that’s what I even have been attempting to do.
“It is just not necessarily hitting that one ball that’s 80, because that is just not going to make a difference – the difference is the consistency of accelerating my speed.
“From the sport in Trent Bridge, I feel I used to be averaging 73 then I went as much as 75 in Bristol after which 76 on the Oval. That’s what I’m attempting to aim for.
“Hopefully again I can hit that 80 number, nevertheless it is certainly nearly attempting to keep consistently bowling at that mid-70s, and I feel in the ladies’s game, that is just not heard of fairly often.”
Role within the team
Filer added: “I feel that has at all times kind of been my role on this team – that’s my strength, it’s to bowl quick.
“Obviously we’ve got bowlers that may bowl variations, but I feel with me, if I attempt to over complicate (things), it probably hinders my game to be honest.
“I feel attempting to bowl as quick as I can in most scenarios goes to work, after which the scenario that perhaps it doesn’t is where I kind of bring my variations out and check out and work with that.
“It is certainly a message from kind of higher as much as say, ‘just try to bowl as quickly as you possibly can and adapt to the sport’.”
Bouncing Back
England shouldn’t have faced such a tense finish – with India seemingly well set needing 49 from 42 balls with nine wickets in hand – having suffered a collapse from 137 without loss to complete at 171 for nine.
“After two defeats, I feel we were still in a terrific place. We knew where to enhance and we all know that on our day we are able to beat India – and clearly that was proved on Friday night,” Filer said.
“We will probably be taking the positives from that win and in addition learning from the mistakes we made in that game – it probably shouldn’t have been as close a game because it was – into Manchester.”
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