Lauren Winfield says the Kia Super League has helped England 'hugely' before World Cup
Tuesday 1 August 2017 07:49, UK
Lauren Winfield believes that the Kia Super League has helped the England team "hugely" ahead of this summer's Women's World Cup.
The England and Yorkshire Diamonds opener spoke of the need to perform under pressure during the KSL and says such experiences will only help Heather Knight's side as they look to triumph on home soil.
With the KSL to follow, it is a big summer for Winfield and her international team-mates, and one that she feels could prove extremely beneficial to English women's cricket in the future.
"I think it's helped hugely," Winfield, speaking at the launch of the 2017 KSL, told Sky Sports. "Women's cricket at times can be quite hard because you don't play any games under any real pressure or close games.
"A lot of our county games are either won by a large margin or you lose by a large margin. No one is coming down to watch you and there isn't any pressure on it, as such.
"In the last year or two, we (England) have come a long way as a group, in terms of playing and performing under pressure, nailing our skills. I think the West Indies was great for us for that because every game was close.
"They're obviously world champions in T20 so they're a good side and not many people beat them in their backyard, so that was a really great experience that we have in the bank now. Super League is exactly the same.
"T20, most of the time, goes down to the last over and there is only one or two runs in it. The more experience you can get under pressure in close games, the better really. We've got a catalogue of those experiences in the bank now and that is only going to hold us in good stead moving ahead to the World Cup."
With this year's Super League being shown live on Sky Sports, Winfield expects the added coverage can help the women's game in England - both at the top level and at grassroots cricket.
"The first year was a real success," she added. "The standard of the games, from a player's point of views, was really high.
"Looking in our dressing room and then at the opposition, there were a lot of good players on display - obviously with the England internationals and the volume of overseas players who were involved. I think the standard is only going to get better.
"In terms of the coverage, I think it's crucial. We get asked a lot: 'how do we get more girls playing cricket? What can we do to increase participation?' I think, ultimately, it's about how many people see girls playing cricket; whether it's internationals on TV or at grounds.
"I think it's really vital that we have that exposure and you always want players to be playing under pressure and I think there's always a bit of added pressure when you're playing in the TV games."
The inaugural KSL did not go according to plan for Yorkshire, who won just one game, but Winfield is determined that the Diamonds, under new coach Paul Grayson, hit the ground running this time around.
"Last year was a little bit disappointing for us," she said. "It's a tough competition and with the volume of games, you have to start well.
"That's something we'll be looking to do this year - those opening games are crucial otherwise you're chasing your tail a bit. We didn't get the start we wanted last year and you're almost back-peddling from there.
"They'll definitely be some importance put on the first couple of games this year and I'm really pleased with the signings we've made in terms of our overseas'. I think our batting will be much stronger than last year - that was probably something that let us down, the depth of our batting, which we've definitely boosted this year."
And performing under pressure will again be crucial for Winfield and her side as the Diamonds begin their KSL campaign by hosting Roses rivals Lancashire Thunder at Headingley on August 11.
Tickets for this year's Kia Super League are available to buy now via ecb.co.uk/tickets/ksl and are designed to be affordable with prices as low as £10 for families, £5 for adults and £1 for children.
