England cancels Test match in West Indies to prepare for Ashes — BBC Sport

England’s women’s cricket team has cancelled a Test match scheduled for April in the West Indies and will instead prepare for the Women’s Ashes series in the United Kingdom. As BBC Sport reports, Nat Sciver-Brunt’s team will play four red-ball cricket matches.

Four matches before the Ashes

The preparation programme will include a three-day match against Australia A, as well as three domestic “best versus best” matches. In January, the team will also hold a 10-day red-ball cricket training camp in Bangalore in a warm climate.

England plans to involve 26 or 27 players in various camps and matches. The Test against Australia in the multi-format Ashes series, which will be worth four points, will take place at Headingley from 24 to 27 June next summer.

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Updated programme in the West Indies

Following the cancellation of the Test match, England’s programme in the West Indies will consist only of three T20 matches and three one-day internationals. Previously, Cricket West Indies chief executive Chris Dehring said the organisation would welcome financial assistance from wealthier member cricket boards, as staging matches in the Caribbean is expensive.

According to BBC Sport, the decision by the England and Wales Cricket Board is unrelated to these financial discussions. It is viewed as a sporting decision intended to improve England’s chances of winning the Ashes. The West Indies women’s team has not played a Test match since 2004 — it was their only match in this format in 47 years.

Since their last four-day meeting with Australia in January 2025, England have played only one Test match — suffering a heavy defeat to India at Lord’s in London.