Dani Gibson and Lauren Filer earn England Test call-ups for Women's Ashes

There is no room for Sarah Glenn, Charlie Dean or Freya Davies in the 15-strong squad, with the trio set to feature for England A in a warmup against Australia

Nick Friend | 12/06/2023 at 11:30

Western Storm pair Dani Gibson and Lauren Filer have been named in England's squad for the Women's Ashes Test against Australia.

Gibson, the allrounder and Storm's captain, has been on England's radar for some time and was on standby for their T20 World Cup campaign.

She was her region's joint-highest run-scorer and leading wicket-taker in the Charlotte Edwards Cup this season.

Filer, meanwhile, has impressed England head coach Jon Lewis and bowling coach Matt Mason with what Mason described as "real raw pace" in a yet-to-be-published interview with The Cricketer. She has previously represented England Academy.

Spinners Charlie Dean and Sarah Glenn have both been left out, while there is no room for centrally contracted seamer Freya Davies, with all three instead part of an England A squad to be captained by Lauren Winfield-Hill that is set to face Australia in an Ashes warmup.

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^{Lauren Filer is in England's squad for the first time (Warren Little/Getty Images)}

That side, The Cricketer understands, is set to be coached by Jonathan Batty, who guided Oval Invincibles to successive Hundred titles and coached Delhi Capitals at the Women's Premier League.

Alice Davidson-Richards, who marked her Test debut with a century against South Africa last year, has recovered from injury and is part of both the Test squad and the England A party. She will likely face competition from Gibson for her Test berth at Trent Bridge, where the series begins on June 22.

Danni Wyatt is also included in both squads; her selection for a long-awaited Test debut would be somewhat surprising, but it would also send an aggressive message on the back of plenty of talk from Lewis' camp about the brand of cricket that England are looking to play under the former Gloucestershire seamer.

"We are fortunate that our talent pool is growing fast, this has enabled us to pick a nicely balanced squad," said Lewis, whose Test squad includes only Sophie Ecclestone as a specialist spinner, with Alice Capsey likely to be the second spinner in the line-up.

"Dani (Gibson) is one of the form cricketers in the country, she is improving both with bat and ball and if selected in the team, offers us a dynamic cricketer who can change the momentum of the game."

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^{Alice Davidson-Richards is included in the squad (Harry Trump/Getty Images)}

He described Filer as "a genuine wicket-taking threat with good pace and swing".

"To have two Ashes series running alongside each other is very special," he added, "and we look forward to entertaining our fans and gaining some new ones along the way."

England last won a Test against Australia in 2014 and drew last year's rain-affected clash with South Africa, with a fifth day added to this Test in light of the weather that has affected England's last three home Tests.

England Test squad: Heather Knight, Tammy Beaumont, Lauren Bell, Alice Capsey, Kate Cross, Alice Davidson-Richards, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Lauren Filer, Dani Gibson, Amy Jones, Emma Lamb, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Issy Wong, Danni Wyatt

England Women A squad: Lauren Winfield-Hill, Maia Bouchier, Alice Davidson-Richards, Freya Davies, Charlie Dean, Sarah Glenn, Kirstie Gordon, Eva Gray, Bess Heath, Eve Jones, Paige Scholfield, Grace Scrivens, Danni Wyatt