Bell inspired by home backing in bid for World Cup glory

Lauren Bell is expecting the partisan home crowds at the Women's T20 World Cup to play a vital role in England's efforts to end nine years without global silverware.

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England, who have won every World Cup they have staged, started their campaign with a resounding 87-run win over Sri Lanka in front of an encouraging attendance of 14,865 at Edgbaston last Friday night.

Around 220,000 tickets have been sold for the tournament, an all-time record, and Bell expects England to have a similar groundswell of support to what they had during the thrilling drawn Women's Ashes three years ago.

‘The crowd at Edgbaston just summed it all up; they were so supportive, properly behind us,’ Bell said.

‘It gives you an extra boost, it gives you extra nerves but also extra excitement.

‘We experienced it in the Ashes in 2023 and after Friday night, I'm pretty confident we'll experience it over the next few weeks as well.’