An interesting quirk to Corteen-Coleman’s selection is that she is one of three left-arm spinners, with England already boasting Sophie Ecclestone and Linsey Smith.
It presents a selection dilemma for Edwards, with off-spinner Charlie Dean an almost nailed-on pick in the starting XI as vice-captain, and with Ecclestone being one of the world’s best, it is likely to be a straight shootout between Smith and Corteen-Coleman.
So how do the three compare, and what could Corteen-Coleman offer as a point of difference?
Ecclestone is the tallest of the three and has mastered her craft of using the extra bounce she generates from a release height of 2.2 metres, while Smith delivers the ball from 1.8m. Corteen-Coleman, who has a release point of 2m, sits in the middle to give captain Nat Sciver-Brunt plenty of variation.
There is little difference in pace, with all three hovering around an average of 50mph, and it is unsurprising that Ecclestone leads the way in the amount of drift, turn and control she gets.
Corteen-Coleman (1.75 degrees) turns the ball far more than Smith (1 degree) who relies on drift, which makes her such a success in the powerplay – a role that both also fulfil in domestic cricket.
In their T20 careers, both Smith and Corteen-Coleman have bowled just under 40% of all their deliveries in the powerplay.
For England, Smith has taken 11 wickets in the powerplay in T20Is at an average of 16.54 and economy rate of 5.87. In 14 games for Southern Brave, Corteen-Coleman has taken seven wickets at 16.42 with the new ball.
The vast majority of her T20 wickets have been recognised batters, with just three of her victims batting at numbers eight to 11. In contrast, she has taken 23 wickets of batters between numbers one and three at an average of 21.39, and 17 wickets of numbers four to seven at 22.58.
