It was a season to forget for the Sunrisers, who are yet to win a Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy game, and their record is only slightly better in the Charlotte Edwards Cup. Their job is somewhat more difficult without the services of Fran Wilson, who has moved to Western Storm, for whom she was successful during the Kia Super League era.
Sunrisers covers a large area, including North London, Essex, Northamptonshire and East Anglia. It does make it more difficult to focus their talent, and it will be a tough job for Laura Marsh in her first significant coaching role. A calm figure, Marsh knows what it takes to succeed at the top and reinvented herself from a pace bowler to an off-spinner and still compete at the top level.
Key Players
The batting looks short on depth with many all-rounders in the squad. However, Cordelia Griffith will again be the leading player responsible for scoring runs. Naomi Dattani is another experienced player at the top of the Sunrisers’ order. Mady Villiers, who has played for England, will be looking to regain the form that propelled her into the international side during the 2019 Ashes.
Amara Carr will add a calming influence behind the stumps, and Jo Gardner will give the middle order some experience and be a bowler that doesn’t leak many runs.
Ones to watch
One exciting signing for Sunrisers is Abtaha Maqsood, the Scottish international who succeeded in The Hundred with Birmingham Phoenix. A leg-spinner is always handy, and at only 22, Maqsood should be an excellent acquisition for Sunrisers.
Grace Scrivens is one of those players that has been around for a while, having made her Kent debut in 2018 but is still only 18-years old. She is an all-rounder and a left-handed batter as well, which should put her on the England radar if she continues to score more runs and consistently.
Gayatri Gole is a bowler who has played her cricket with Middlesex before the regional hubs were set up. While she hasn’t got the wickets, her abilities suggest that she will be an important part of once she does the Sunrisers attack for some time to come.
Opening fixture: 14 May, South East Stars, Chelmsford
