Tilly Curtin-Coleman: Who is England’s new left-arm spinner and what does he offer?

An interesting aspect of Curtin-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 almost nailed down in the starting XI as vice-captain, and with Ecclestone one of the world’s best, it could be a straight shootout between Smith and Curtin-Coleman.

So how do the three compare, and what can Curtin-Coleman offer as points of difference?

Ecclestone is the tallest of the trio and has mastered the art of using the extra bounce he creates from a 2.2m release height, while Smith delivers the ball from 1.8m. Courtin-Coleman, whose release point is 2m, sits in the middle to give plenty of variety to captain Nat Syver-Brant.

There’s little difference in speed, with all three cruising at an average of 50mph, and it’s not surprising that Ecclestone leads the way in terms of drift, turns and control.

Curtin-Coleman (1.75 degrees) turns the ball much more than Smith (1 degree) who relies on drift, which gives him such success in the powerplay – a role that both fill in domestic cricket.

In their T20 careers, both Smith and Curtin-Coleman bowled just under 40% of all their deliveries in the powerplay.

For England, Smith took 11 wickets in the Powerplay in T20Is at an average of 16.54 and an economy rate of 5.87. In 14 matches for the Southern Braves, Curtin-Coleman took seven wickets at 16.42 with the new ball.

The vast majority of his T20 wickets were recognized batters, with only three of his victims batting at numbers eight to 11. In contrast, he has taken 23 wickets from batsmen numbers one to three at an average of 21.39 and 17 wickets from numbers four to seven at an average of 22.58.