Swindon-born cricket star Lauren Bell is hoping that England can build on the momentum of last summer’s Ashes to create another historic summer.

Bell was part of the England side that took on Australia across all three formats of the game, including a first-ever women’s Test in England, in a series that broke records for sell-out crowds and TV viewers.

Over 110,000 fans attended a Women’s Ashes game and Bell hopes those numbers will only continue to grow this summer, as Pakistan and New Zealand both tour ahead of the T20 World Cup in October.

Action began against Pakistan at Edgbaston on Saturday, with over 12,000 spectators watching England win by 53 runs.

“It’s a lot of excitement,” she said. “It’s growing and it’s new for everyone in the team, so it’s really exciting. It shows how far the game has come and we want to push it even further.

“We don’t want to stop where we are now.

“The Ashes last summer was such a success and it has been the platform for women’s cricket to grow. We sold out crowds and there were so many fans there so it got a lot of eyes on women’s cricket and allowed us to show who we are as well as just cricketers.

“They have been inspired from last summer and they want to come back.

“If we keep playing the same brand of cricket we’ve been playing for the last 18 months, hopefully, even more people come and watch.”

The ongoing series against Pakistan is the first time Bell has faced them in her career and she is looking to build on impressive figures of 3-22 in the opener.

“What I do best and what I want to do doesn’t change because it’s what I’m good at,” she said. “I will just make sure I know the players.

“I won’t have seen many clips so I will see how they bat, any strengths or weaknesses. A lot of it is focusing on me, and if I do what I do best against anyone it will work itself out.”

This is all part of preparations for the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October, where England have eyes writing the wrongs of their 2023 semi-final exit.

Lauren Bell was speaking on behalf of Metro Bank. Head to metrobankonline.co.uk/cricket where you can discover more about the Metro Bank Girls In Cricket Fund, and help to champion the future of girls’ cricket.