Bell’s main strength when she first emerged in international cricket was her ability to swing the ball extravagantly into the right-handed batter, but she spent most of 2024 remodelling her action to add more strings to her bow.
Now swinging the ball both ways and with canny variations in pace, Bell is England’s strike powerplay bowler and her confidence when bowling in that phase – often seen as one of the most difficult – shows the belief and strength in her mental approach to the game.
“You’re obviously bowling at the best batters, but I look at it the other way in that I’m the new-ball bowler, I get to swing the ball, so you know it’s a huge chance for wickets,” said Bell.
“In my head, it’s the best time to bowl. My mindset is that this is an opportunity for me to set up a game.
“I love opening the bowling, I love that it presents me with an opportunity for wickets rather than fearing that they might see it as an easy time to score boundaries.”
Head coach Charlotte Edwards left experienced seamer Kate Cross out of England’s squad, meaning extra responsibility has shifted to Bell’s shoulders in the pace attack with Em Arlott and Lauren Filer as the other frontline seamers, and captain Nat Sciver-Brunt playing as an all-rounder.
The conditions in Guwahati, where England will play their opener against South Africa, have been extremely humid and will be challenging, as all teams experienced during last year’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
For Bell, who could be opening the bowling with spinners and therefore having little time for rest, this has been a consideration.
“We’ve done so much work on that behind the scenes that nobody would’ve seen,” she said.
“During The Hundred we did all these running sessions, top-up sessions after games and that’s the bit nobody will see.
“Especially for me as a seamer, I want to make sure that I’m bowling as fast as I can in the last over of the tournament as I am in the first.”
It may be Bell’s first World Cup, but she could be one of England’s most important players in it.
From the boredom in quarantine to the first ball in Guwahati, it has been a remarkable rise.
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