Heather Knight ready to be ‘one of the girls' under new captain Nat Sciver-Brunt
Heather Knight is excited about the next phase of her international career and ready to be 'one of the girls' under new England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt.
Knight lost the captaincy following a disastrous away Ashes series at the start of this year, the multi-format series finishing 16-0 to Australia and sparking wholesale changes for the tourists.
Jon Lewis was dismissed as head coach and replaced by Charlotte Edwards, who Knight had taken over as captain from in 2016, and Sciver-Brunt will lead England into a new era, which begins with Wednesday's T20 against the West Indies in Kent.
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'I haven't had too many conversations with Nat because she's been on maternity leave,' Knight told the PA news agency.
'Her and Katherine did bring baby Theo in for a morning for an hour or so at one of our camps. I saw her briefly then and exchanged a few messages.
'I just said, 'do it in your way and good luck,' but I haven't had a chat to her properly, which I am sure we will at some point.
'I just see my role to be there if anyone needs me, really.
'It is Nat's team, obviously she will do it in her way and I will just be there to play and be one of the girls and be leaned upon if needed at any time.'
The Ashes whitewash was a bruising experience for England, but Knight feels in a good place three months on.
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A period of self-reflection has allowed the 34-year-old to look back on her captaincy with pride, with a 2017 World Cup triumph and a thrilling drawn home Ashes series two years ago the highlights.
Knight added: 'Yeah, I'm good. Obviously it has been a fair few months and I've really enjoyed my time off.
'Changing the captaincy and things like that, I have digested it and I'm pretty focused on what is next, moving forward and my role as a senior player in the side to score runs and contribute to team wins as much as I can.
'I'm looking forward to meeting up with the team and the start of a slightly different phase in my career.
'I think when the decision was announced, I guess the messages from players, coaches and staff members I have worked with over the years were really lovely and gave me a chance to look back and be really proud of what I have done as captain.
'It's been a lot of fun and really excited to keep playing for England and keep trying to win games of cricket.'
Former captain Edwards has been tasked with getting England back on track after the Ashes and has won numerous trophies during a glittering coaching career, including multiple Women's Premier League titles in India.
'I am definitely excited. She has had a lot of success as a coach and hopefully she will bring us that success as well,' Knight reflected.
Through the Net Gains initiative, IG and the ECB have invested to open new public net facilities to help grow the game of cricket in England and Wales, supporting under-represented communities and generating long-term real returns for the game and the people who play it.
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