By Paul Eddison
Amy Jones is the first to admit she is not the loudest voice in the changing room but the England wicketkeeper is thriving after being handed greater responsibility.
Now 30, Jones took on a bigger role for England on a recent tour of New Zealand, with the likes of Sophie Ecclestone and Nat Sciver-Brunt among the experienced players who missed the start of the series.
Despite her reserved nature, Jones relished that opportunity, and is looking to build on it during England’s ongoing series against Pakistan.
“It’s really helped me personally,” said Jones, who was speaking at the launch of The Metro Bank Girls in Cricket Fund.
“I’m quite quiet by nature and having that sort of responsibility has helped me as a person, being able to share my opinions.
“I’ve definitely felt more of a sense of that senior role. It’s something I want to do well and I want to be a teammate that girls can speak to openly.
“Everything starts for us as a team off the pitch and how well we get on. That social aspect is really important as a group and then it’s a case of how you can have honest conversations with the best intentions and developing that side to the relationship where you can speak freely and it’s all for the best of the team.”
Jones excelled in New Zealand, named Player of the Series in the ODIs after scoring 190 runs in three innings as England won 2-1.
The Birmingham Phoenix star scored 37 at Edgbaston in Saturday’s series opener against Pakistan and is keen to maintain that form as England try to play an entertaining brand of cricket.
She added: “It’s a really exciting series. We had a nice break after New Zealand, we’ve been able to reflect on a good tour for us.
“I think we set about a few things that we wanted to do as a group going forward in all facets of the game. Particularly the tempo we want to play at, when we’re in the field, we want to bring the energy and with the bat as well, running hard between the wickets.
“We want to take our game up a notch as a group, which I think we started well in New Zealand. It’s something we’re looking to build on.
“As players, it’s important to use the atmospheres positively. You never want to get overwhelmed but we’re pretty used to playing in front of big crowds.”
Amy Jones 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
