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 | |  Monday, 31 December, 2001, 13:06 GMT Taylor hungry for runs  On the board: Taylor savours a Headingley ton England's leading batsman, Claire Taylor, is hoping to learn from experience as she gears up for her first tour to India. BBC Sport Online's Gabrielle Lewis reports. When Claire Taylor puts away her bat for the final time she will look back on the last 12 months with justifiable pride. She was England's highest run-maker in a generally undistinguished World Cup campaign in New Zealand last winter, with her unbeaten 137 off 145 balls against Sri Lanka providing a personal highlight. And the 26-year-old from Berkshire was arguably the only player to make any impression on the Australian attack during a Women's Ashes whitewash, with another 137 in the second Test at Headingley and an unbeaten 50 in the final one-day international at Lord's. Taylor is confident England have benefited from their five-match Ashes rout. "We bounce back from the Ashes by understanding that we were a very young side and concentrating on what we learned rather than the result," she said.
"That experience will help us for India. It will be very different in India, with the spin attack rather than the Australian's pace. "I've heard the runs are there for the scoring as the pitches are mainly batting pitches. "We know we'll need a lot of patience, because it won't be like facing Cathryn Fitzpatrick [Australian pace bowler]. We're still going to have to carve out the runs." Once again, the onus will be primarily on Taylor, despite the fact it is her first trip to India. England continue to be without Charlotte Edwards through injury, a player with the ability to play long innings, but Taylor sees the extra responsibility as a challenge. "I'm not thinking about how many runs I have to score each game, just how I score them. "I can control the way I bat, but I can't control the outcome, like a good catch, which takes some of the pressure off me," Taylor added. "I didn't feel I did my best against Australia and it took a while to get used to the intensity of the international field again.
"I'll be looking to be more consistent and get into the tour quicker in India." Only one practice match has been arranged prior to the first one-dayer in Madras on 6 January, leaving England five days from their arrival in India to acclimatise to the heat and humidity. Although not ideal preparation for the first tour under new coach, Australian John Harmer, Taylor has been applying the experience of the men's tour to her advantage as she build up to her 28th England cap. "I've concentrated on a few specific things that have come out of the men's tour, with my coach copying the way Sachin Tendulkar has his field. "I've played against India when they toured England in 1999 and in the World Cup and I saw their training side when they came over last year, so I know some of the players," Taylor said. "My only concerns are the culture shock it's going to be with the crowds that are expected to turn out. "It's going to be very different, but I'm really looking forward to it." | |
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