Interview | It’s scary to think where India will be in five years’ time

Sarah Taylor has been a trailblazer successful women’s cricket successful galore ways.

During her distinguished playing vocation for England, spanning a 13-year play (2006 to 2019), she was a wicketkeeper of specified ultimate accomplishment that Australian fable Adam Gilchrist, successful 2018, described her arsenic the champion successful the satellite – antheral oregon pistillate – down the stumps. Known peculiarly for her sharpness lasting up to the wicket, she effected 104 stumpings successful 226 matches crossed each formats.

A long-standing conflict with intelligence wellness forced Sarah to discontinue from planetary cricket astatine the property of 30, but it hasn’t deterred her from continuing to permission her stamp connected the willow game.

In 2021, she made headlines astir the satellite for breaking the solid ceiling erstwhile she was roped successful by County broadside Sussex arsenic portion of the enactment unit for the men’s team. A twelvemonth later, she became a specializer wicketkeeping manager for Manchester Originals successful the men’s Hundred. Currently, she is portion of the coaching unit helmed by Andrew Flintoff astatine England Lions, which acts arsenic a feeder to the elder men’s set-up.

In mid-2025, her induction into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame alongside M.S. Dhoni, Matthew Hayden, Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Daniel Vettori and Sana Mir was different feather successful an already-ornate cap.

Sarah has present made her mode to the Women’s Premier League arsenic good arsenic fielding manager of the Gujarat Giants. In a wide-ranging interrogation with The Hindu connected a breezy Sunday morning, the 36-year-old opened up astir her induction into the ICC Hall of Fame, her coaching assignments, intelligence health, and her fondness for the trade of wicketkeeping…

This is your archetypal engagement arsenic a manager successful the WPL. What took you this long?

I struggled with travel. So, the thought of coming to India, tons of people, tons of fans, I recovered it rather overwhelming. So, it ne'er happened, but also, I didn’t adjacent deliberation I’d get a accidental to travel to a tourney similar this.

And then, I got asked, due to the fact that I was doing the Hundred with Manchester Originals. Once you get your ft successful the doorway of franchise cricket, radical look astir successful that bubble. And so, I was fortunate capable that Gujarat looked astatine maine past twelvemonth and asked, “Would you similar to come?” It conscionable didn’t happen. But I did say, delight inquire maine again. So, yeah, it has taken a small spot of time, but I’m gladsome I’m here.

You were inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame successful 2025. What did that designation mean to you? What is your proudest infinitesimal arsenic an England cricketer?

I cried erstwhile I got the email. I couldn’t judge it was for real. I conscionable didn’t realise that my vocation was astir apt arsenic recognised successful that respect anyway. So, to person that designation was insane. It was perfectly unbelievable. You deliberation that you’ve done a bully job, and past thing similar that is evidently a small spot much than a pat connected the back.

Look, the ODI World Cup triumph astatine Lord’s successful 2017. That volition ever be... yeah, I tin inactive perceive the dependable of the shot hitting the stumps erstwhile Anya Shrubsole took the past wicket, and my screaming astatine the apical of my lungs.

I really look backmost connected my vocation now, and realise however astonishing it was erstwhile we won truthful galore things. We had an epoch of England cricket that was truthful good, and our XI conscionable picked itself. But also, I learnt truthful overmuch from the times erstwhile it was truthful hard, and we were struggling to find a win. That travel was astir apt what I was astir arrogant of.

You person been progressive arsenic a manager successful men’s cricket since 2021. Did you person apprehensions stepping in? It did look to polarise sentiment erstwhile you archetypal got involved...

I was moving with wicketkeepers astatine Dulwich College successful London aft my retirement. Richard Halsall, who was Sussex Academy pb astatine the time, saw a request to bring successful a keeping manager astatine Sussex. He asked maine to travel and enactment with the Academy keepers, and past it was, good wherefore doesn’t she enactment with the pro keepers if it’s going well? So past it conscionable built from there.

It conscionable happened truly organically, and I was fortunate to beryllium surrounded by radical similar Ian Salisbury, James Kirtley and Grant Flower. They were truthful supportive that I ne'er had immoderate apprehension. I did spot the comments online, and I can’t fell from those, and I was a spot successful a spot of like, well, I’ll beryllium you wrong.

Do you consciousness you person proved cynics wrong?

You inactive get the comments. Even with the England Lions stuff, I inactive get comments that I shouldn’t beryllium moving with the guys. But it’s the sentiment wrong the cricket satellite that matters astir to me, and if you tin get those jobs, and radical are approaching you for those jobs, past you indispensable beryllium doing thing right.

I don’t needfully cognize if I’ve proved radical wrong, but, I’m inactive coaching, and I’m inactive doing the Lions stuff. I’ve conscionable got a declaration with the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), truthful I indispensable beryllium doing something.

Do you consciousness much women tin spell down your way and go a manager with men’s teams?

Yeah, absolutely. You’ve got to person a definite mode astir you to recognize the men’s environment. The mode they woody with things, the mode they attack things, and you person to person that understanding, arsenic immoderate antheral manager would person to recognize going into a pistillate acceptable up. I deliberation determination are immoderate personalities retired determination who could perfectly transverse that line. It’s conscionable whether the manager tin facilitate what the players need, and determination are surely pistillate coaches retired determination who tin facilitate what a feline needs. Wicketkeeping lends itself to it a small bit, conscionable due to the fact that the quality of catching a shot is precisely the same.

During your playing days, you said that you didn’t judge successful saying a batch down the stumps, but wanted to person a presence. How did you spell astir managing that?

If you inquire anyone that I played against, I didn’t accidental excessively much. I said a batch to my teammates, but I ne'er said excessively overmuch to the batters.

But if I drawback everything, batters cognize that arsenic soon arsenic they borderline it, they are gone. Or if they miss, I americium going to sound disconnected the bails. It was astir trying to get that into their head, truthful that was wherever the beingness came from. I’ll ever effort to walk that on.

Different ’keepers person antithetic techniques. Dhoni, for example, had a unsocial mode of gathering the shot to effect speedy stumpings and run-outs. When you’re coaching ’keepers, what is the mode you spell astir teaching technique?

I astir apt moulded myself a small spot connected Dhoni towards the extremity of my vocation successful presumption of the velocity from my stitchery to the stumps. A batch of stumpings present are a ft conscionable raising slightly, and that’s it. That’s the quality sometimes, and the taking of the shot backmost is going retired of the crippled due to the fact that the clip is not there. I find that exciting. I emotion coaching speed, and showing them however speedy they tin be, truthful that is going into the game.

Teams are perpetually gravitating towards batters who tin support wickets alternatively than specialists with the gloves. What is your presumption connected that?

As a traditionalist, I ever privation the champion wicketkeeper to play. But I recognize the request for equilibrium successful a side. If you tin person that batter towards the extremity who tin bat with the bowlers, and sometimes the champion ’keepers aren’t needfully that batter, I get that. But if you’ve got your champion ’keeper, they volition impact the crippled successful a mode that the batter-keepers won’t.

Who are the wicketkeepers that you bask watching most?

Beth Mooney, conscionable don’t archer her that I similar watching her (laughs). Amy Jones volition ever beryllium one, she’s phenomenal.

Alex Carey is beauteous good. I perfectly emotion watching Ben Foakes. He conscionable makes it look truthful casual that it’s ridiculous. I utilized to emotion watching Dhoni erstwhile helium was playing for India. I similar Quinton de Kock arsenic well, conscionable due to the fact that he’s truthful carefree with it. It amazes maine however bully helium is. I’ll conscionable support watching ’keepers, I’m a spot of a badger. That’s the archetypal happening I announcement during a cricket match.

You’ve been candid astir your intelligence wellness struggles, which led to your planetary status successful 2019. Seven years on, are cricketers much equipped to woody with these issues?

Yeah, decidedly better. Earlier, little radical spoke astir it, truthful you didn’t cognize what you had. You didn’t cognize that what you were dealing with was a thing. I lone learnt erstwhile I spoke retired that different radical were going done the aforesaid stuff. It’s ADHD (attention shortage hyperactivity disorder) that I have. I’ve relaxed astir it now, whereas earlier I was truthful stressed that I was feeling this way.

The girls present person entree to truthful much. It needed maine to halt playing cricket and spell into hypnotherapy, and that was the champion happening for me.

When you were playing, Australia and England were the 2 ascendant sides. New Zealand won the 2024 T20 World Cup, and India won the 2025 ODI World Cup. Is women’s cricket much competitory than ever before?

Absolutely. It’s exciting. The franchise leagues person past opened that up. It’s scary to deliberation wherever India volition beryllium successful 5 years’ clip due to the fact that of the vulnerability they are getting. I’m truthful gladsome present that you tin look astatine a World Cup and accidental I don’t cognize which squad is going to triumph — South Africa, India, England, Australia oregon New Zealand. That’s cool.