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Jon Lewis insists the “door is definitely not shut” on Tammy Beaumont playing T20 cricket for England again she was left out of the squad despite scoring a century in The Hundred.

Beaumont has been stranded on 99 T20 international appearances since January 2022 with her 118 from 61 balls for Welsh Fire against Trent Rockets in Cardiff on Monday not enough to earn her a recall for the three-match series against Sri Lanka.

Maia Bouchier will open the batting with Danni Wyatt in the absence of the rested Sophia Dunkley in a series you can watch live on Sky Sports Cricket from Thursday August 31, but head coach Lewis says Beaumont, 32, remains in contention ahead of next year’s short-form World Cup in Bangladesh.

He said: “Tammy is playing fantastically well. I am really pleased. She has really made a shift in what she is doing in the game.

“I said to Tammy that we have got a year now until we pick a World Cup 15 and I just want her to keep doing what she is doing. The door is definitely not shut on her playing T20 cricket for England.

“I don’t think Tammy is particularly happy with the decision but she is okay with it, she understands that if she continues to push her case then she may well get the opportunity down the line.

“I know she is desperate to play and how desperately hard she is working. I just wanted to try and develop the rest of the team and give us as many options as we can.

“We had to make a choice with who was going to open the batting with Wyatt.

“Danni and Sophia Dunkley have done a great job for us since I have been in charge and they are a really powerful opening partnership.

“Maia Bouchier has been a travelling reserve for that whole time so my view was that Maia deserves that opportunity to show what she can do. I know what Tammy will do against Sri Lanka, I don’t know what Maia will do.”

‘We want to surround Wong with support and knowledge’

Fast bowler Issy Wong is in the T20 squad to face Sri Lanka, despite not playing in the drawn Women’s Ashes across June and July.

Wong, who take a hat-trick in the inaugural Women’s Premier League earlier this year, was left out of Birmingham Phoenix’s most recent game in The Hundred.

Lewis added: “I think it has been obvious to everyone that Issy has struggled a little bit over the course of this summer off the back of a very good WPL. It’s quite important for us to keep someone we feel is really talented and really exciting close to us.

“There are two ways of looking at Issy’s situation.

“One, she is not bowling particularly well so we push her away from us but my view is that by surrounding her with good support, good knowledge and good help is a better way to get the best out of her.

“We want to get her back to her best and hopefully we can get her there quickly. We are in constant touch with Issy and are trying very hard to get her back to where she was.

“She will openly admit, I imagine, that she has lost a little bit of confidence but I am very keen on backing our best young talent and am hopeful we can do a really good job around her.”

Watch England’s white-ball series against Sri Lanka, with the three T20 internationals followed by as many one-day internationals, live on Sky Sports from Thursday August 31. You can also stream the games on NOW for £26 a month for 12 months. Cancel anytime.

T20 series vs Sri Lanka

First T20: Thursday August 31 (Hove) – 6pm start

Second T20: Saturday September 2 (Chelmsford) – 2.30pm start

Third T20: Wednesday September 6 (Derby) – 6pm start

ODI series

First ODI: Saturday September 9 (Chester-le-Street) – 11am start

Second ODI: Tuesday, September 12 (Northampton) – 12.30pm start

Third ODI: Thursday September 14 (Leicester) – 12.30pm start