Lauren Bell on WPL withdrawal, taking responsibility and inspiring England's next fast bowler

Lauren Bell is not even two years into her international career, and yet her trajectory - and that of the women's game generally - has reached a new stratosphere.

Even in the space of seven months, fast bowler Bell, 23, played in her first World Cup at the beginning of 2023, earned a Women's Premier League deal in India and then featured in a record-breaking Ashes campaign.

But women's cricket's acceleration - and Bell's - has come in such a short space of time that she is already facing tough decisions around her commitments.

In cricket's shifting landscape with the franchise circuit growing in influence and money, Bell joined her captain Heather Knight in withdrawing from this year's WPL to focus on the ongoing New Zealand series. Some of her international team-mates remained in India with England's blessing.

Bell's deal with UP Warriorz was worth approximately £30,000, but with the next T20 World Cup taking place in September and an away Ashes in early 2025, she is fully focused on representing her country.

"It was a hard decision," Bell explained. "I love India, I loved my time at the WPL last year.

"But at this stage of my career, I just wanted to focus everything on getting ready for this New Zealand series and playing for England because it's all I've ever wanted to do. Hopefully in the future there will be more opportunities to go to the WPL without any clashes."

After February's disappointing T20 World Cup in South Africa, where England were knocked out by the hosts in the semi-final, the team bounced back in style in front of packed crowds and record audiences against world-dominating Australia.

And Bell was a standout performer: 14 wickets across the seven Ashes matches that spanned three formats may not have grabbed the headlines, but fast bowling is about much more than just numbers.

It can be judged on presence, consistency, skill - and it speaks volumes that Bell was the only specialist fast bowler to play every game of the series.

"Throughout the summer I was gaining more and more responsibility in our bowling attack," said Bell.

"Heather was putting a lot more trust in me as a player and I loved that.

"I always want to be the person to come on and take a wicket when we need one and make a difference for the team. It was the first series where I'd had that responsibility and I was pleased with how I handled it and hopefully it's something I can do more moving forward."

Kate Cross is England's most experienced seamer but in a growing crop of young fast bowlers, Bell has quickly become second-in-command, with all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt's bowling ability recently limited by a knee injury.

Before the autumn's World Cup, though, a series against Pakistan in May is followed by the White Ferns making the return trip to the UK.

Bell and the England team are passionate about their influence on the game and as role models to wider society, and, with coach Jon Lewis, are committed to building upon the Ashes success of last summer.

And they are doing a good job, too: 62,000 tickets have already been sold for the summer's fixtures, which is 10% more than were sold at this time of year in 2023.

With more exposure, naturally comes more pressure, but Bell's positivity shines through when asked about the women's game's increasing status.

"We want to be inspiring, we want to be entertaining - and with more eyes on us, that means people care about what we do," she says.

"There will be more little girls in those crowds thinking, I want to be England's next fast bowler."

Well, they might be waiting a while for their turn.

Bell is living up to the potential that she promised as a tall, ambitious teenager, boasting those trademark plaits and an infectious love of the game.

She has had her breakthrough year. Now, she is ready for more.