England drop West Indies Test to prioritize Ashes preparation

England's women's cricket team will no longer play a Test match in the West Indies this April, revising their Caribbean tour to feature only three T20 internationals and three one-day internationals. Instead, the England and Wales Cricket Board has structured a specialized red-ball preparation schedule ahead of the multi-format Ashes series against Australia starting in June. The revised buildup includes a dedicated training camp in Bangalore in January, followed by four red-ball matches in the UK, including a fixture against Australia A and intra-squad games. ECB chief executive Richard Gould noted that these changes are designed to give the squad optimal preparation and valuable playing time in multi-day cricket.