Tilly Corteen-Coleman described the moment she learned she had been called up to England’s Women’s T20 World Cup squad as a “complete whirlwind”.
In fact, when she received a call from Charlotte Edwards regarding her inclusion in the squad, the uncapped 18-year-old spinner only had one word for the England head coach.
“Really!” Corteen-Coleman said.
“Was I surprised? Yes, I was surprised!” Corteen-Coleman added to BBC Sport, reflecting on the phone call.
“Not a single part of me thought I was in that squad. It’s such a competitive group, with so much talent. So, to be involved in it is such a privilege.
“I just went straight to my parents, ran in, jumping up and down to tell them. It’s crazy, I can’t really remember because of how quickly it all happened and how excited I was.”
Her inclusion in Edwards’ England squad showcases her meteoric rise.
Born in 2007, Corteen-Coleman began her journey to playing professional cricket through Kent’s talent pathway.
She made her county cricket debut in 2024, playing in the Women’s One Day Cup against Middlesex, with Corteen-Coleman recording figures of 1-19 off nine overs. The performance propelled her into the spotlight as one of the game’s emerging young talents.
Things moved quickly from there. A month after her county debut, she was drafted into the South East Stars squad for the Charlotte Edwards Cup. And in May of that year, she took four wickets in as many balls as the Stars beat Northern Diamonds.
“I first saw her bowling at Chipstead Cricket Club for Surrey’s second XI against Southern Vipers academy,” Edwards said in 2024, reflecting on her first impressions of Corteen-Coleman. “I instantly saw a girl who looked a little bit like Sophie [Ecclestone], if I’m honest.
“She has leapt onto the scene this summer.”
Edwards later drafted the 16-year-old to play for the Southern Brave in The Hundred during the school summer holidays that year.
The youngster enjoyed a dream debut in the limited-overs competition, taking Australia skipper Meg Lanning’s wicket in her fourth delivery of the match. Corteen-Coleman also made history that day, becoming the then-youngest female player to feature in the limited-overs competition.
“I took that punt on her in The Hundred,” Edwards, who had presented Corteen-Coleman with her first U11 cap for Kent, said. “I didn’t really know much about her character at the time, and then I met her and experienced working with her in The Hundred as a 16-year-old.
“I’ve never met a young girl so mature, so ahead of her years, but also really skilful.”
‘We’re confident she can deliver on the big stage’
Since then, Corteen-Coleman has gone from strength to strength. She took 16 wickets in 11 matches during the Charlotte Edwards Cup in 2024, to rank as one of the South East Stars’ best bowlers. In her debut season in The Hundred, Corteen-Coleman took six wickets from 135 deliveries.
“What a rise into professional cricket she has had,” Edwards said to Sky Sports. “A 16-year-old playing in The Hundred and then two years later being selected for England.
Corteen-Coleman was later drafted to Southern Brave on a landmark £105,000 contract during the 2025 Hundred auction, a huge uplift on her £12,500 salary from the previous season. It came as the spinner also put pen to paper on her first full-time professional deal with Surrey.
She backed up her breakout season with another excellent year, ranking seventh in The Hundred’s top wicket-takers (11) for the year, while also taking eight wickets in eight matches in the T20 Blast for an economy of 8.50.
“She’s just had an incredible two years,” Edwards added. “She’s performed. And that’s ultimately what we’ve asked the players to do. Her age has not really been taken into account. She’s conducted herself brilliantly over the last six months.
“Spent lots of time with us, and we’re really confident she can deliver on the big stage.”
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The Hundred’s youngest-ever player, Tilly Corteen-Coleman got off to the perfect start on debut, taking a sharp catch to dismiss Meg Lanning.
Corteen-Coleman ready to perform on the big stage
Prior to her call-up to Edwards’ 15-player Women’s T20 World Cup squad, Corteen-Coleman attended several training camps with England over the winter months.
Corteen-Coleman feels she is ready to perform for her country, and this won’t be her first taste of international cricket. The youngster has already represented England U19 at the 2024 tri-series.
Having delivered in The Hundred, Corteen-Coleman feels she is ready to produce for her country.
“The fact I haven’t got an England cap, it’s probably something people haven’t quite seen yet,” Corteen-Coleman said. “I feel like I challenge both sides of the bat, and I like performing under pressure, which I know the others do as well.
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Danielle Gibson and Tilly Corteen-Coleman react to their major Hundred deals.
“I feel like I offer as much as I want to learn. Being around Lins [Linsey Smith] and Soph [Sophie Ecclestone] is going to be really helpful. Two of the best left-arm spinners in the game.
“Even if I don’t get the opportunity to play, just learning and being around them, seeing how they go about their business, will be really, really good for my development.”
While the sky’s the limit for Corteen-Coleman, she wants to ensure she keeps her feet firmly on the ground.
“I’m very driven and ambitious, and I’ll definitely work hard enough to be able to be there,” she told Sky Sports in April this year. “But whether you sink or float, you don’t know until you get there. I want to keep my feet grounded and stay in the present. But I’d like to think so.”
How will she fit into the squad?
England have a busy summer schedule quickly approaching, with multiple short-format series coming over the next month against New Zealand and India before they commence their Women’s T20 World Cup campaign against Sri Lanka at Edgbaston on June 12.
That means there should be plenty of time for Corteen-Coleman to get her first taste of international cricket before the tournament commences.
She has been included as one of three left-arm spinners in Edwards’ 15-player squad, alongside Ecclestone and Smith, and given the former’s stature in the game, Corteen-Coleman could put pressure on Smith for a spot in the team.
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Charlotte Edwards reflects on the ‘tough decision’ to not select Tammy Beaumont in England’s T20 World Cup squad, but insists there is still more to come in her international career.
“There’s a huge amount of excitement,” Sky Sports Cricket analyst Tash Farrant said to Sky Sports News.
Farrant, who played with Corteen-Coleman at Surrey, added: “That was the one question on everyone’s mind. Would Tilly get picked? She got picked up for over £100k just a couple of months ago.
“People could think that she was picked on just for her potential because she’s only 18. But she’s also tried and tested in The Hundred, playing for the Southern Brave.
“She has been picked on potential. But more so because she has bowled brilliantly against some of the best players, and she has really impressed Charlotte Edwards.”
Corteen-Coleman, meanwhile, believes that she might be able to surprise opponents this summer.
“Being a fresh face, people haven’t had that exposure against me, which does make a big difference,” said.
“I think it does make a big difference. I feel like I’m working on challenging both edges of the bat, and I love performing under pressure.
“I think we all bring something slightly different, but I feel like that works well.”
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