Sarah Taylor has been appointed as the fielding coach for England ahead of the upcoming Test series against New Zealand. Taylor, a former England wicketkeeper-batter widely regarded as one of the finest wicketkeepers in women’s cricket, will join the setup on a short-term basis as cover for Carl Hopkinson, who is currently on IPL duty with Mumbai Indians.

England men’s managing director Rob Key confirmed the appointment following the squad announcement for the opening Test at Lord's. Taylor has previously worked closely with Andrew Flintoff in the England Lions setup.

During a distinguished 13-year international career, Taylor earned 226 caps for England across formats and played a crucial role in the team’s 2017 Women’s World Cup triumph. She has also gained coaching experience in men’s cricket through roles with Sussex and Manchester Originals. Her latest appointment is believed to mark the first time a female coach has worked with a senior men’s international cricket team.

"I just think she's one of the best in the business at what she does. She's been outstanding, and she's worked a lot with Andrew Flintoff and Ed Barney [performance director]. They can't speak highly enough of her. So from what we can see, she's one of the best in the business,” said Key as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

England endured a disappointing fielding campaign during their 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia, dropping 11 catches across the series. The decision to tour without a specialist fielding coach became one of the major talking points in the aftermath of the series. In response, Hopkinson was appointed as fielding coach following the Ashes, while Troy Cooley returned as England’s first full-time bowling coach since Jon Lewis stepped down from the role in 2022.

"We've been thoroughly, unbelievably impressed with [Taylor] and the way that she goes about her business. Carl Hopkinson, as is the nature of the cricket world that we have at the moment, he's working with Mumbai Indians. He has a lot of stuff that he does for them, so we'll still use him at some point, just not for this series,” said Key.