England's Women's T20 World Cup squad is trading their cricket whites for combat boots this weekend, as they head to an undisclosed UK location for a high-intensity camp with the British Army. The 15-strong group will skip this weekend's domestic matches to focus on a programme designed to sharpen "decision-making, resilience, and delivering high performance when the pressure is turned up," according to team management.

The timing couldn't be more perfect. This army camp comes just a week before England's first international of the summer—a three-match ODI series against New Zealand kicking off on May 10. From there, it's a whirlwind of T20 action: three matches against the White Ferns, followed by three more against India, before the World Cup campaign begins against Sri Lanka on June 12.

Clare Connor, the ECB's managing director of women's cricket, is buzzing about the opportunity. "We are extremely lucky to be able to send our newly selected World Cup squad into one of the best high-performance environments in the world," she said. "What the players will experience and learn over the next few days will be priceless when it comes to performing in some of the pressure moments that a home World Cup will undoubtedly bring."

This isn't the first time English cricket has turned to military training. Before the historic 2010-11 men's Ashes victory, the squad endured a five-day bootcamp in a German forest—bonding that many credit with forging that winning unit. However, a repeat before the 2013-14 tour is often remembered as the start of a doomed campaign. For the women's team, this represents a new chapter in their preparation.

Charlotte Edwards' squad hasn't played an international fixture this winter, instead relying on intra-squad camps to stay sharp. They also missed a round of domestic 50-over matches earlier this month for a T20-focused camp. With the World Cup on home soil, every moment counts—and this army camp might just be the edge they need to bring the trophy home.