With the volume of one-day cricket England have been involved in over the last month or so, it seems quite a long time since they last played a Test match. And for what must be the first time in a significantly longer period, there is greater confusion over the composition of the Test, rather than one-day side. Since the Ashes victory in 2005, their Test record has been distinctly average, bordering on poor. Away from home, just one Test has been won since the tour of South Africa in 2004-5, while seven out of eleven have ended in defeat. Even at home, where until this summer they had not lost a series for six years, results have suffered: in addition to the loss against India, they failed to put away a Sri Lanka side in the springtime climes which are as unfamiliar and unfair to the islanders as the conditions this England side will be facing in the forthcoming series. Wins were achieved against West Indies and Pakistan, but the former was against such inferior opposition as to render it a non-achievement, while Pakistan were unable to field their three frontline seamers while the series was at stake.
England still, just, rank as the second best Test team behind Australia, although that gap is as cavernous as their margin over the chasing pack is slim. It seems fitting somehow, that they should find themselves in Sri Lanka at the crucial stage, scene of one of England's greatest modern triumphs as Nasser Hussain led a team comprising the talented yet misguided bunch who had suffered repeatedly througout the 1990s to a series victory after a thumping defeat in the opening match of three. That victory, along with the earlier success that winter in Pakistan and the previous summer's demolition of West Indies, was the high-point for an underachieving generation and can be seen as the genesis for much happier times in the first half of this decade. And while Hussain's legacy was converted by Michael Vaughan into an elusive Ashes victory, the ill fortune surrounding that team has meant that, while it should still be that same unit powering towards the next home Ashes in 2009, only four players will go to Sri Lanka guaranteed a starting place.
Where England have struggled is bringing together the remnants of that team and the new faces to form a team capable of beating all-comers, as was the 2005 vintage. Far from the smooth transition as envisaged and planned for by Duncan Fletcher and Michael Vaughan, injureis and loss of form have meant that new players have had to be thrown in. Some, notably Alistair Cook and Monty Panesar, have prospered and nailed down places. However, such a situtation meant an inevitable painful struggle for some; Liam Plunkett and Sajid Mahmood are two such- extremely talented bowlers, neither was anywhere near the level required for Test cricket. The raw material was there, but they had been given no time to develop consistency and nous, two of the more crucial weapons for bowlers in the era of flat pitches and turbo-charged bats.
Indeed the composition of the bowling attack will be casuing most headaches for David Graveney and his selection panel as they thrash out the options for the touring squad to be announced tomorrow. In 2005 the balance was perfect, with Flintoff's presence at 6 allowing a five-man attack with variety in the seam bowling and the stoicism of Ashley Giles combining to form a potent arsenal. Since then, that unit has disitegrated almost completely. Flintoff and Simon Jones, the two stand-out bowlers in 2005, are both hostage to a chronic injury and conceivably neither will play another Test match. Harmison's form has dropped off markedly; no longer can he repeatedly find that awkward length to make the ball rise at the batsman's chest and throat and more worryingly he has lost his line as well, essaying the leg-side far more often that is expected of an experienced international bowler. Hoggard alone remained unbowed in the period between Ashes series, but since even he has fallen foul of injury, which permitted him to play in only the most meaningless Test of the seven last summer. Harmison, after a shocking start to the West Indies series in which he improved but did not assuage doubts, was also injured for the India tie, meaning that England fielded an attack with not a single Ashes winner, the varied success of which has made picking a four man attack a minor nightmare now old opening pair Hoggard and Harmison are back fit.
A quick perusal of the domestic averages might persuade one that the old allies should be instantly re-united. Harmison comes in at 3rd, his wickets at 16; Hoggard 7th with an average of 20. However, especially in the case of Harmison, there are statistics which come under the auspices of damned lies. Most of his wickets came early season, which paved a way for him to lead the attack in the early summer Tests. Yet for the large part of the four match series he was hopeless, and with injury claiming the latter half of his season, he has no form behind him. To address this, he has signed a short-term deal with a South African province, which will give him two first-class games in which to make a point. His reputation and central contract should guarantee his place in the touring party, but his form does not justify a starting place, and he has much to prove. Less so Hoggard, who has made a habit of not letting England down, and is an automatic selection as the most consistent seamer as well as the most experienced and successful in the subcontient. The focus then shifts to the trio who held the fort well against India: Anderson, Sidebottom and Tremlett. Sidebottom, who had the worst series statistically against India, is nevertheless at the head of the queue, in view of his excellent one-day series and the variation he offers with his left-arm bowling. Tremlett and Anderson are then left in a scrap with Harmison for the third seamers slot, should that be the balance chosen. Anderson has a good claim both as leading wicket-taker against India and in vbiew of his consistent performances with the one-day side and recent experince of the conditions. However, what may count against him is the wish to play one of the skyscraping seamers, which also brings Stuart Broad into the equation. He would add batting prowess, but his bowling still appears too fragile for Tests, especially in Sri Lanka as part of a four-man unit.
Monty Panesar will take care of spinning duties, although the excellent performances of Graeme Swann on international recall have guaranteed his selection in the squad. Ideally, as is their wont in Asia, England would like to play him as second spinner. However, previously there has been a pace-bowling all-rounder - Craig White then Andrew Flintoff - allowing a good balance of spin and seam. Opting for two spinners out of four bowlers is a high risk strategy, as Pakistan recently discovered to their cost, and the reality for Swann is that he will be reserve barring injury to Panesar or extreme conditions. That is sad, as Swann is an attacking off-spinner, capable of giving the ball a good rip, and would also give the batting security at no.8, the Giles- sized void yet to be filled.
And while the composition of the bowling attack is a puzzle, the batting positions are also far from decided. Five players - Cook, Vaughan, Bell, Pietersen and Collingwood - can feel safe, although the identity of the last man in will have significant bearing on how they line up. Andrew Strauss has not missed a Test match since the tour of Pakistan in late 2005, and that was compassionate leave to allow him to be present at the birth of his child. Since his astonishing debut in summer 2004, when he ended the career of one stalwart, Nasser Hussain, and displaced the captain Michael Vaughan from the opening slot, his place has never been directly threatened. However, following his turbo-charged entry to Tests, encompassing the summer and an amazing debut tour, averaging 72.88 in South Africa, his results have depreciated. He has not averaged 40 in a calendar year since 2004, and this year he has not managed even 30 and has gone without a century in 8 Tests. Much has been written on the causes and reasons for such a slump, not least on this blog; what remains to be said is that he has expended the period of grace given to a player of quality without justifying the faith shown in him - nor has he made his case through county cricket, scoring his runs for Middlesex at 35 in 7 Championship games. What is more, he has failed to establish a successful alliance with Alistair Cook, and with Cook having runs and youth on his side, Strauss will lose that battle, and in all likelihood his place in the team and possibly the squad.
There is no shortage of players fighting over the final batting place. Owais Shah looks to be the best bet; he backed up success with the ODI team with runs for Middlesex, and is a cert for the party of 16, if not the starting XI. Ravi Bopara also made a case with an excellent summer with Essex, while his bowling would be a bonus in the absence of Flintoff. But it is the situation regarding Shah's former county team-mate Mark Ramprakash which has caused the most recent debate. His county form, with two 2000 run, 100 average seasons behind him is historically unmatched. What counts against him is his age, 38, and his Test average, 27, a figure reached after 52 Test matches of struggle over the course of 11 years. The first figure can be partially disregarded; despite his advanced years for a sportsman, he is still a consummate athlete and his Surrey contract takes him up to the summer of 2009, judgement day for this current England side. It is a Test average, which he has doubled in first-class cricket, and faulty temperament which are harder to explain away. His demeanour at The Oval over the last few season suggest a man who is significantly more relaxed, and he attributes that and a small change of technique to his monumental run-scoring. There is a good chance that Ramprakash, if recalled, would succeed, and it would be a nice symmetry for one of the most precocious young talents in history to make a comeback in his cricketing dotage and have the dominance once expected of him at Test level. However, it seems unlikely that the selectors will take a risk on a 38 year old, and although sentiment would dearly love Ramprakash to return and succeed, cold logic seems set to carry the day, and that is probably the right decision.
The wicket-keeping slot is an area of debate (of course), but on this occasion it seems an area which the selectors are unwilling to make a battle-ground, and Matt Prior should get the nod after missing out through injury in the ODIs. Phil Mustard did not make much of his opportunity in his stead, while he was never ordained to be a Test player anyway. The likes of Tim Ambrose and Steven Davies will bear consideration at some point, but for now it seems best to stick with Prior, who deserves at least the winter Tests to prove one way or another whether his century on debut was the sign of things to come or a false dawn. And at the midway stage between two home Ashes series, England's thoughts will be very much on the same lines.
Thursday 18 October 2007
Wednesday 17 October 2007
All change please
It is unusual to accuse any sportsman under the age of 30 of being a resident of the last chance saloon. Yet for two former England players who both today left the county which reared them it seems fitting. The reasons for the continual absecne of Simon Jones and Rikki Clarke from the international scene are, of course, polar opposites; however, both find themselves in the same situation as regards their future - a hard road with only a small chance of reward at the end.
Clarke, announced today as the new Derbyshire captain, has been living in a comfort zone at The Oval for a few years now, not the first promising player from that club to fall into such a trap in recent times. Ever since his first taste of international cricket in 2003, he has failed to make a realistic claim for a regular spot with domestic runs and wickets, and his chances have generally come when the selectors have been raking up the dregs to make up numbers in the one-day side. With Andrew Flintoff now absent and possibly never to return, the need for a pace-bowling all-rounder is keenly felt; but the call comes at possibly Clarke's lowest ebb - last term his runs came at less than 25, the wickets at over 40. From stand-in captain in the opening game, he first slipped down the averages, and then out of the team, as old attitude problems began to flare up and a move away from Surrey has been forecasted since mid-season. He is still only 26, and the chance to both captain and act the role of star player is a wonderful opportunity for Clarke to realise his multi-faceted talent and make his pitch for a role in a future without Flintoff if that should arise. Peter Moores has shown his willingness to select those who impress at county level; Derbyshire have shown faith in his cricketing skill and a personality which has been questioned on more than one occasion. Now Clarke must fulfil his side of the bargain and bring home the bacon; he owes it to his new county, and in truth he owes it to himself and the potential which is a few wrong steps away from being perpetually unfulfilled.
When Simon Jones made his England debut five summers ago, in the same series as Steve Harmison, it seemed to herald a new era in English pace bowling. He picked up 4 wickets in his first Test, not before he had blasted a quickfire 40 as a warm-up. He was still, to use the technical term, "wild and wooly", but had all the attributes to be a top fast bowler, foremost the ability to bowl at a genuinely express pace. But that same winter, the world which had appeared to be at his feet came crashing down about his ears, as he snapped cruciate ligaments in Brisbane having just picked up his first Ashes wicket. It looked career threatening, but Jones pulled through, and was finally rehabilitated on the 2004 tour of the Caribbean, as England triumphed 3-0, and the fast bowling quartet which was to be the basis for a perfect year was born. Progress thereafter was somewhat stilted; he did not hold down a place in the return series that summer, and has a largely miserable tour of South Africa with Michael Vaughan seemingly unwilling to bowl him for extended periods. As the Ashes series loomed, he was definitely regarded as the weak link in England's attack. No-one, English or Australian, could have predicted the magnitude of that series or indeed Jones' significant contribution in it. He was the creator of so many great moments in a contest littered with them, the best perhaps a massive hooping reverse-swinger to which Michael Clarke shouldered arms to give those watching the best view of his off-stump being uprooted. Cruelly, in the middle of being architect for Australia's demise at Trent Bridge, and handed the new ball for the first time, his ankle gave way. He did not bowl again in that Test, although at the time it was hoped he would recover for the decider. 26 months later, and that is still his last match for England. His ankle problem mutated into a knee injury which kept him out until the beginning of 2007, with attempts to rush him back just leading to setbacks. The season just gone was supposed to be a renaissance one for Jones; as it turned out, he picked up just one wicket in Championship cricket in 89 overs of bowling. His knee would not let him alone to bowl; by all accounts, he did not look fit even when he turned out, and had none of the zip which knocked over 17 Australian wickets in 2005. Now he has turned his back on Glamorgan, and been offered refuge by Worcestershire. Perhaps a move away from the county which is his home in every sense is the best thing for Jones now, although his chances of a full recovery seem negligible. He will take comfort from the progress of Michael Vaughan, who recovered from a similarly low ebb in summer 2006 to play a full programme of Tests the next year. And while there is a long queue of prospective Test seamers, the positions are not nailed down; there is still a place for a fully fit Jones if he can recapture his best. But that is several galaxies away as we stand; hopefully he will be able to use the winter to work on the knee and at least get some overs behind him next season. For unlike Clarke, there is only so much that he can do.
Clarke, announced today as the new Derbyshire captain, has been living in a comfort zone at The Oval for a few years now, not the first promising player from that club to fall into such a trap in recent times. Ever since his first taste of international cricket in 2003, he has failed to make a realistic claim for a regular spot with domestic runs and wickets, and his chances have generally come when the selectors have been raking up the dregs to make up numbers in the one-day side. With Andrew Flintoff now absent and possibly never to return, the need for a pace-bowling all-rounder is keenly felt; but the call comes at possibly Clarke's lowest ebb - last term his runs came at less than 25, the wickets at over 40. From stand-in captain in the opening game, he first slipped down the averages, and then out of the team, as old attitude problems began to flare up and a move away from Surrey has been forecasted since mid-season. He is still only 26, and the chance to both captain and act the role of star player is a wonderful opportunity for Clarke to realise his multi-faceted talent and make his pitch for a role in a future without Flintoff if that should arise. Peter Moores has shown his willingness to select those who impress at county level; Derbyshire have shown faith in his cricketing skill and a personality which has been questioned on more than one occasion. Now Clarke must fulfil his side of the bargain and bring home the bacon; he owes it to his new county, and in truth he owes it to himself and the potential which is a few wrong steps away from being perpetually unfulfilled.
When Simon Jones made his England debut five summers ago, in the same series as Steve Harmison, it seemed to herald a new era in English pace bowling. He picked up 4 wickets in his first Test, not before he had blasted a quickfire 40 as a warm-up. He was still, to use the technical term, "wild and wooly", but had all the attributes to be a top fast bowler, foremost the ability to bowl at a genuinely express pace. But that same winter, the world which had appeared to be at his feet came crashing down about his ears, as he snapped cruciate ligaments in Brisbane having just picked up his first Ashes wicket. It looked career threatening, but Jones pulled through, and was finally rehabilitated on the 2004 tour of the Caribbean, as England triumphed 3-0, and the fast bowling quartet which was to be the basis for a perfect year was born. Progress thereafter was somewhat stilted; he did not hold down a place in the return series that summer, and has a largely miserable tour of South Africa with Michael Vaughan seemingly unwilling to bowl him for extended periods. As the Ashes series loomed, he was definitely regarded as the weak link in England's attack. No-one, English or Australian, could have predicted the magnitude of that series or indeed Jones' significant contribution in it. He was the creator of so many great moments in a contest littered with them, the best perhaps a massive hooping reverse-swinger to which Michael Clarke shouldered arms to give those watching the best view of his off-stump being uprooted. Cruelly, in the middle of being architect for Australia's demise at Trent Bridge, and handed the new ball for the first time, his ankle gave way. He did not bowl again in that Test, although at the time it was hoped he would recover for the decider. 26 months later, and that is still his last match for England. His ankle problem mutated into a knee injury which kept him out until the beginning of 2007, with attempts to rush him back just leading to setbacks. The season just gone was supposed to be a renaissance one for Jones; as it turned out, he picked up just one wicket in Championship cricket in 89 overs of bowling. His knee would not let him alone to bowl; by all accounts, he did not look fit even when he turned out, and had none of the zip which knocked over 17 Australian wickets in 2005. Now he has turned his back on Glamorgan, and been offered refuge by Worcestershire. Perhaps a move away from the county which is his home in every sense is the best thing for Jones now, although his chances of a full recovery seem negligible. He will take comfort from the progress of Michael Vaughan, who recovered from a similarly low ebb in summer 2006 to play a full programme of Tests the next year. And while there is a long queue of prospective Test seamers, the positions are not nailed down; there is still a place for a fully fit Jones if he can recapture his best. But that is several galaxies away as we stand; hopefully he will be able to use the winter to work on the knee and at least get some overs behind him next season. For unlike Clarke, there is only so much that he can do.
Monday 15 October 2007
A game in flux
Exits, farewells, downfalls. These have been the staple of one of the busiest ever years of international cricket, at the end of which it is hard to refute the suggestion that the generational shift which must occur in every cycle has come about, and that a mini golden-age has come to an end. Australia, as they have for the last decade or more, have led the way, both in terms of success and goodbyes. The Ashes whitewash and third consecutive World Cup title were epoch making, while the departure of Warne and McGrath marked the end for two of the supreme practitioners of their respective arts and the cessation of one of the greatest ever bowling partnerships. Other luminaries were denied the glorious ends which their careers and talent deserved; Brian Lara, his batting talent matched by none of his era and few of any, suffered a miserable denouement, a reflection on the decline of West Indies cricket over the course of his international career, which only his genius could transcend. Inzamam Ul Haq, who combined the lifestyle of a 1980s cricketer with the demands of a modern one and whose batting was a unique mixture of bulk and deft touch was given a contrived end to his 120 Test career, but fell 3 runs short of eclipsing Javed Miandad's record. The bell has also begun to toll for Shaun Pollock, dropped for the first time in 107 Tests and 12 years, while for Sanath Jayasuriya and Adam Gilchrist, an opening partnership which would grace any all-time ODI XI, 73 combined years of experience suggest the end is not too far off.
And it is not just great players who are on the way out. Captains have been on the merry-go-round, with India, Pakistan, New Zealand and England all under different leadership in at least one form of the game. Coaches too are in transit after a longish period of continuity: gone are Fletcher, Buchanan, Moody, Chappell and, tragically, Woolmer. In come Moores, Nielsen, Bayliss and Lawson. Household names none, reputations very much to be proved. Even the form of the game being played is under question, especially when one views the respective successes of the 50 and 20 over tournaments.
Perversely, it could be Australia who are hit hardest by the changing of the guard. Gone are Warne and McGrath, the magnitude and greatness of whose efforts cannot be explained ed or rationalised in words. The cold, harsh reality is that their two most consistent matchwinners are no longer available; include the retirement of opener Justin Langer, and it is well over 300 caps which have waltzed off into the sunset. Langer's position should be the easiest to fill, although the identity of his successor is open to question. One option is to promote the next opener in line, probably Phil Jaques. However, were they to reassign Mike Hussey to his original calling at the top of affairs, it would open up a middle order spot whose owner could be chosen from a larger pool, including Brad Hodge and the younger Hussey David. With Hayden probably looking no further than 2009, it might be a shrewd move to promote Hussey to the top, leaving at least one experienced hand when the second half of the modern game's greatest opening partnership calls it a day.
The composition of the bowling arsenal will spark much more debate and is the more vital issue. Warne and McGrath cannot be replaced in kind; the latter a once in a generation bowler, the former a once in a lifetime. But Australia do have formidable seam resources ready to fill the breach. Stuart Clark is at the forefront after a stupendously successful beginning to his Test career; he is not as much a McGrath clone as is generally claimed, but that does not stop him from being an extremely fine bowler, well capable of continuing to take lots of cheap wickets. Brett Lee will also have to make the step-up from support shock bowler to leading man, a role which previous experience has suggested he would be better served acting with guitar rather than ball in hand. If he struggles he could soon find himself cast aside, with his wonderbollocks reputation threatened on two fronts, gunslinger Shaun Tait and scourge of India Mitchell "magic" Johnson. English fans will have happy memories of Tait, who suffered when thrown in at the business end of the 2005 Ashes; his run-leaking spells and Kevin Pietersen's aerial assualt on his fine-leg boundary at The Oval are what will be boorishly recalled, although not to be forgotten the sort of delivery which sent Geraint Jones' off-stump on a walk long enough to warrant sponsorship for Sir Ian Botham's Leukemia Research. Less is known about Johnson, but he has turned in enough matchwinning performances in his short ODI career to put Dennis Lillee's much heralded comments about him in the valley of possibility. Alongside these sleek, flashy new motors is a relative tractor, Tasmanian brickie Ben Hilfenhaus. His state of origin may be less fashionable, the name lent less to an easy headline, but Hilfenhaus could well turn out to be the best of the bunch. His persistent outswing earned him 60 wickets last Australian season and his state Tasmania their maiden Championship, reward mostly achieved on the surfaces at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart, about the most unforgiving in the country.
And that is just the seamers. The question of who would replace Warne has been the most loaded in Australian cricket for a few years now, and still there is no heir apparent. And, conceivably, there will never be, not in this lifetime. Staurt MacGill will do a good job for a few years, or Bradd Hogg if the selectors' patience with MacGill's temperament has finally expired. But beyond the near future, no-one is poised to step into the breach. The two most likely are off-spinner Dan Cullen and leggie Cullen Bailey, both of South Australia, but neither has a particularly flattering First Class record. The simple truth is that bowling spin in Australia is an ever more difficult task, and that the Australian bowling attack will have to recalibrate itself to the setting of pace, with the spinner more an interlude than the symphony Warne continually produced.
Australia are not alone in experiencing a transitional phase. England may be seen by many as the second best Test side, but they have won no real series of note since 2005, victories against Pakistan and West Indies both mitigated by the weakness of the opposition. The attempt to meld the remaining Ashes winners with the new guard has produced a result which still shows the fissure-lines of its formation, and injuries and the absence of key players continues to drag them down. India defeated them away from home, a significant achievement, albeit with England's entire first-string bowling missing. However, the power trio of Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid have begun to look tired and out of place. A new Test captain is needed, while the one-day side has really suffered, defeated unexpectedly in England and thumped at home by Australia. Pakistan are similarly struggling to compete in the brave new world without Inzy and Shoaib, while Sri Lanka have glimpsed the future without Muralitharan and with Jayasuriya and Vaas struggling.
The uncertainty does bring some excitement to the international game, and the chance for the first time in a long time to challenge the Australian dominance. However, this will be well achieved; without Warne and McGrath they will win fewer games but defeating them will still be a formidable proposition. But, nevertheless, the new ingredients have been tossed into the melting pot, and it remains to be seen whether this heralds an exciting new dawn, or just longing for what has now been and gone.
And it is not just great players who are on the way out. Captains have been on the merry-go-round, with India, Pakistan, New Zealand and England all under different leadership in at least one form of the game. Coaches too are in transit after a longish period of continuity: gone are Fletcher, Buchanan, Moody, Chappell and, tragically, Woolmer. In come Moores, Nielsen, Bayliss and Lawson. Household names none, reputations very much to be proved. Even the form of the game being played is under question, especially when one views the respective successes of the 50 and 20 over tournaments.
Perversely, it could be Australia who are hit hardest by the changing of the guard. Gone are Warne and McGrath, the magnitude and greatness of whose efforts cannot be explained ed or rationalised in words. The cold, harsh reality is that their two most consistent matchwinners are no longer available; include the retirement of opener Justin Langer, and it is well over 300 caps which have waltzed off into the sunset. Langer's position should be the easiest to fill, although the identity of his successor is open to question. One option is to promote the next opener in line, probably Phil Jaques. However, were they to reassign Mike Hussey to his original calling at the top of affairs, it would open up a middle order spot whose owner could be chosen from a larger pool, including Brad Hodge and the younger Hussey David. With Hayden probably looking no further than 2009, it might be a shrewd move to promote Hussey to the top, leaving at least one experienced hand when the second half of the modern game's greatest opening partnership calls it a day.
The composition of the bowling arsenal will spark much more debate and is the more vital issue. Warne and McGrath cannot be replaced in kind; the latter a once in a generation bowler, the former a once in a lifetime. But Australia do have formidable seam resources ready to fill the breach. Stuart Clark is at the forefront after a stupendously successful beginning to his Test career; he is not as much a McGrath clone as is generally claimed, but that does not stop him from being an extremely fine bowler, well capable of continuing to take lots of cheap wickets. Brett Lee will also have to make the step-up from support shock bowler to leading man, a role which previous experience has suggested he would be better served acting with guitar rather than ball in hand. If he struggles he could soon find himself cast aside, with his wonderbollocks reputation threatened on two fronts, gunslinger Shaun Tait and scourge of India Mitchell "magic" Johnson. English fans will have happy memories of Tait, who suffered when thrown in at the business end of the 2005 Ashes; his run-leaking spells and Kevin Pietersen's aerial assualt on his fine-leg boundary at The Oval are what will be boorishly recalled, although not to be forgotten the sort of delivery which sent Geraint Jones' off-stump on a walk long enough to warrant sponsorship for Sir Ian Botham's Leukemia Research. Less is known about Johnson, but he has turned in enough matchwinning performances in his short ODI career to put Dennis Lillee's much heralded comments about him in the valley of possibility. Alongside these sleek, flashy new motors is a relative tractor, Tasmanian brickie Ben Hilfenhaus. His state of origin may be less fashionable, the name lent less to an easy headline, but Hilfenhaus could well turn out to be the best of the bunch. His persistent outswing earned him 60 wickets last Australian season and his state Tasmania their maiden Championship, reward mostly achieved on the surfaces at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart, about the most unforgiving in the country.
And that is just the seamers. The question of who would replace Warne has been the most loaded in Australian cricket for a few years now, and still there is no heir apparent. And, conceivably, there will never be, not in this lifetime. Staurt MacGill will do a good job for a few years, or Bradd Hogg if the selectors' patience with MacGill's temperament has finally expired. But beyond the near future, no-one is poised to step into the breach. The two most likely are off-spinner Dan Cullen and leggie Cullen Bailey, both of South Australia, but neither has a particularly flattering First Class record. The simple truth is that bowling spin in Australia is an ever more difficult task, and that the Australian bowling attack will have to recalibrate itself to the setting of pace, with the spinner more an interlude than the symphony Warne continually produced.
Australia are not alone in experiencing a transitional phase. England may be seen by many as the second best Test side, but they have won no real series of note since 2005, victories against Pakistan and West Indies both mitigated by the weakness of the opposition. The attempt to meld the remaining Ashes winners with the new guard has produced a result which still shows the fissure-lines of its formation, and injuries and the absence of key players continues to drag them down. India defeated them away from home, a significant achievement, albeit with England's entire first-string bowling missing. However, the power trio of Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid have begun to look tired and out of place. A new Test captain is needed, while the one-day side has really suffered, defeated unexpectedly in England and thumped at home by Australia. Pakistan are similarly struggling to compete in the brave new world without Inzy and Shoaib, while Sri Lanka have glimpsed the future without Muralitharan and with Jayasuriya and Vaas struggling.
The uncertainty does bring some excitement to the international game, and the chance for the first time in a long time to challenge the Australian dominance. However, this will be well achieved; without Warne and McGrath they will win fewer games but defeating them will still be a formidable proposition. But, nevertheless, the new ingredients have been tossed into the melting pot, and it remains to be seen whether this heralds an exciting new dawn, or just longing for what has now been and gone.
Saturday 13 October 2007
Progressive England find their edge
It might not have caused a great shock to the system of a casual fan to learn that England succumbed rather feebly in today's final one-day game in Sri Lanka. But while the eye of the sporting world hovers over England's unbelievable run to the Rugby World Cup final, the cricket team have been almost imperceptibly staging their own act of defiance. Sri Lanka do not lose too often at home, nor England win away in one-day cricket. And, despite a rather disappointing codicil to a hard fought but low key series, there is a definite sense, for the first time in over a decade, that England are well on the road to becoming a successful one-day team.
There tends to come a point in all sport when a poor team finds out that even the seemingly bottomless pit has a limit. For England, surely that time was six months ago in the Caribbean when four years of chaotic preparation and moderate results produced a team which drowned in a mulch of turgid and ill-executed cricket. The Test team found itself in a similar position in 1999, when Nasser Hussain's first series in charge ended in defeat to unprepossessing New Zealand in a summer which had also included the now habitual World Cup failure. It was Hussain who, with sheer bloodymindedness and truculent man-management, dragged England from the pit of mediocrity which had been its resting place for a decade or more and pointed the way to future success. Michael Vaughan inherited Hussain's legacy, refining the rough edges which had been necessary in the first stage of recovery and guiding the team through a year of unmitigated success, culminating in a sweet Ashes victory in the summer of 2005. England are now seemingly entering that first phase of rebirth, and in Collingwood they have a man who is well equipped to exert the Hussain-like influence on the one-day team.
Since 1992, when England last produced the goods in one-day cricket, there have been four full time England captains who have doubled up in both forms of the game. Atherton, Stewart, Hussain and Vaughan were all fine Test players who all had some influence as leaders in the longer form. But none were especially comfortable in one-day cricket, as players and consequentially, captains. And prior to the CB series steal in February, England's last one-day triumph away from the green and pleasant land had been ten years previously, in Sharjah under the captaincy of one-day specialist Adam Hollioake. And you will still find many people who would contend that Hollioake should never have been stripped of the captaincy when he was, and that he should have played and captained over 100 ODIs. Some neat symmetry then, that it is under the stewardship of Collingwood, so long a resident in the one-day specialist pigeon-hole, that England have begun to look a competitive one-day team. And while team lacked direction under the likes of Hussain and Vaughan, this side glows with the Collingwood influence; busy, effective and bristling with controlled aggression.
It is the bowlers who have been the leading figures, and, slow and tricky pitches notwithstanding, they have done exceptionally well to restrict a Sri Lankan batting order of such pedigree. Ryan Sidebottom has shown why the management were so keen to get him into the team despite him missing most of the summer fixtures. One-day cricket brings out the dog in him, and his variation and accuracy are lethal when accompanied by the quicker pace he has shown himself capable of bowling this series. James Anderson was quieter, but he remains England's one-day spearhead, and he hung in well and was an excellent new-ball foil for Sidebottom. Stuart Broad, relegated to first change, nevertheless prospered and enjoyed a considerable amount of good fortune on the way to 11 wickets. Still, it was an impressive return after he was mauled by Yuvraj in the Twenty20, and every international for Broad is an investment by England in a bowler who fits in exactly with their template with his batting ability to boot.
However, despite the excellence of the seam trio, it was the performance of the resurgent Graeme Swann which captured headlines and bathed in what little limelight the media spared for the series. Eight years ago on his first, and what seemed for a long time sure to be his last, tour with England, Swann infamously scrawled his name in graffiti on the pages of Duncan Fletcher's bad book with his brash manner and disdain at the team bus as a method of transport. It is easy to look back now, but at the time Swann was exactly the sort of character Fletcher did not need in a new-look team for which discipline became an important theme. Times have changed, though, for both England and Swann, who was included in the squad seemingly as second spinner to Monty Panesar. Panesar had struggled in the one-day game, but it was still a surprise when he won selection for the first game. England lost that, but Swann gained his first international wicket, 8 years on from being outbowled by Graeme Hick, and the notice of the attending from his very first ball on return, which spun sharply out of the rough. He continued to prosper, notably in the third game at Dambulla, with 4 wickets, rare for an English spinner in ODIs, backed up by a matchwinning knock in the tense run-chase. A deep seated irony that his success should come in the manner so beloved of Fletcher, the primary function backed up by second-string talent.
The batting unit was less at ease, and had it been surer, England would have won by greater margin and with fewer nerves frayed. The opening partnership, a continual bugbear, was once again makeshift and temporary in form and substance; Alistair Cook proved his worth in the limited situation of the anchor in the chase which sealed the series at Colombo. Elsewhere he showed that he still lacks the adaptability and nous to be the complete opener in one-day cricket. Phil Mustard, who would not have wished for the jungly surrounds and pedestrian pitches of Dambulla for his international bow, showed his ability to score at a good rate but, like his predecessor in the role, Matt Prior, never looked like making a significant contribution. With his wicket-keeping also imperfect, it will be a delicate call as to whether he is retained for the next one-day series in New Zealand. Ian Bell is now settled as England's No.3, but an absence of luck and better judgement meant that the success he enjoyed against India in late summer eluded him. Kevin Pietersen, despite guiding England home in the fourth game, still seems in the mid-life crisis of his ODI career, while Paul Collingwood was patchy, likewise Owais Shah aside from one important contribution in the second game; his 82 was the highest total achieved by a batsman on either side, reflective of the bowler-friendly nature of the pitches. Ravi Bopara never really got going, which is not too surprising considering he was played almost as a specialist batsman at 7. There seems to be an essential imbalance in the team, not helped by the unavailability of Flintoff, who would fit in nicely in Bopara' s batting position. Bopara showed his bowling prowess with a tight spell today with Collingwood nursing a sore shoulder, but even with Flintoff's absence reducing bowling options, he was hardly given a chance to bowl, and his current role seems to benefit neither him nor the team.
As for Sri Lanka, who dazzled at the World Cup, there was a surprising lack of stomach and gumption in conditions familiar to them. Without Muralitharan, the bowling suffered, and the shackles imposed on the usually free-spirited openers Jayasuriya and Tharanga seemed to encompass the whole team, with the middle and lower order often having to bail out the wreck left by the top half. The fact that fringe players Maharoof and Silva were the stand-outs reflects the general underperformance of the team. Whether this is merely a blip or a precursor to leaner times in the aftermath of Tom Moody's successful tenure remains to be seen, but it was unexpected to see Sri Lanka get outlasted on their own pitches by a still vulnerable England team.
Maybe we should not be so surprised by England's success. There is youth and talent in this team, as well as the odd old-head with a few more in reserve. The victory against India was the establishment of a new regime after short-circuiting against West Indies, while this current triumph represents progress and a real feather in the cap of Collingwood and coach Peter Moores. It is still far too early to be getting complacent about the performance of the one-day side, but for once the attention can be turned to Tests with the issue of the one-dayers lain aside happily, rather than furtively swept under the carpet.
There tends to come a point in all sport when a poor team finds out that even the seemingly bottomless pit has a limit. For England, surely that time was six months ago in the Caribbean when four years of chaotic preparation and moderate results produced a team which drowned in a mulch of turgid and ill-executed cricket. The Test team found itself in a similar position in 1999, when Nasser Hussain's first series in charge ended in defeat to unprepossessing New Zealand in a summer which had also included the now habitual World Cup failure. It was Hussain who, with sheer bloodymindedness and truculent man-management, dragged England from the pit of mediocrity which had been its resting place for a decade or more and pointed the way to future success. Michael Vaughan inherited Hussain's legacy, refining the rough edges which had been necessary in the first stage of recovery and guiding the team through a year of unmitigated success, culminating in a sweet Ashes victory in the summer of 2005. England are now seemingly entering that first phase of rebirth, and in Collingwood they have a man who is well equipped to exert the Hussain-like influence on the one-day team.
Since 1992, when England last produced the goods in one-day cricket, there have been four full time England captains who have doubled up in both forms of the game. Atherton, Stewart, Hussain and Vaughan were all fine Test players who all had some influence as leaders in the longer form. But none were especially comfortable in one-day cricket, as players and consequentially, captains. And prior to the CB series steal in February, England's last one-day triumph away from the green and pleasant land had been ten years previously, in Sharjah under the captaincy of one-day specialist Adam Hollioake. And you will still find many people who would contend that Hollioake should never have been stripped of the captaincy when he was, and that he should have played and captained over 100 ODIs. Some neat symmetry then, that it is under the stewardship of Collingwood, so long a resident in the one-day specialist pigeon-hole, that England have begun to look a competitive one-day team. And while team lacked direction under the likes of Hussain and Vaughan, this side glows with the Collingwood influence; busy, effective and bristling with controlled aggression.
It is the bowlers who have been the leading figures, and, slow and tricky pitches notwithstanding, they have done exceptionally well to restrict a Sri Lankan batting order of such pedigree. Ryan Sidebottom has shown why the management were so keen to get him into the team despite him missing most of the summer fixtures. One-day cricket brings out the dog in him, and his variation and accuracy are lethal when accompanied by the quicker pace he has shown himself capable of bowling this series. James Anderson was quieter, but he remains England's one-day spearhead, and he hung in well and was an excellent new-ball foil for Sidebottom. Stuart Broad, relegated to first change, nevertheless prospered and enjoyed a considerable amount of good fortune on the way to 11 wickets. Still, it was an impressive return after he was mauled by Yuvraj in the Twenty20, and every international for Broad is an investment by England in a bowler who fits in exactly with their template with his batting ability to boot.
However, despite the excellence of the seam trio, it was the performance of the resurgent Graeme Swann which captured headlines and bathed in what little limelight the media spared for the series. Eight years ago on his first, and what seemed for a long time sure to be his last, tour with England, Swann infamously scrawled his name in graffiti on the pages of Duncan Fletcher's bad book with his brash manner and disdain at the team bus as a method of transport. It is easy to look back now, but at the time Swann was exactly the sort of character Fletcher did not need in a new-look team for which discipline became an important theme. Times have changed, though, for both England and Swann, who was included in the squad seemingly as second spinner to Monty Panesar. Panesar had struggled in the one-day game, but it was still a surprise when he won selection for the first game. England lost that, but Swann gained his first international wicket, 8 years on from being outbowled by Graeme Hick, and the notice of the attending from his very first ball on return, which spun sharply out of the rough. He continued to prosper, notably in the third game at Dambulla, with 4 wickets, rare for an English spinner in ODIs, backed up by a matchwinning knock in the tense run-chase. A deep seated irony that his success should come in the manner so beloved of Fletcher, the primary function backed up by second-string talent.
The batting unit was less at ease, and had it been surer, England would have won by greater margin and with fewer nerves frayed. The opening partnership, a continual bugbear, was once again makeshift and temporary in form and substance; Alistair Cook proved his worth in the limited situation of the anchor in the chase which sealed the series at Colombo. Elsewhere he showed that he still lacks the adaptability and nous to be the complete opener in one-day cricket. Phil Mustard, who would not have wished for the jungly surrounds and pedestrian pitches of Dambulla for his international bow, showed his ability to score at a good rate but, like his predecessor in the role, Matt Prior, never looked like making a significant contribution. With his wicket-keeping also imperfect, it will be a delicate call as to whether he is retained for the next one-day series in New Zealand. Ian Bell is now settled as England's No.3, but an absence of luck and better judgement meant that the success he enjoyed against India in late summer eluded him. Kevin Pietersen, despite guiding England home in the fourth game, still seems in the mid-life crisis of his ODI career, while Paul Collingwood was patchy, likewise Owais Shah aside from one important contribution in the second game; his 82 was the highest total achieved by a batsman on either side, reflective of the bowler-friendly nature of the pitches. Ravi Bopara never really got going, which is not too surprising considering he was played almost as a specialist batsman at 7. There seems to be an essential imbalance in the team, not helped by the unavailability of Flintoff, who would fit in nicely in Bopara' s batting position. Bopara showed his bowling prowess with a tight spell today with Collingwood nursing a sore shoulder, but even with Flintoff's absence reducing bowling options, he was hardly given a chance to bowl, and his current role seems to benefit neither him nor the team.
As for Sri Lanka, who dazzled at the World Cup, there was a surprising lack of stomach and gumption in conditions familiar to them. Without Muralitharan, the bowling suffered, and the shackles imposed on the usually free-spirited openers Jayasuriya and Tharanga seemed to encompass the whole team, with the middle and lower order often having to bail out the wreck left by the top half. The fact that fringe players Maharoof and Silva were the stand-outs reflects the general underperformance of the team. Whether this is merely a blip or a precursor to leaner times in the aftermath of Tom Moody's successful tenure remains to be seen, but it was unexpected to see Sri Lanka get outlasted on their own pitches by a still vulnerable England team.
Maybe we should not be so surprised by England's success. There is youth and talent in this team, as well as the odd old-head with a few more in reserve. The victory against India was the establishment of a new regime after short-circuiting against West Indies, while this current triumph represents progress and a real feather in the cap of Collingwood and coach Peter Moores. It is still far too early to be getting complacent about the performance of the one-day side, but for once the attention can be turned to Tests with the issue of the one-dayers lain aside happily, rather than furtively swept under the carpet.
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