Bairstow Makes His Case, Again

Shall we talk briefly about yesterday’s T20? Go on then.

We absolutely smashed South Africa at the Rose Bowl on a sweltering evening. It was about as one-sided as T20’s come. The Cricket Boks stuttered to 142-3, with AB de Villiers and Behardien “hitting” pedestrian half-centuries that cost their side dear, and England knocked off the runs quick smart.

Never before has the word shellacking been used more appropriately … well, not since England’s regular capitulations in the 1990s anyway.

So what does it all mean? Bugger all basically. England turned it on when it didn’t matter, which just makes our flaccid performance in the Champions Trophy semi even harder to digest, and South Africa simply weren’t at the races.

You’ve got to wonder just how much some of the players cared. Let’s face it, they’ve just finished the CT17, which was the main event, so a scheduling some T20s a few days later is all a bit surreal.

I guess the ECB didn’t have much option after shoehorning a West Indies tour into the fag-end of the summer. When else were they going to play these money-spinning T20s?

Personally I’m just itching to get the proper cricket started now. As far as I’m concerned these T20s are an irrelevance. And by resting key players the management have basically admitted as much.

Having said that, there were a couple of beneficiaries from yesterday’s game. I’m talking about Jonny Bairstow and Mark Wood of course. The former batted absolutely brilliantly again – surely JB should be an automatic choice in all three forms? – while Wood bowled quickly and intelligently. He’s our best bowler in white ball cricket by a distance.

It was also interesting to see Mason Crane’s debut. What did you think? I think he looked alright but I doubt Adil Rashid will be losing sleep about his place in the ODI team any time soon.

I found the reaction to Crane’s performance on social media a little over the top. Plenty were saying how well he’d done and how promising he is. Personally I think this stems from sheer desperation. We all want England to unearth the next big thing so we clutch at any young leg-spinner that comes our way. It’s been the same for years.

It’s pretty obvious that Crane is very talented, but let’s all keep our feet on the ground. Personally I saw a nervous young bowler who didn’t quite land it in the right place, didn’t quite bowl at the right pace, and rarely gave the ball enough air (he was either two short or too full). But still, what did I expect from a debutant?

We shall watch Crane’s career with interest. On yesterday’s evidence, however, one can tell why Liam Dawson (who bowled four overs for just 17) is currently the main man at Hampshire.

James Morgan

14 comments

  • Didn’t even watch the ” highlights”. Really have no interest in whackit. Agree with James that it’s all rather irrelevant. Hopefully by 2020 interest will be waning in this rubbish.

  • Quite enjoyed it, good it wasn’t an ODI or else a contest that one side would have overstayed its welcome. England basically played their strongest lineup from what is in the squad with Crane playing because it was his home ground with decent boundary sizes. I liked that he gave it a big rip and didn’t look out of place other although his fielding could used a bit of work

    Jonny top scores are per but they still won’t be able to keep him in the first choice lineup. The T20WC isn’t until 2020 so I suppose key players will be rested a lot meaning there will be more matches for the bench players.

    South African looked a lot weaker on paper, they seem to be trying to use T20 to blood players. As this is not the first time the T20 side has been like this. SA Cricket looks in a mess, Yes they have lost a huges amount of players to County Cricket but are things really so dire that Behardien is playing as a batsmen only.

  • Watched about 2/3 of it out of curiosity and because I finished all my chores for the day and put my feet up. Johnny Bairstow batting better than anyone (except perhaps Samit Patel) at the moment and makes it look easy. Yes, I’d have him in all teams and I’d send Buttler back to Lancs to develop consistency.

    Only saw 2 overs of Crane. Didn’t turn a ball so I was underwhelmed. On this performance, neither he nor Dawson is the demon spinner we need. Still fingers crossed for Monty.

    • I know that Buttler is a key player in T20 but I really think in this case he would’ve been better served by playing championship cricket for Lancs … although on currently form Alex Davies might keep him out of the side!

      Jos has been playing IPL so it’s not like he needs to practice T20. And, as you say, the next T20 world cup isn’t for a while. Perhaps they were worried about ticket sales?

  • ICC meeting today has agreed a new revenue-sharing regime and given Ireland and Afghanistan Test and FM status (but not FM status when it comes to money – they’ll be getting half of what Zimbabwe get financially).

    The ECB are also apparently negotiating for a wonderful trilateral ODI series with India and Australia next summer. This is supposedly to give our brave boys extra knockout experience and not at all a cynical money-making exercise.

    • Professional sport needs regular influxes of cash, for investment in it’s own future; grass roots and facilities. Cricket has to keep a high profile to compete with other entertainments these days. If this means creating more pot boiler fixtures, which are likely to pack in joe public, I don’t see the problem. It’s not a bunch of cynical fat cats exploiting us all, it’s about survival of the fittest. Cash is king here. Like it or loathe it, if you don’t exploit it others will fill the void, at your expense. If you love sport, you want to see as much of the best as you can. I know most of my most potent sporting memories involve seeing great players for the first time, from Man Utd and Liverpool teams of the 1960’s & 1970’s through to the West Indians and the Australians in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Sporting careers are short as it is so any opportunity to see the best needs to be taken.

  • I can’t believe we’re half-way through the summer and we haven’t had a single fucking test match. Its absolutely absurd.

    • With the climate in early summer so unpredictable in this country, it is probably best to leave test cricket alone till July and August, when we expect more dry sunny spells. Limited overs stuff can be played in the more inclement weather, and players get more chance to play themselves into some sort of touch, which all makes for a better spectacle when the tests begin. Also pitches have settled down more and the opposition have had a chance to get some games under their belt, allowing us to familiarise ourselves with who we’re playing against. All this helps raise the profile of the test series when it starts.

  • When T20 was first introduced I thought it would undermine test cricket more, with its accessible format, both logistically and technically. I still have doubts about its effect on young players, especially with shot selection and technique (witness the problems of Jason Roy) and opportunity of bowlers to bowl to attacking fields to take wickets, not just conserve runs. I have begun to see what fascinating tactical problems the format introduces. It has become a bit of a science now, generating as much thought as test cricket. Skill factors have increased with bat and ball, play is not allowed to drift and fielding has moved on to a new plane. The prime knock-on effect to test cricket seems to be an increase in run rate and at least an addressing of slow over rates. Both of these were dragging entertainment and interest down. Cricket has more competition than ever before in this field and in order to generate public interest and not just become some esoteric sideshow, it must adapt or die, as it always has. There is no traditional way to play the game and never has been. Innovations have been a constant factor throughout the ages. So let us celebrate a new age in the profile of this wonderful game, which remains a highly skilled contest, combining the gladiatorial with the team ethos in a way no other game does. In this day and age we can still produce a classical player like Joe Root and we see how many superb players all over the world adapt to all styles successfully without compromising their style of play or technique. My only reservation is that in persuit of the dollar players may increasingly suffer early burn out, playing too many high profile games, but how many folk turned out for this ‘irrelevance’ at the Rose Bowl? It is difficult to argue against this, for what is the point of any professional sport other than to provide public entertainment.

    • If the game had been on my doorstep I would not have considered it as an irrelevance to me personally. Nor was it an irrelevance to the people who bought tickets. However, I think these games are an irrelevance to the broader public in general as they’re obviously a bit ‘after the Lord Mayor’s show’. Any games immediately after the Champions Trophy, with both sides resting stars, are bound to be lower profile. I think most cricket fans in the country are now looking forward to the test matches more than anything else.

      I also have to challenge the common assumption that T20 is responsible for raising run rates in test cricket. It was actually the great Australian sides of the late 90s that did this. They went along at 4 runs per over before T20 was ubiquitous. Fielding standards were also improving vastly before T20 took hold. After all, ODIs have been around for a long time. Where T20 has revolutionised the game is increasing players’ ability to hit huge sixes (range hitting) and improvisation (the ramp shots etc). I don’t think it’s fair to characterise test cricket as dying and stale before T20 came along. If anything the opposite is true i.e. that test cricket has now been challenged / cannibalised by T20 like never before.

      For what it’s worth, I don’t have a problem with T20 cricket per se. I enjoy watching it. What I don’t like (a point unconnected to my article above) is the way it’s prioritised by the authorities at the expense of first class cricket. It’s easier to market, so lazy suits put all their eggs in the T20 basket and don’t feel the need to promote other forms of the game.

      You might find this debate interesting. It’s from Speakers Corner Trust. Both myself and Tregaskis (who writes for TFT occasionally) were tasked with emphasising one side of the argument, so the articles don’t necessarily reflect our personal views 100%, but it created a useful contrast. http://www.speakerscornertrust.org/10610/t20-is-it-over-for-test-cricket/

      • If public interest in county and test cricket falls away that’s just natural evolution. The public has become spoiled with instant gratification in all sorts of areas, amongst them; music, films and sport. We no longer have an interest in the ‘stand and stare’ philosophy. I wish we did, the world would be a better place. But entertainment must be a reflection of popular taste, so the rise of white ball game will continue as will the decline of attendances at county cricket. What other team sport plays mostly during working hours? However county cricket is the only breeding ground for the test arena, so I’m sure it will continue, largely financed by these ‘irrelevances’. It is wrong to condemn fans of this short form as not real cricket fans. Many of them come to test cricket through the white ball game. Real cricket is played on the village greens and in the amateur leagues, where people give up their free time to persue their passions. A much more committed effort that buying a ticket to watch others play. Test cricket is the pinnacle of this, but in an age where we want everything yesterday it has to evolve to incorporate some of the populist attributes. There is no such thing as a traditionalist, only eras of style. The other thing about these irrelevances is they allow promising youngsters to be brought in to experience these occasions. They all have the talent, but only by direct exposure to this do we find out whether they have the technique and temperament for it. A classic example is Marcus Trescothic, who played in exactly the same freewheeling way for England as he did for Somerset and with equal success. His technical flaws were there for all to see, but his placid temperament seemed to offset this.
        I’m not suggesting white and red ball should be in competition, but that we should use the former to foster interest in the latter. They are basically the same games. Once you get to know one the other should come naturally.
        There’s nothing wrong with ramp shots and reverse sweeps, they’re just a shot selections that need extreme skill, and have certainly brought more interest to the game.
        I’m sure the likes of Sobers and Bradman would have freely adapted to the needs of the modern game. I’d love to have seen greats like Richards and Lloyd playing today. Imagine watching what Derek Randall might have have got up to.

  • I didn’t see the game. I forgot all about it. As you rightly say James, a total irrelevance.

  • I didn’t watch either game or record it. Irrelevant format and games.

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