Shaky England a great chance for India
and New Zealand.
England’s top order collapses are now a regular occurrence, which is not surprising when both opening positions are under a cloud. If it weren’t for the fact that Alastair Cook’s numerous partners have been under intense scrutiny, the senior player himself would be in jeopardy.
Two classic Cook double centuries can’t mask the fact that in his last 29 Test innings – a period of 12 months – he’s had 18 scores under 20, including ten single figure dismissals. If an opener isn’t making centuries regularly then he has to ensure the opposition doesn’t get at the middle order while the ball is still new. Too often Cook is doing neither.
OPENING TROUBLE
Adding to England’s frailties, Cook’s current partner Keaton Jennings is an already failed Test opener who has a porous defence. Previously, a visit from India would be a wonderful opportunity for struggling English openers to recapture their form but the tourists now have a well-balanced attack that includes genuine pace and cagey seamers in addition to the traditionally strong spin bowling.
England’s dicey batting order will face yet another stiff test.
New selection guru Ed Smith may have cleverly plucked the in-form Jos Buttler from IPL, but the problem is his confidently aggressive batting only bolsters an already strong middle-order. At least Smith has convinced Joe Root to bat at No 3, which is the correct spot for the consistent captain.
Root is followed by Dawad Malan who is unconvincing at No 4 and Jonny Bairstow at five would be more palatable if he conceded the gloves to Buttler and played solely as a front-line batsman. All this adds up to a lot of uncertainty for a team about to enter a tough series against a strong opponent.
NO VARIETY IN PACE
However, the headaches don’t end there for England.
Smith’s other notable choice in his selection debut was offspinner Dom Bess, an energetic and effervescent cricketer. His batting and desire to be involved in the contest is laudable but the early signs are that his off-spin shouldn’t threaten an Indian team bred on facing these type of bowlers regularly.
In one over at Headingley, Bess delivered more full tosses than R Ashwin offers up in a year, a prospect players like Virat Kohli and Vijay Murali should be relishing.
Apart from the opening batting, England’s other major problem on the Australian and New Zealand tours was the pace attack comprised all right-arm bowlers of similar speed. England’s inability to unearth a genuine pace bowler is a greater problem when they’re overseas but if the late UK summer is hot and dry, they’ll need someone who can shake things up in an attempt to dramatically change the course of a game.
In recent times, England has relied on swing bowling and a vibrant middle-order to produce success at home. There’s no doubt the swing bowling of Jimmy Anderson will present the Indian line-up with a serious challenge and if there’s movement off the seam, Stuart Broad will also be a handful.
Nevertheless, India has the stronger batting line-up of the two teams and their variety in attack could help negate England’s middle-order strength if the openers continue to fail. England is an enticing prospect for India before they contemplate Australia’s woes.
INDIA’S VISIT WOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR STRUGGLING ENGLISH OPENERS TO RECAPTURE FORM BUT THE TOURISTS NOW HAVE A BALANCED ATTACK.