I’m between a rock and a hard place
JAMES VINCE is backing himself to shine on his Test debut this week, despite being sandwiched between two of the most exciting talents in world cricket in Joe Root and Ben Stokes.
The Hampshire batsman will come in at five, in the slot vacated by the enforced retirement of James Taylor.
While he admitted that putting on an eye-catching show will be no easy task in the midst of those bright lights, it is one he is ready to face up to after a marked improvement in his game in the last 12 months.
“Rooty is one of the best players in the world at the moment and Stokesy has shown in the last 12 months just how good he is,” said Vince. “But my game has been in pretty good touch so it is a good time to start in an England shirt.”
Vince, who accepted the offer of the Hampshire captaincy at the end of last summer aged just 24, added: “I used to play a few too many shots and gave my wicket away a few too many times. But I have adapted better now and can change my game depending on the situation.
“Hopefully batting in the middle order this week it will be nice if the guys have got off to a good start to play my natural game. I look to attack if the situation is right.”
England’s selectors have been keen to get Vince into the Test squad for some time given he might eventually provide them with a more dashing solution at No3 than Nick Compton.
But it took the sudden retirement of Taylor to provide an opportunity. Now handed the chance to prove he belongs at Test level – he has one ODI cap and four T20 internationals already under his belt – the possibility of staking a claim to the No3 spot beckons.
Vince said his experience with the limited-overs squads and the Lions makes the transition to the Test dressing room easier, having played with everyone apart from Jimmy Anderson, Stuart Broad and Alastair Cook.
“I played in the Under-19 team with Root, Stokes, and Buttler. Jonny Bairstow is a year older. We had a World Cup in New Zealand so I have grown up playing with quite a few of the guys.”
Sri Lanka’s dressing room is a different place than it was in 2014 since the retirement of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, to name but two.
The absence with a shoulder injury of the leader of their seam attack, Dhammika Prasad, has left them looking a little frayed around the edges this week.
Yet wicketkeeper-batsman Kaushal Silva is very confident of repeating the series win of 2014, saying: “We’ve prepared very well and the boys are all shaping up nicely. It’s time for the youngsters to take their responsibility and do their jobs. If everyone does that there’ll be nothing to complain about.”
Jayawardene yesterday revealed the spark which caused Root to complain to umpires when the teams met in Leeds two years ago.
According to Jayawardene, Root lost his rag when he was batting after being repeatedly compared to American comedienne Ellen DeGeneres, saying: “I kept asking Joe if he was related to her because they look so much alike!”
Jayawardene, speaking in his role as summariser for Sky Sports, who will show the series live, added: “Joe was a young player who had plenty to say to us when we were batting. So I thought I’d have a chat back. It was all harmless stuff.”