Mo: We wanted to bury Windies
MOEEN ALI spoke of ‘burying’ West Indies and ‘making them suffer’ after his 84 proved central to a remarkable England fightback in the second Investec Test in Leeds. Ali was one of six halfcenturions in England’s second innings of 490 for eight declared, leaving the tourists an improbable 321 to square the series. At stumps, West Indies were five without loss. England scored 133 runs in 28 overs in a raucous final session, and Moeen said: ‘We felt like their heads went down after tea pretty quickly. We were trying to go at five runs at a time and keep burying them. ‘We wanted to make them suffer, and keep them out in the field, because their bowlers were getting tired.’ Chris Woakes, who contributed 61 not out, said: ‘After the deficit of 169 on the first innings, we were behind the eight ball, so we’re delighted to have that opportunity to go out there and win a Test match.’
TIME was when a gritty 61 would not have secured an England Test batsman his seat on the flight to Australia. But never mind beggars: if the last few weeks have proved anything, it’s that selectors can’t be choosers.
Back in June, Dawid Malan cracked 78 off 44 balls on his England debut — a Twenty20 game against South Africa at Cardiff that confirmed his white-ball credentials without necessarily hinting at a first Test cap.
Here in Leeds, with his side facing the possibility of an embarrassing Test defeat by a West Indies team they had thrashed at Edgbaston, he was obliged to produce a different sort of innings.
And produce it he did, batting for nearly five hours and facing 186 balls before pushing tentatively at an offbreak from Roston Chase. Throw Malan’s 65 at Edgbaston into the mix, and it would be odd if he does not make the Ashes tour now. Whether he will scare Australia’s bowlers is another matter. But for the moment, following Mark Stoneman’s 52 on Sunday, England will simply be relieved that their top-order jigsaw is taking some kind of shape.
It has taken a while, and in truth the scratchiness of Malan’s innings suggested there is still work to be done. Had the wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich not distracted Kieran Powell at first slip by hurling himself at an edge off Jason Holder, Malan would have been out for 32, and the debate over his future would have spilled over into the third Test.
In fact, Holder might have found his edge on any number of occasions.
But what batsman has not enjoyed a slice of luck or weathered a torrid spell? What mattered was that he battled through 64 overs, adding 118 with Joe Root and 91 with Ben Stokes, England’s captain and vice-captain. With an Ashes squad to be chosen, Malan could not have handpicked two better players to impress at close range. And others took note too. ‘Dawid tired the bowlers down and allowed us to come in at the end and play freely,’ said Chris Woakes. Experts noted during his two appearances against South Africa that Malan had a tendency to close himself off against bowling from over the wicket, which left him susceptible to the one that swings back in.
Yet the key to survival in the age of video technology is to adapt quickly. Look at James Vince, who was dropped last summer because he kept edging elegant drives to the slips, or Ben Duckett, who got into a tangle against India’s Ravichandran Ashwin over the winter.
And look now at Tom Westley, whose tendency to play across his front pad had proved his undoing four times in his first four Tests. If there’s one thing captains and coaches can’t stand, it’s repetition of errors.
Malan might not have batted memorably here but he sacrificed his white-ball instincts for the good of the team, and scored runs when they needed him.
It can’t be helped that this West Indies attack will provide little preparation for what awaits England in Australia. For now, their top order is obliged to take one step at a time.