ENGLAND HAVE FINALLY BEEN BOLD . . . BUTTLER AND BESS CAN BE THE FUTURE
NASSER HUSSAIN, PAUL NEWMAN, LAWRENCE BOOTH AND DAVID LLOYD
Sportsmail’s experts answer the big questions at a crucial time for international cricket ahead of England’s first test series of the summer against pakistan.
WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF ED SMITH’S FIRST SQUAD?
NASSER HUSSAIN: a new national selector was never going to come in with the same old, same old, so Ed smith had to make one or two changes. But he could have been conservative and it’s a bold selection by a man who seems to know exactly what he wants. in England, with the Duke ball, Jimmy anderson and stuart Broad will just be too strong.
PAUL NEWMAN: He got it spot on. i’ve wanted Jos Buttler back in the test side for the last 18 months — as i believe trevor Bayliss has — while Dom Bess (right) is the imaginative, long- term spin option. mark stoneman is lucky and may owe his place to concerns over Nick Gubbins’s ability against spin. pakistan look inexperienced, while mohammad amir has a knee injury. England should win comfortably.
LAWRENCE BOOTH: i’m glad Buttler is back. He should have been in australia, where England have traditionally needed to be bold to stand a chance. His presence allows everyone to be in their best positions: Joe root at No 3, Dawid malan No 4, Jonny Bairstow at No 5. if Jack leach hadn’t broken a thumb, Buttler would have been the only change, so it’s not as if smith has blindsided us. pakistan will only challenge England if their seamers click.
DAVID LLOYD: Ed smith brings a modern approach, and the selection i really like is Dom Bess. i love the fact we’re looking at an out-and- out spinner. the recent trip to New Zealand was a good lesson about how to approach a two-match series: one bad session and you are chasing the game. Concentration will be key.
SHOULD BAYLISS BE FIRED IF ENGLAND FAIL TO BEAT PAKISTAN AND INDIA?
NEWMAN: England have looked a test side in decline over the last year or so because the desire to improve their white-ball cricket has come at the expense of the longer form. they cannot afford to start losing at home too, but Bayliss remains the right man. it’s just apparent the roles have to be split when he leaves after the ashes next year.
HUSSAIN: it is important after a bad winter but i blame players more than coaches for performances. it will be more beneficial for the team for Bayliss to be there next summer to face an australian side who might be vulnerable.
BOOTH: if Bayliss earns bouquets for England’s one- day renaissance, then he deserves brickbats for their poor test team. on their last two tours — to australia and india — they have not just lost: they have been slaughtered. Both series have to be won this summer. if not, i’d ask Bayliss to focus on the white-ball stuff ahead of next year’s World Cup, and bring in a new test coach in time for the tour of sri lanka.
LLOYD: absolutely not. maybe i’m biased because i used to be coach, but the players play — and they get given all the material and information they need to succeed. Changing the coach will not change the fact that England are a middling test side right now: No 5 in the rankings is about right.
ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT ALASTAIR COOK?
HUSSAIN: alastair Cook might be slightly worried about himself, more importantly. as an opener he has to get away from feast or famine, particularly with the chopping and changing at the other end. You can only go to the well so many times but i will say it until the last day he plays cricket — you are a fool to write off alastair Cook.
NEWMAN: Yes. i think we are watching the start of the dying of the light. But it might take a while to fully go out. Fact is, Cook is far from England’s biggest problem and he’s still been good enough to hit two double hundreds in the last year. He loves us writing him off so let’s do it again and watch him prove us wrong.
BOOTH: less worried than i was when he couldn’t buy a run in New Zealand. that’s because he convinced me during an interview that he’s still up for it. that, more than any technical concerns, is what matters with Cook.
LLOYD: Yes, i am. He’s looked quite innocuous of late, so this summer is a huge one for him. it’s no good just quoting his statistics and saying he will come good: it’s time he scored some runs.
SHOULD ENGLAND BE PICKING PLAYERS WHO COULD IMPROVE THEIR AWAY FORM NOW?
NEWMAN: they have been so bad in india and australia over the last two winters that they cannot afford short- termism in selection. they must identify the best young fast bowlers now and get them involved. Well done for picking Dom Bess rather than moeen ali but who is going to provide that extra pace on flat overseas wickets? the grooming process must begin.
HUSSAIN: they should be looking to eventually get to a balanced bowling attack but that cannot start in may at lord’s. after the winter England had, Joe root has to concentrate on winning this series but the likes of Bayliss, andrew strauss and andy Flower have to identify the type of cricketer they need to win away.
they could easily have picked moeen for the first test but the fact they have gone for Bess suggests they are thinking about this winter. that’s a good start.
BOOTH: selection in England has always had an element of horses for courses — look at guys like richard Ellison or Neil mallender. and Joe root really does need to win this summer.
But it does not mean the selectors cannot be working in the meantime to identify the bowlers England need to win overseas: fast and hostile, or a spinner who can turn it both ways.
LLOYD: No! You pick a team to win the next test. i can guarantee that when smith sits down to pick a squad for sri lanka, he will be looking at spinners and fast bowlers. But that’s then — this is now.
SHOULD SURREY BE GIVING VIRAT KOHLI A MONTH OF PRACTICE IN ENGLISH CONDITIONS?
NEWMAN: i’ve always worried that myopic counties would rather do what’s best for them rather than England but this is bigger than
parochialism. This is a statement from India’s captain that Test cricket still matters and just imagine what it will be like to be a young Surrey player like Ollie Pope in the same dressing room as Kohli? It has to be a good thing.
HUSSAIN: This is not only a good move for Surrey, it will also benefit English and world cricket. It’s great to have arguably the greatest player on the planet coming to play our first- class cricket. It can only increase the standards.
Fair play to Kohli too in taking the hard option rather than staying at home. He’s making a statement of how important the series against England is to him and India.
BOOTH: From their own perspective, Surrey are doing the right thing. From England’s perspective, they are not.
Yes, Surrey’s youngsters may benefit from Kohli’s wisdom, but let’s not pretend he’s doing this for any other reason than warming up for a huge five-Test series. Would Mumbai or Jammu & Kashmir allow Joe Root to play in the Ranji Trophy before India hosted England? No chance.
LLOYD: I’m all for the move. I like the fact that the Championship gets extra status with Kohli’s appearance, and it’s fabulous for the youngsters who will play with him — and for the spectators.
SHOULD THE TOSS BE ABOLISHED IN TESTS?
HUSSAIN: We need to do something about the repetitive nature of home sides winning series. Ricky Ponting was the first to suggest the away captain should have the option of bowling or batting. I don’t mind it because groundsmen wouldn’t produce the flattest pitches ever but it won’t be the panacea.
NEWMAN: Interesting shout but I would rather this experiment not start with next year’s Ashes! A bigger factor is the virtual complete lack of preparation for away teams ahead of Test series because of the insane schedules. India have got it right by getting Virat Kohli and others into county cricket early this summer. They might buck the trend against England.
BOOTH: As Paul says, the problem is that touring teams have no time to get used to conditions. Abolishing the toss will not change that, because the ball will still swing in England or spin in India.
LLOYD: I like the fact the toss has always been something the captain has to think about. That challenge and privilege shouldn’t be taken away by the lawmakers.
THE HUNDRED — TOTAL MADNESS OR WORTH A GO?
HUSSAIN: It’s worth a go. I tell you what would have been madness — having two T20 tournaments during the same summer in the same country.
Our domestic T20 is nowhere near as good as some of the others. Delhi, the bottom side in the IPL, would demolish every T20 Blast winner. Increasing standards is far more important than 20 fewer balls per innings.
NEWMAN: It’s absolute madness. What on earth are the ECB thinking? T20 works so let’s ignore that and come up with yet another format. I just can’t see it happening. Common sense must prevail.
If it is the price to pay for terrestrial coverage then I could sort of understand but if this is just the brainwave of bonkers marketeers and their blue-sky thinking then let’s think again.
BOOTH: I might have been more sympathetic were it not clear that the ECB are making it up as they go along. Who knows, it may work — but they are staking a lot on attracting a new audience. The fact that the established audience feels alienated is not a great start.
LLOYD: It’s not madness. It’s good that it doesn’t tread on the toes of the T20 Blast, because that is the major revenue stream for the 18 counties. But the money that comes into the game from The Hundred, or whatever it is, will bankroll the first- class counties. What’s not to like?