Hales ‘will thrive’ playing Test cricket
HILLINGDON’S Alex Hales has experienced many troughs and peaks in his nascent Test career but according to his Nottinghamshire teammate Samit Patel, the England opener is proving he is right at home.
There was conjecture before the Sri Lanka tour that Hales’ place was already in the spotlight after mustering just one half-century from four Tests against South Africa in the winter.
Hales has had a promising yet frustrating series against Sri Lanka, scoring 86, 83, 11, 16 and a 94, which took him tantalisingly close to a maiden test century, ensuring his future in the longest form of the game appears secure going forward. It was doubly important after finishing up with a top score of just 28 at the T20 World Cup, despite England surprising most of the cricket fraternity by reaching the final.
But Notts all-rounder Patel says pressure is exactly what Hales thrives off.
“It always takes time to adjust to a different arena, but I think Alex is made for the bigger stage,” said Patel.
“You can see the way he thrives off the crowd, on the big stage and in the big games.
“People are not always born with that and I think he relishes the challenge of playing in front of a big crowd and being the man to hit sixes and fours for England and Notts.
“He’s just faced some of the best bowling attacks in the world, I am sure he’s full of confidence and he looks in great touch.
“We all know what Alex can do, I don’t think he knows what he can do sometimes. The way he’s started off this year and you see Alex train in the nets, he’s really switched on. I’m happy with how he’s going.”
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