CRICKET TIRED & TEST-ED No peace for the wicket, England
TREVOR BAYLISS has revealed that he is not afraid to rest his big guns as his England side embark on yet another brutal schedule.
Coach Bayliss and his team have seven Investec Tests in 10 weeks against South Africa and the West Indies, starting against the Proteas at Lord’s on Thursday.
Then they play five ODIs against the Windies – the last one on September 29 in Southampton – before heading off for a full-blown Ashes series Down Under.
That all adds up to a recipe for burnout – no wonder Bayliss will be keeping a beady eye on players who are not firing on all cylinders.
Tell-tale
The Aussie, who has rested tired stars in the past, will not be scared to pull players out if he thinks they are overcooked.
He said: “Some withdraw a little bit in the dressing room, but the tell-tale sign is when they are not scoring as well or they are not bowling as well.
“You have a chat with them and that is when you realise that having a bit of time off might do them the world of good. There is an awful lot of cricket and, since I have been here, we have had to give some guys a rest because of that.
“We gave Joe Root and Ben Stokes a rest during the one-day series against Australia a couple of years ago, Jos Buttler as well.
“From early May, in 21 months out of 23 there are matches on.”
Bayliss is already missing Jake Ball and Chris Woakes for Thursday’s opening Test and is prepared for more casualties. He added: “We have just played seven Tests in about 10 weeks in the subcontinent – a lot of Test match cricket in a short space of time can play havoc with niggles.
Surprised
“You haven’t got time to get over them, especially when you have played two or three games in a row and you have still got another four to go.
“I would be surprised if there weren’t some injuries and niggles over seven Tests in a short space of time.” Root starts his stint as England captain with Yorkshire team-mate Gary Ballance back in the frame for the first time since last October in Bangladesh.
Bayliss added: “He’s obviously played before and had success at this level and he’s in form.”
Durham’s Keaton Jennings is picked ahead of the out-of-nick Haseeb Hameed and Middlesex seamer Toby Roland-Jones could play on his home ground.