Anderson back to raise spirits of ailing England
Paceman takes wicket on his return from injury Archer, Broad and Leach all ruled out by illness
James Anderson is back in an England shirt. If the version glimpsed was not quite the metronomic and remorseless Anderson that England have so depended upon, what mattered was that he was here: fit and ready to go ahead of the looming Test series in South Africa.
It had been 310 days since Anderson’s last wicket in an England shirt, in the Test victory over West Indies in St Lucia way back in February, before he induced Kabelo Sekhukhune to edge behind shortly after lunch in Benoni. Anderson’s trademark celebration, raising his right arm aloft in triumph, was in evidence, albeit it has seldom been so understated.
That betrayed the point of this game for Anderson, and England: to aid their preparations for the first Test starting on Boxing Day. While Anderson was uncharacteristically loose with the new ball, spraying it too wide, his second spell was in keeping with his parsimony of recent years.
From leaking 30 runs in six overs with the new ball, Anderson then yielded just seven in his subsequent five. For England and their quest to win only their second away series since their victory in South Africa in 2015-16, these were tentatively positive signs.
Not that it was all so encouraging. The worst news of the day, perhaps, arrived before the start of play: Jofra Archer, Stuart Broad and Jack Leach were all ruled out through illness. Their participation for the game against South Africa A starting tomorrow also in Benoni is in doubt, but at this stage their availability for the Test series is not a concern.
Leach’s absence allowed Matt Parkinson a run-out as the sole spinner. By the end of a day in which he conceded 112 runs at more than 5.5 an over, consistently bowling too short and being targeted by the Invitation XI’S enterprising middle order of Sekhukhune, Gerrie Snyman and Diego Rosier, Parkinson must have wished that Leach had not been sick.
As he was comfortably outbowled by Joe Root, any realistic chance of Parkinson appearing in this Test series was squandered. But this was a worrying performance with England’s next winter assignment in mind. England recorded a brilliant 3-0 victory in Sri Lanka last year with a threepronged spin attack. Leach could be the only one of the trio to return in March, with Adil Rashid’s shoulder precluding him from bowling long spells and Moeen Ali still unavailable.
England’s depth in pace bowling is much better, and it will need to be if they are to take advantage of South Africa’s recent turmoil during the Test series. Sam Curran, again showing his penchant for swinging the new ball, claimed two wickets in his first three overs.
At that stage, it appeared he was cementing his claim to be picked in the first Test ahead of Chris Woakes. But Woakes produced a fine spell with the old ball, snaring three wickets in 11 deliveries and suggesting that his well-directed bouncer could be a way for England to claim wickets when the swing has gone.
“It was a different role really to what I’m used to – coming in and bowling a few bouncers,” Woakes said after taking three for 48. “The wicket wasn’t really responding too much to balls on a length.”
Inspiration for Woakes’s approach came from observing Neil Wagner during the Test series in New Zealand. Using his short ball to defy docile tracks, Wagner claimed 13 wickets at 19.8 apiece.
“We’ve seen the way New Zealand go about their business,” Woakes said. “Neil Wagner in particular uses the middle of the pitch a lot and he’s gone pretty well. We just have to think outside the box. How you pick up wickets in England isn’t always the way you pick up wickets abroad.
“Sometimes just trying to hit a length isn’t always the best option. Looking at different opportunities to take wickets is important.”
England’s bowlers will need to summon all their ingenuity in the weeks ahead. But, for many of Woakes’s team-mates, that can wait: first, they must simply get well enough to make it on to the field.