BESS ‘MISMANAGED’

Vaughan hits out as spinner flops

ENGLAND’S management have been slammed for their handling of Dom Bess after a day to forget for the country’s cricket team in India.

Off-spinner Bess, right, served up a buffet of full tosses and long hops, having been axed for the previous two Tests on pitches made for spinners. His sudden return has angered former skipper Michael Vaughan, who said: “I don’t think that I have ever been as

disappointed with the management of a player as I am with the handling of Dom Bess.

“What are they expecting from a kid to suddenly put him under this amount of spotlight after being dropped? It is just completely wrong.”

Bess, 23, finished day two with figures of 0-56 from his 15 overs and with the unenviable record of having bowled more full tosses in Test cricket than anyone else since he made his debut.

It was a performance that also jarred with former skipper Andrew Strauss, right, who said: “On a human level, I really feel for him.

“This is a guy who is lacking confidence on the biggest stage of all.

“On a performance level it was well below what was required of a mainline Test spin bowler. There were too many full tosses, too many half-trackers, not able to build pressure and it was painful to watch. You just can’t have that in Test cricket.” Bess took 17 wickets in his first three Tests this winter, all England victories. But spin bowling coach Jeetan Patel said: “He needed the break. He was jaded.”

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