Ugly home truths act as warning
ENGLAND WAKE-UP CALL
IT WAS something to behold as Joe Root and his England team managed to turn cricket’s greatest party atmosphere into a Sunday morning wake.
In just 52 minutes the second Test and the series were done and if Root had been quick he might even have had time to go and say a prayer in a nearby church before service was over.
The eight-wicket defeat by New Zealand, in chasing just 38, secured the tourists’ first series win in England since 1999, and consigned Root to his first home series loss as captain.
England are usually a very good Test team at home, and maybe that gave them the hubris to think they simply had to turn up and everything would be alright. At Edgbaston, with a nearly full house – they almost never lose in such a situation.
Sadly, for the many thousands of fans who had bought tickets for day four, with a reasonable expectation of seeing the best players England have at their disposal put on a competitive show in the sunshine, only one of those things came true.
At least by the game lasting 11 overs yesterday, they were entitled to a full refund, but who buys a ticket for their first taste of live cricket in two years for a refund?
Those fans have every right to leave Edgbaston wondering how Root’s team, who beat South Africa, West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in a row, reached this low, admittedly against a very good New Zealand side.
The extent of their rotation policy during the winter was a mistake. They took a team on the up, made it weaker and abundantly clear that Test cricket was not the priority. It is one thing to say the Ashes is the main target only to see the best players made available for white-ball matches instead.
Former skipper Michael Vaughan said: “If you muck about with Test cricket it brings inconsistency and that is what we are seeing. Why weren’t players rested from the T20 series in India? Why is Eoin Morgan going to play a T20 series against Sri Lanka with a full-strength team once again?”
Trent Boult was at the IPL, quarantined in New Zealand, saw his family for a time, flew to the UK and made himself available for the second Test and had a big impact.
So where are the Test centrally-contracted Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes, and Sam Curran? In total they have appeared just five times out of a possible 24 this year.
Even when England could have used a wicket-keeper batsman at No.7 in Jonny Bairstow, they put James Bracey into an unfamiliar role and he had a shocker.
Regardless of who England picked, those who did play were woefully inadequate.