HOPE TAPS INTO HEADINGLEY HEROICS

WEST INDIES No 3 Shai Hope has admitted he needs to overcome a mental barrier if he is to reproduce the form that briefly made him a Test sensation at Headingley three years ago. Hope made 147 and 118 not out in that game as West Indies famously chased down 322 to stun Joe Root’s England. But they remain the only Test centuries of his 31-match career — and account for 17 per cent of his 1,498 runs at a modest average of 27. In a West Indies line-up missing the experience of Darren Bravo and strokeplay of Shimron Hetmyer, Hope will be expected to perform when the three-match series starts at a biosecure Ageas Bowl in Southampton on July 8. ‘I’m scoring more runs in ODIs and less in Tests, and obviously we want to change that around,’ he said. ‘The red ball is my favourite part of the game. ‘I don’t think it’s anything major when it comes to my technical side of the game. I’d say it’s more of a mental thing.’ Asked whether he has put himself under pressure since the Headingley Test, Hope replied: ‘Obviously you’re going to be hard on yourself, especially when it’s not portrayed on your stats card. I have to continue to believe in myself and back my ability.’ The 26-year-old possesses as much knowledge of English conditions as any of the West Indian tourists. Nine years ago, he captained Bede’s School in Eastbourne after being spotted in Barbados by former Sussex captain Alan Wells. ‘I definitely take those experiences with me,’ he said. ‘2017 is a long time ago, but that is also an experience I take with me. If you get that opportunity in the middle, grasp it.’ As much as he is addressing his team-mates, Hope is also addressing himself.