STOKES CAN MAKE US GREAT AGAIN
Key convinced new England Test captain will relish job
Ben StokeS was yesterday backed to make england great again by the man who took the ‘easy’ decision to make him test captain.
Rob key, england’s new managing director, feels Stokes, 30, will relish the pressure and responsibility after confirming him in the highest office in the english game.
‘It was pretty simple in the end,’ said the impressive key at Lord’s. ‘If someone is keen, like Ben was, they can tell you what you want to hear. So I talked to a lot of people who know him, those around him, and every one of them felt he’d be an excellent captain.
‘then, when we sat down, we were aligned in our thinking. Ben plays the way I want to. He epitomises everything our red-ball team need. I just want him to go out and lead from the front. He genuinely thinks he’s the best person to lead england and I agree.’
Former kent captain and Sky pundit key
ROB KEY sat in the ECB boardroom at Lord’s, his lack of a tie and blazer in keeping with the absence of corporate speak in his words, and outlined his vision for dragging England’s Test cricket out of the doldrums.
‘To me it’s about changing the mentality of English red-ball cricket right throughout the system,’ said the former rising star of Sky punditry turned ECB gamekeeper. ‘Look at what they did with the white-ball side.
‘It wasn’t about sitting there saying, “We want to win the World Cup”. It was about changing the type of cricketer, the way you want to play, the brand of cricket, what you stood for. That’s why it’s lasted longer than just winning a World Cup four years later.
‘It’s not as simple as that in red-ball cricket but I want batsmen who can put bowlers under pressure but also soak it up themselves, bat for long periods, make good decisions. Players who compete and are not timid, who will stand up and be counted.
‘I don’t want people who chop and change all the time because someone in the media says they are batting with the wrong guard. I want people with conviction who go out there to be leaders, driving England forward. Do exactly what Ben Stokes does, basically.’
This was an impressive first appearance from Key in front of the media he has just left to take a giant leap back to the other side of the cricketing fence as England’s managing director.
From his whole-hearted endorsement of Stokes, the man he has just made Test captain, and the need to ‘be smart’ in looking after the new leader and prize asset. To his encouragement of Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad and his good old-fashioned common sense in insisting England will not look too far ahead, the mistake made by the previous regime, and simply try to win the next game in front of them.
And that, yes, England may be a long way behind Australia at the moment but they really can catch them in time for next year’s Ashes.
His words may not transform a woefully under-performing England team overnight. And they certainly will not change a domestic system that undermines first-class cricket. But, goodness, they were refreshing and, dare it be said, gave rise to optimism.
But why do it? Why give up his comfortable life having established himself alongside Sky’s giants Nasser Hussain and Mike Atherton as one of the best voices in cricket? Not to mention give himself less time to play golf.
‘I was having a good life, yeah,’ said Key in his trademark laconic style. ‘But when Andrew Strauss asked if I would be interested in this job I said, “I could be”.
‘What I would do before is sit around with the likes of Nasser and Athers and say, “England should do this, they should do that”. We’re all stubborn and think we’re right. So when the chance came to do this I thought, “Actually, I would have some skin in the game”.
‘There’s not much else I know other than cricket. It’s what I love. It’s what I talk about all the time. Now this is a chance to make a difference. I hate talking like that but that’s genuinely what it is. What an opportunity — I can see whether my views are any good.’
The decision to appoint Stokes was obvious but comes with considerable trepidation because of the potential for it all to end in tears. It was on the subject of his new captain that Key spoke with most wide-eyed enthusiasm.
And he vowed to protect a priceless player who, for now, will carry on in all three formats. ‘We don’t have to overthink it,’ said Key, knowing how guilty England have been of doing just that over the last three years.
‘At the moment Ben’s absolute focus is Test cricket. He will tell you that. He wants to drive England forward and we will work out a way he can keep on doing that. If that means missing some whiteball cricket along the way, fine.’
There is no question Joe Root spared Key a tricky first decision by resigning before the new managing director could push him but there was also admiration for the old captain and his new integral role as England’s best batter and senior adviser to Stokes.
‘I texted Joe when this was announced and said, “Look mate, be good to have a chat at some stage but completely understand if you want a break and don’t want to”. Within a minute he rang me up and we talked for about an hour and a half about the things we want to do with England.
‘And I will say, now I’m starting to find out a bit more about the last two years, that what Joe has done is unbelievable. Not just as a leader but also in keeping going and scoring all the runs he has. It’s one of the great sporting achievements, really.’
Only when Key introduced the name of Joe Clarke, who was suspended by England in 2019 when his off-field behaviour came under scrutiny during the rape trial of his then Worcestershire team-mate Alex Hepburn, was there any hint of controversy.
But even then Key was decisive. ‘I’ll have to look into where we’re at but I can’t see any reason why not,’ he said when asked if Clarke was now available.
‘You can’t penalise people for ever. I know the whole world will never forgive anyone for anything at the moment but sometimes you can do your time and come back.’
This was Key’s best performance at Lord’s since his double hundred against West Indies in 2004.
All he needs now is for England’s players to emulate him.
‘This is a chance to make a difference. What an opportunity. I can see if my views are any good’