SNUBBED STARS CAN YANK OPEN ENGLAND DOOR
Cook ready to put winter woes behind him and get back among the Test runs
THE ASHES 2017-18 Ist Test (Brisbane) 2&7 2nd Test (Adelaide) 37 & 16 3rd Test (Perth) 7 & 14 4th Test (Melbourne) 244no 5th Test (Sydney) 39 & 10 NEW ZEALAND 2018 1st Test (Auckland) 5&2 2nd Test (Christchurch) 2 & 14
v Australia Mat ................ 5 Inns ............... 9 NO .................. 1 Runs .......... 376 HS ........ 244no Ave ........ 47.00 BF ............. 748 SR ......... 50.26 100s ............... 1 50s ................ 0 4s ................ 39
v N Zealand Mat ............... 2 Inns ............. 4 NO ............... 0 Runs .......... 23 HS ............... 14 Ave ......... 5.75 BF .............. 65 SR ........ 35.38 100s ............ 0 50s .............. 0 4s ................. 2 ALASTAIR COOK says England had concerns over ball tampering during the Ashes.
Australians Steve Smith (right), David Warner and Cameron Bancroft have been banned for between nine months and a year for their part in a ball-tampering incident in South Africa.
But Cook revealed there was head scratching in the England dressing room ENGLAND v PAKISTAN (all 11am starts) Thursday, May 24: 1st Test (Lord’s) Friday, June 1: 2nd Test (Emerald Headingley, Leeds) ENGLAND v INDIA (all 11am starts) Wednesday, August 1: 1st Test (Edgbaston) Thursday, August 9: 2nd Test (Lord’s) Saturday, August 18: 3rd Test (Trent Bridge, Nottingham) Thursday, August 30: 4th Test (Ageas Bowl, Southampton) Friday, September 7: 5th Test (Kia Oval, London) during the Perth Test when Australia got the ball to reverse swing, despite damp conditions that usually hinder the technique.
Asked if they suspected anything untoward, Cook said: “Yeah, a little bit.
“We did think in Perth, when the outfield was wet after the rain, they managed to get the ball reversing although I didn’t see anything. “We were curious in that series at certain moments, but then we couldn’t get the ball up to 90mph and they consistently could. “There is a theory that the greater the pace, the more it goes.” KEVIN SINFIELD insists Sam Tomkins and any other player left out of England’s training squad can force their way into contention for June’s Test in the USA against New Zealand.
Wigan full-back Tomkins was the most high-profile omission from the Elite Performance Squads named at the beginning of the year. They met for the first time this season in Manchester last night.
Tomkins has been in sparkling form since and RFL rugby director Sinfield said: “We’ve made it clear from day one that the door is always open.
“We saw Alex Walmsley not picked in the first squad last year and then be selected for the mid-season test against Samoa.
“I would love for some of those guys who felt they were ignored last time to continue to put their hand up to play and get through that door.”
England coach Wayne Bennett will name a 19-man squad for Denver on June 11, ahead of the ground-breaking clash with the Kiwis at Mile High Stadium on June 23.