Levine’s four-year ban
Bairstow battles Foakes for his place behind the stumps... and for a spot in the batting order
JONNY BAIRSTOW will continue to hound Ben Foakes for his place as England’s firstchoice wicket-keeper batsman after refusing to give up on his glove for the role.
Bairstow was rocked by his sudden departure from the side – caused by a serious ankle injury playing football in Sri Lanka.
But, despite being fit again, it has cost him his spot in the team.
Foakes has had two stellar games to ink himself in as England’s Test wicket-keeper for the foreseeable future, meaning Bairstow’s likely route back is only as a batsman.
But Bairstow is refusing to limit himself and, when asked if he thought he would become a specialist batsman, he said: “You don’t want to accept that, do you?”
“You don’t know what’s round the corner, so I’m working on both my primary skills, like I have done over the last three years. You don’t know how sides’ make-up works, or how injuries happen, like we’ve seen over the last few weeks, and how quickly that comes around.
“So, I’m still working on all my skills. That will continue to be the case all the way through.”
That will be exactly what skipper Joe Root and coach Trevor Bayliss will want to hear as they continue to desire competition for places within a Test squad that is starting to produce real strength in depth.
There can be no better incentive for the likes of Foakes to keep improving and working on their games than to have a player
MO FARAH is giving serious thought to a track return at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.
Britain’s four-time Olympic gold medallist confirmed he will run April’s London Marathon – and admitted the spikes might go on again. Sir Mo (above) said: “I was honest when I said I was done with the track, but part of me misses it when I look at my team-mates.
“I want to collect as many medals as I can – and do it for my country.” of Bairstow’s calibre sniffing for any weakness to let them back in. “No one wants to miss out on playing,” added Bairstow (below). “The last two-and-a-half years I’ve been in the team and it was only three Tests ago I was in the top 10 batters in the world – and then you’re not playing.
“But that’s part and parcel of sport. That’s good for the squad. You’ve got competition for places. It’s how you react that counts.” Bairstow admitted that, when he first turned his ankle during training, he thought he had broken it, so to be available again for the second Test was a remarkable effort of recovery. With Sam Curran suffering with a side strain, Bairstow could be the replacement in Colombo this week – and start his bid to become England’s long-term No.3.
I still work on my keeping skills. You never know what is around the corner
BRITISH sprinter Nigel Levine has been suspended from all sport for four years after testing positive for using the banned asthma drug clenbuterol.
The 29-year-old had only just returned to training, following a serious motorbike crash in 2017 in which he suffered a broken pelvis, when drug testers caught him.