Published: Jul 05, 2013, 11:39 AM (IST)
Edited: Aug 25, 2014, 12:22 AM (IST)
Nick Compton (right) lost his place as opener in the England team to Joe Root due to a poor series against New Zealand © Getty Images
By Sarang Bhalerao
An ideal English opener is the one who bides time, gives the first hour to the bowler, keeps the ball along the ground and has a temperament of steel. Over the years, Alastair Cook has fit the definition. His records give you a glimpse of his talent and achievements, which if you extrapolate, assure that he will retire as the game’s greatest opener.
As an opener, there are sinusoidal phases. It is unfair to expect an opener to score in every single game. He is probably facing the most difficult challenge — facing the new ball and ensuring that the middle order has some hard-earned runs as a cushion to build on. It is here that Nick Compton has been impressive. In his maiden tour to India, Compton explored the demands of Test cricket. After a disappointing nine in his maiden innings, Compton put a price tag on his wicket thereafter. His wicket had to be earned. A 37 in the second innings of his debut Test showed his inner resolve. Still he was committing some mistakes.
Time and again he admonished himself after playing a loose shot. But Compton put up a gutsy display.
The 57 he scored in Kolkata against India was a classical opener’s innings. With India unable to find a way to dismiss Cook, it was Compton who compounded their problems by denying them an early breakthrough. When the ball became old, England made merry and took an unassailable 2-1 lead against favourites India. Compton had built an edifice albeit not substantial if you consider his numbers. But the fact that he weathered the initial storm and looked impressive against the spinning ball provided hope for England in the future. In the same series, another youngster Joe Root scored a cultured 73 on his debut in the fourth Test match. But Compton-Cook alliance looked unconquerable on most occasions. It was a career-defining moment in Compton’s career.
A tour of New Zealand earlier this year bolstered Compton’s claim as a regular opener. Back-to-back hundreds in Dunedin and Wellington was one of the highlights of the tournament. He was already seen as a certainty to open the innings with Cook at Trent Bridge on July 10. The scores of 16, 15, 1 and 7 in the recently concluded home series against New Zealand weakened his case. The temperament was in question. On the first morning of the Lord’s Test against the Kiwi left-arm spinner Bruce Martin, Compton played an impetuous shot where the ball took the outside edge and he was caught at point. The British media can be quite harsh after seeing such a shot. Compton is no Virender Sehwag to play such a shot as early as the 23rd over of the innings.
Compton lost the confidence of the selectors and has now been replaced by the ‘talented’ Root at the top. The decision to open with Root can’t be a long-term solution. For starters, Root has always been a middle-order batsman. He has had success batting at No 4. Why not settle with it? The move to open with Root might be counterproductive. Giving an Indian reference — Sehwag has been quite successful transiting from middle-order to opening slot. However, Rahul Dravid has had poor record opening the batting for India.
England feel Compton is not one of the best six batsmen to play against Australia. But Compton’s argument is that one and a half days of poor cricket doesn’t constitute a career. ‘I feel I’d done enough,’ said Compton. But that is a state of denial in which he is living. He is talented, agreed. His polished 79 against Australia was an indication that he is doesn’t deserve the unfair treatment which he believes he has received.
Now look at the flip side. Compton gets worked up after one failure. There is a sense of anxiety in his batting. Lot of technical flaws crept up in his batting against New Zealand recently. The rigid stance, the tendency to play the ball away from the body and the apprehension in his batting was visible. At 30, if he gets dropped from the team it is a herculean task for him to come back.
Root is young. The best international years are ahead of him. His technique is compact. He is balanced. He is in a good position when he plays back using the depth of the crease. The stance, unlike Compton, is not laboured. There is easiness about his batting. A century against New Zealand at Headingley was an amalgamation of class and talent. The manner in which he played the ball late showed his maturity as a Test batsman. The eloquence and panache with which Root has scored 424 runs in the six Tests means there is a genuine sense of anticipation of something special every time he goes to the wicket. And the role as an opener is yet another challenge for young Root.
“I’ve not really thought about things like that [opening], I just try and concentrate on the moment and playing the ball as it is and playing the situation when you get put in it. If you can control that stuff and keep things simple with small targets, that’s the only thing I can control so, if I can do that, that will stand me in good stead,” said Root to The Guardian.
Root could be a perfect foil for Cook. The exuberance of youth and the colossal batting of the southpaw can be a recipe for success for years to come as far as England are concerned.
(Sarang Bhalerao hails from a family of doctors, but did his engineering. He then dumped a career in IT with Infosys to follow his heart and passion and became a writer with CricketCountry. A voracious reader, Sarang aspires to beat Google with his knowledge of the game! You can follow him on Twitter here)
