Published: Jul 08, 2016, 08:00 AM (IST)
Edited: Jul 08, 2016, 12:26 AM (IST)
Following Nick Compton’s indefinite break from cricket, the doors were open for a batsman to stake claim for his place in the national side. Toby Roland-Jones has been picked as a replacement for James Anderson for the first Test. Along with his 30 scalps for Middlesex, Roland-Jones has also shown a lot of potential with the bat. From his 6 innings Roland-Jones averages 53.33 with a strike rate of over 94 – which indicates that he gets his runs quickly down the order. His selection seems to be justified, but one cannot comprehend as to why Gary Ballance gets the nod ahead of a few players, who have scored way more runs than him. Full Cricket Scorecard: England vs Pakistan 2016, 1st Test at Lord’s
Ballance was dropped after two Ashes 2015 Tests and was replaced by Jonny Bairstow. Ballance’s technique against the Australian bowlers looked susceptible. Ballance did not have a particularly good season with Yorkshire, and has not been too impressive this season either, with just 471 runs at 33.64 from 15 innings. How does that warrant him a spot in the side ahead of the consistent James Hildreth or the young Keaton Jennings? Jennings and Hildreth are the leading run-getters in Division One with 867 and 721 runs respectively. With over 14,000 First-Class runs, how does Hildreth not find a place n the England side again? Is it because he is 31? Earlier this week Hildreth made a fighting 43 not out for Somerset against the Pakistanis, a throwback to the Derbyshire match of 2004 where he dominated Shoaib Akhtar with 101 and 72. He does have a good record against Pakistani fast bowlers. READ: England must look beyond Nick Compton
Let us move on the Division Two now. Is there a rule that players only from Division One can represent England? If that is the case, what is Alastair Cook doing in the England team? Talents like Sam Northeast of Kent and Tom Westley of Essex have clearly been overlooked. Westley’s name was doing the rounds when Compton was looking out of touch. READ: Gary Ballance admits axing from England during Ashes 2015 hit him very hard
England gave Joe Root a Test cap when he was just 22. Root is currently one of the best players in the world. England should perhaps look to give some young guns a place in the national team, regardless of which division they play. The positive thing as far as England are concerned, they will have good players to pick from, should Ballance fail again.
If Ballance had a horrid time going head-to-head against the likes of Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc, one wonders how different it will be when he has Wahab Riaz and a rejuvenated Mohammad Aamer steaming in.
(Pramod Ananth is a reporter at Cricketcountry.com. He is a sport enthusiast and a keen observer of cricket, the contests, and its personalities. When not tracking cricket, he follows the world’s soccer leagues and is somewhat partial towards Liverpool. His Twitter handle is @pramz)
