Published: Jul 20, 2016, 05:09 PM (IST)
Edited: Jul 20, 2016, 05:53 PM (IST)
According to reports in English media, England‘s Director of Cricket Andrew Strauss might back coach Trevor Bayliss in a selection panel rift, after paceman James Anderson was left out of the the team for the Lord’s Test, which the home side lost against Pakistan. Strauss is expected to rebuild England’s selection panel in September after the series against Pakistan gets over and massive changes can be expected. The changes may include the captain and coach take charge of the selection with a network of scouts, which will be lead by assistant coach Paul Farbrace, who has immense knowledge and know-hows of domestic cricket. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: England vs Pakistan , 2nd Test match at Manchester
Bayliss was outvoted on picking Anderson for the Lord’s Test by the selection panel, which included James Whitaker, Nottinghamshire coach Mick Newell and Middlesex director of cricket Angus Fraser. Captain Alastair Cook did not have a vote.
Anderson, Ben Stokes and spinner Adil Rashid were soon added to the England squad for the second Test, which will be held at Manchester.
Meanwhile, former England spinner Graeme Swann believes England should play both Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid in the next match at Manchester as the pitch is expected to assist spinners. “It was the same old, same old story at Lord’s. England can’t play leg-spin for toffee,” Swann wrote in his column in The Sun.
Swann was full of praises for Yasir Shah, who produced a magnificent performance for Pakistan and also won the Man of the Match award. Swann felt England need to find a way to deal with the new No.1 bowler in Test cricket. He wrote, “England’s batsmen must find a way of dealing with Pakistan wizard Yasir Shah, or they could be hammered in this series. Imagine what he could do this week in the second Test at Old Trafford, where he is likely to gain much more grip and spin.”
“The batters need to take a long, hard look at themselves and learn from the one or two who played Yasir well. They did it by using a straight bat and showing patience. Most of the rest showed they might not be good players of spin, but that is no excuse for throwing their wickets away.”
