Since Ben Stokes took over as captain, the Test side seem to have had all the answers, but there are difficult questions to come in 2023, believes Mark Ramprakash
when circumstances meant some lateral thinking was required and he did a competent job.
Ben Duckett does not ordinarily open for his county. Not long ago batting at the top of the order was seen as a specialist position, particularly in first-class cricket, but again convention has been challenged, the player has bought into it, and it has so far proved extremely successful. Most remarkably of all, the 18-year-old debutant spinner Rehan AhmedI remember Graeme Hick being asked whether he wanted to open and he was adamant he preferred to bat at No 3.
When the Dutch created a generation of footballers who had the technical and tactical flexibility to play in any position, it became known as Total Football. In cricket there has been a gradual change, but perhaps this year we have seen the evolution of TotalBefore England travelled to Pakistan I suggested that they would have to adapt to the attritional style of cricket required there when dealing with lower bounce and perhaps turn. Well they completely blew that out of the water.
They have just carried into Tests a mindset that started in Twenty20s, and which means that a young batter such as Harry Brook is happy to come down the wicket, very early on in his innings, to a guy who can turn the ball both ways, and hit him straight for six. It’s a combination of talent, confidence, and the gradual realisation that the modern cricket landscape is one with no horizons.
It has been a fabulous end to 2022, but there are fresh challenges ahead for England’s Test side. I was there when England last toured New Zealand in 2019 and it was so boring due to the two Tests being played on ridiculously flat wickets. Jofra Archer was bowled into the ground. The Kiwis
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
‘He knew what he had to do’: Harry Brook’s long road to England success | Tanya AldredEngland’s batting star has come a long way from Ilkley grammar and comparisons with another Yorkshireman are hard to avoid
Read more »
‘I’m so overwhelmed’: a cost of living crisis diary from north-east EnglandA Tyneside mother on turning her life around, strict budgeting – and not having enough food for her children’s friends
Read more »
How Julian Lloyd Webber met Jiaxin Cheng: ‘I said: Would you consider trying life in England?’Cellists Lloyd Webber, 71, and Cheng, 48, met while he was on tour in New Zealand. She eventually moved to the UK, where the couple now live. They married in 2009
Read more »
Illegal tree felling in England to be punishable with jail and uncapped finesExclusive: Forestry Act 1967 to change from 1 January to deter people from flattening trees and accepting paltry penalties
Read more »
Amid policy pitfalls, it’s the popularity of Queensland’s premier that occupies the opposition | Ben SmeeAs Palaszczuk’s government passes the halfway mark, her opponent’s vision for the LNP remains a mystery
Read more »
Tymal Mills shares heartbreaking reason behind BBL exitEngland pace bowler tmills15 has revealed his withdrawal from this season’s BBL was due to his 2-year-old daughter suffering a stroke. 7Cricket 7NEWS
Read more »