“It’s disappointing- it’s not what we wanted. New Zealand have given us a lesson in how to be the number one side in the world”. These were the words of England head coach Chris Silverwood after England’s heavy defeat to New Zealand at Edgbaston in the second test match in June 2021 as England lost the series 1-0. The same old issues with the England Test team still exist and it seems that no-one from within the England camp is learning from previous mistakes. From the continuing top-order issues to the age-old spinner question, England’s problems are becoming a recurring issue. It is undoubtedly incredibly frustrating that time after time England make the same mistakes and the rhetoric is always that ‘we will learn from these mistakes’ when clearly that is not true.
The most evident and pressing issue with the England test team and has been for a number of years is the top order. To list all of the openers that England have tried since the hay-day of the opening partnership of Andrew Strauss and Sir Alastair Cook would take until next year. Despite glimpses of quality and application, England’s current top 3 of Rory Burns, Dom Sibley and Zak Crawley have hardly set the world alight. All 3 seem to have major deficiencies in their games at the top level and top quality bowlers in Test cricket are exposing those deficiencies. Test cricket is meant to be challenging (it’s in the name) and in particular batting at the top of the order is not easy, however the challenge of Test cricket is to adapt and adjust, something England’s top order batsmen struggle to do. At the top level, the best bowlers figure out a batsman’s weaknesses and will definitely expose them. Burns’ Test average is 33 after 25 matches, Sibley’s is 30 after 20 matches and Crawley’s 29 after 14 games. Despite the difficulty of batting in the top 3 in Test cricket, those averages are simply not good enough and they have all had ample time to get used to the highest level. None of those us can make the excuse that they have not had enough time to prove themselves.
What is the answer? Is it dropping the current incumbents or giving others an opportunity? Do England go back to players that already have played for England such as Haseeb Hameed, Adam Lyth or Keaton Jennings? What is clear is that there are a number of major issues at play here. After the embarrassing defeat to New Zealand, Chris Silverwood admitted that the batting issues are “a little bit of technique and mental” and “it’s not about telling people how to play the game, it’s how you use what you’ve got”. On the technical side, Zak Crawley’s deficiencies for example are plain to see and the continuous nature of his dismissals is of huge concern. His issues could certainly be placed in the same category as some of his predecessors who have come and gone. Players like James Vince, Gary Ballance and Keaton Jennings are all examples of players whose dismissals are all repetitive which is hugely worrying and Crawley falls into that category as well. Crawley has a weakness outside his off stump early in his innings and finds himself playing at wide balls that he shouldn’t be, resulting in him often being dismissed for single figure scores. When this happens, the question then is are they able to adjust, are they unwilling to change or are the coaches not doing their job properly?
Questions should be asked of the batting coaches as part of their remit is working with batsmen on any technical problems they may have. Although at international level the coaching staff are not there to tell the players how to play, their role is to support and advise batsmen on how they can improve their game. Are these England top-order batsmen mentally strong enough to deal with the pressures and challenges of playing test cricket? Another issue is the surfaces that batsmen in this country are playing on in county cricket week in, week out. If batsmen gained more confidence in their games on better surfaces for batting, they would inevitably be aided when they make the step up to Test cricket.
The spin department is continuing to be a major thorn in England’s side in Test cricket. So much so that England didn’t pick a front-line spinner in either of the 2 Test matches against New Zealand, probably due to a lack of trust in the spinners available to captain Joe Root. From Jack Leach to Dom Bess to Moeen Ali to Adil Rashid, no-one has been unable to nail down their place long-term in the way that Graeme Swann did. The current spin issues are deep-rooted in the English game where there is hardly an abundance of talent coming through in the spin department. In defence of young English spinners, the County Championship matches are loaded at the start and the end of the season which does not help spinners as most overs are bowled by seamers in seamer-friendly conditions. The ECB is motivated by the riches of the shorter formats of the game such as the T20 Blast and The Hundred so the Championship matches are played at times that don’t suit spinners bowling lots of overs.
The spinner that England should be committing to is Lancashire’s Matt Parkinson who has impressed across all formats in county cricket. Seemingly the long-term replacement for Adil Rashid in one-day cricket, there is no better time to give Parkinson a good run in the Test team as the principal spinner. England are hardly blessed with an abundance of talent in the spin department so why not give Parkinson a shot. He has taken 24 wickets at 19 apiece this season in the County Championship, which for a leg spinner bowling in early season is impressive. Parkinson’s limitations with the bat and in the field could hold him back in trying to hold down a spot in the England side. One other young spinner to keep an eye on in the coming years is Sussex’s Jack Carson, an off spinner who is eligible for Ireland and England. He is 20 years old and averages 25 with the ball in 13 First Class matches.
England’s rotation policy over the winter, despite being well-intentioned, was rather unsuccessful. The reasoning behind resting certain players at certain times is a good one due to the hectic year of cricket that England have in all formats in 2021, however in reality it has not worked in the way that England had hoped. So much so that Test captain Joe Root has said for the 2 huge Test series coming up against India and Australia the rotation policy will be ditched. Circumstances are different at the current time with players having to enter Covid-secure bubbles which is something that England will hopefully never have to face again and that is part of the reason for the rotation policy. Resting key players like Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer for the Sri Lanka Test series was a good idea as they are integral across all formats and against an opponent like Sri Lanka who are not a strong Test team that is the time to rest them. However, for the India away series, one of the toughest series an England cricketer will face, England got it wrong with players coming and going. Jonny Bairstow was rested at the start of the India series having played in the Sri Lanka series, Jos Buttler played the first match of the India series and then went home and Moeen Ali played on test match and came home. Although the intention was clear to rest players in what will be a very busy 2021, it did not work in practice.
England face a mammoth six months of Test cricket ahead with India in town during the latter part of our summer and a trip down under for The Ashes over the winter. The rotation policy will most certainly be ditched for these crucial series, but the problems at the top of the order and in the spin department are of huge concern. If England don’t get these areas right, they will really struggle to win these series as these high quality opponents will expose any weaknesses within the England team. It is paramount that England sort these issues out sooner rather than later.
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