Ah, the ‘Red Ball Reset’.
That’s a phrase that can go in the bin, along with much else of England’s tour of the West Indies.
Following the Ashes humbling, England sacked the director of cricket and the head coach. They dropped retired rested their two key wicket-takers in Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson. They jettisoned Jos Buttler and all of the openers that had failed for so long. They backed Zac Crawley. They asked Chris Woakes to lead the attack. They checked to see who were the next batsmen off the taxi rank and they kept faith in Joe Root.
That was the ‘Red Ball Reset’ and the end result was West Indies needing 28 to win having bowled England out for 120 in their second innings.
Where there any plus points at all? Saq Mahmood should definitely be in and around the fast bowling stable, though unlikely to be considered a first-choice for some time yet. Matt Fisher plugged away on a bowler unfriendly surface and didn’t embarrass himself. Jack Leach continued to remind me of a modern-day Peter Such, there because he is a reliable option but don’t expect him to spin us home too often.
Chris Woakes was absolutely true to form – far from as threatening away from home shores as he is with a Dukes in June. Ben Foakes, one of the best glovemen in the world, didn’t do with the bat what was suggested he was capable of in his first spell in the side. Jonny Bairstow remains a player who has to be picked, along with Stokes of course – but where were the big performances when it truly, truly mattered in the final Test?
Dan Lawrence – does it really matter if we pick him or Ollie Pope? They are both young and talented but don’t seem there yet when it comes to playing that innings when backs are against the walls.
Crawley, for me, is in severe danger of being the next James Vince. Immensely talented and of a belief that three or four delightful cover drives is worth the risk of nicking one.
Alex Lees did nothing to suggest that he is any more capable than Rory Burns, Keaton Jennings – actually, stop me there as the list is very long.
Phase One of the much talked about Reset leaves us with far more questions than answers.
In addition, the 3rd and final Test in Grenada could well be the final Test of Joe Root’s reign and I, for one, would be sad to see this change be made.
Not because I think Root is a particularly great England captain – far from it. But I happen to think he is decent, authentic and the only viable candidate for the job.
If he decides to walk away, then so be it – but it should be his decision, not Andrew Strauss’.
The lack of candidates should mean that Strauss is working out a plan of ensuring Root does not walk away. After all, the names being dropped right now do not make a great deal of sense.
Stuart Broad? Surely he is closer to the commentary box than the captaincy now – even if he probably should still be in England’s strongest available XI.
Moeen Ali? Ali probably could have been a strong candidate earlier in his career – but that spinner spot needs to be taken by someone for the future now and he’s not strong enough to be there purely on his batting.
Eoin Morgan? The maverick in me loves the idea of him batting at 10 and just being a damn fine captain and leader of men. His tactical brain and his man-management could well be worth 100 runs, even if they are not coming off his bat. But then, I was also the maverick that thought Jason Roy and Bairstow should open the batting and England should treat every Test match like an ODI. Maverick me is not always a sane line of thought and Morgan is not the correct move.
Ben Stokes? Look, we nearly killed Ian Botham by giving him one more thing to do. We certainly didn’t get a great version of Freddie Flintoff when he was asked to run things. Let’s leave our best all-rounder to focus on being 100% physically and mentally as that is more likely to help England win Test matches.
So who is there? Gone are the days where you’d look at who was doing well in the County Championship and give them a chance. Apparently, gone are the days when current County Championship captains get into the England team. The England job is now one you learn on it.
So where do we go from here heading into the English summer?
Winning some Test matches would be nice – England start their Test summer against New Zealand on June 2nd, play India at some point and then have three against South Africa ending in mid-September.
Exactly how they can do that remains a bit of a mystery – other than chucking the ball to Broad and Anderson, of course.