Blog

New coach, same problems

Another ICC tournament, another awful display. The only silver lining is that this was over much quicker than the World Cup.

Baz was the obvious choice to take over the white-ball sides, given his aggressive style and success in the shorter formats. I must stress that I am not against the appointment at all. Equally, though, there are some early alarm bells ringing. The narrative of “here to entertain first and win second” has already crept in, something that was not heard during the disappointing Mott reign. Also, the incessant need to do something different. I am all for innovation, aggression, and taking the game to a different level. In life these days—not just in sport—if you’re standing still, you’re often moving backward. However, there are times when just sticking to the basics and making the boring decision is best. The decision, for instance, to bat Smith at 3 rather than Root is something I keep thinking about, but I just can’t make sense of it other than the need to do something different for the sake of it.

Make no mistake, while usually entertaining and very successful—sometimes even record-breaking—the 2019 World Cup side was actually a very functional side that did the basics extremely well. There were no square pegs in round holes; we picked the best players for each position. We had batsmen who were aggressive from top to bottom, but all thrived on scoring runs, and big runs at that. We adapted to situations, and there is no better testament to that than the World Cup final, with the low chase relative to some of the scores that had been posted. Our bowling attack was varied with many boxes ticked, each complementing the others well and extremely skillfully. People will point to the fact that Archer, Wood, and Rashid still play, but Archer and Wood, for me, are not the same as they were in 2019, and they benefited alongside the skill sets of Woakes, Plunkett, and Moeen Ali, rather than playing with either the quickest bowlers around regardless of skill or bits-and-pieces bowling. That fella Ben Stokes is obviously a big miss to be fair. Of course, the fact that the scheduling is so hectic these days and franchise cricket is huge means putting your best team out as frequently as we used to isn’t as easy, but all nations face this. The fact is, we have gone further away from what worked for us than many realize, and we are not better for it.

For me, there are a few players we need to move on from or away from, but none more so than Liam Livingstone or Phil Salt. It’s nothing against them as people or cricketers, and for the record, I think they are both hugely talented players. It could and should have worked for both of them; however, they have failed to deliver on a consistent basis or when it really matters for a significant period. What is probably more concerning is the fact that they keep getting out in the same way and not learning from their mistakes. Unfortunately, the blueprint of playing the biggest hitters and the fastest bowlers with nothing in between just does not work, and there is no greater proof of that in what we have seen today when New Zealand racked up over 360, with the two century-makers scoring a little over a run a ball. It just shows that, even in the modern era, the ability to build innings and have a varied bowling attack is still the blueprint for success.

I personally believe that Baz is still the man to take us forward. and I don’t think English cricket is quite as bad as it may seem, given some of the comments and views being aired. Whilst not a fan of the 100, I do think it is a really lazy narrative to be blaming that for our shortcomings of the last few years when you consider the experience we still have in one day and one day international cricket with the current crop of players. I do think, however, there needs to be a major shift in strategy and attitude to start winning again and start getting people back on side.