Can England win the ICC Champions Trophy?

On the morning of Saturday 8th June, England begin their Champions Trophy campaign as host nation, against the old enemy Australia. There would be no better boost ahead of back-to-back Ashes campaigns than a first one-day title in the final incarnation of the Champions Trophy. But will we see Alistair Cook lift the trophy on June 23rd? Here, we examine England’s chances.

It’s fair to say that the warm-up series against New Zealand did not exactly inspire confidence. Overly cautious batting, poor shot selection, mediocre bowling and sloppy fielding contributed to a fairly comfortable series win for the Kiwis, with only the dead rubber third match offering England any encouragement. England have, on paper, a strong mix of youth and experience with both bat and ball, combining established stars such as Cook, Trott, Anderson and Swann with hungry young talents like Joe Root and Jos Buttler. If England play to full potential, they have as good a chance to win the tournament as anyone, especially as they play with home advantage. But too often, England have underperformed in the 50-over game, and it would be a surprise to many if it is England who are celebrating.

Batting

The biggest criticism of England’s batting during the warm-up series against New Zealand was that they scored far too slowly in the opening overs. The opening trio of Cook, Bell and Trott are undoubtedly three of the most talented batsmen in world cricket, but all three are naturally cautious in style, preferring to settle into the crease over an extended period, before growing in fluidity. Trott’s run a ball century against New Zealand and Bell’s useful 82 demonstrate that these batsmen are vital members of the side, but England scored just 6 runs in the opening 6 overs against New Zealand, and if early wickets fall, England often find themselves playing catch up with the run rate. If England can keep a healthy run rate ticking over in the early stages of the innings, it will alleviate pressure on the more attacking players lower down the order.
If England are to have a successful tournament, much will be expected of Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler, the batsmen most capable of scored aggressively and quickly. Their partnership during England’s win over the Kiwis was devastating and match winning, particularly Buttler’s stunning 47 from 15 balls. Whilst England may not boast an out and out superstar in the mould of Chris Gayle or Virat Kohli, they have enough aggression and skill in the batting lineup to outscore anyone.

Bowling

The warm-up series against New Zealand exposed a worrying lack of depth in the England bowling lineup. In James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Steven Finn and Graeme Swann, England have one of the strongest bowling attacks in the game, but the performances of Chris Woakes and Jade Dernbach against the Kiwis will leave England fans praying that injuries do not take their toll, and with the Ashes on the horizon, the England coaching staff will understandably be cautious over the condition of their star bowlers. James Tredwell bowled well in England’s victory over New Zealand, but it remains unlikely that England will choose to play with two spinners very often. England will be expected to take wickets with their strong first choice bowling lineup, but unless the likes of Dernbach, Woakes and even Bresnan can improve when called upon, England may struggle to contain their opponents.

The Opposition

Judging England’s opponents in the Super Eights is far from straight forward. Their opening game is against the defending champions, but it is an Australian side in complete disarray. Still hurting from a disastrous tour of India, their warm-up against the Indians was possibly even more embarrassing still, after being bowled out for their lowest ever ODI score of 65. In addition, their captain and star man Michael Clarke has been ruled out of at least the opening game against England. The hosts should start with a win, but a wounded Australia is a dangerous Australia, and when the two sides meet, anything can happen. England will also face New Zealand and Sri Lanka in the Super Eights. England will hope they have learnt from their mistakes before they take on New Zealand again, whilst victory against an inconsistent Sri Lankan side can be achieved if the likes of Dilshan and the evergreen Jayawardene can be suppressed, and the mercurial bowling talents of Malinga and Senanayake endured.

Verdict?

If England make it beyond the Super Eights, anything is possible. With a bit of luck and form in the right places, England can be a force and a challenger for the ICC Champions Trophy. But I can’t help but feel that England will just come up short. Semi-finals.

The Crushed Kiwis: A Look at New Zealand’s performance

New Zealand are currently ranked as the 8th best test side in the world. Only everyone’s favourite plucky whipping boys Bangladesh sit below them. You could be forgiven, therefore, for thinking that England’s three-match series in New Zealand earlier this year would have resulted in a comfortable 3-0 win for the side with aspirations of regaining the world number 1 spot. Doubtless a few of the England boys probably thought the same. What they discovered in Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin, was a hungry, talented young side, brilliantly led by captain Brendan McCullum. New Zealand batted with discipline, bowled with aggression and fielded flawlessly. Only some individual heroics with the bat prevented England from suffering a humiliating series defeat.

Fast-forward to earlier to this month, and New Zealand arrived on our shores full of confidence and aiming to show that their performance in the Southern Hemisphere was not a flash in the pan. England were hungry too. With two Ashes series on the horizon, a series win against the Kiwis was essential to boost morale and a perfect opportunity for certain players to find form and cement a place in the side. Of course, England emerged with a 2-0 series win. Much has been made of the positives and negatives of England’s performance. But how did New Zealand’s performance compare to their showing back home? Did they really show that they are better than their lowly ranking suggests? Or should England not get too carried away by their comfortable (in the end) win?
If we start by comparing the two captains, Alistair Cook and Brendan McCullum really are chalk and cheese. Cook attracted plenty of criticism by adopting a very conservative approach. Cook won both tosses and chose to bat first, which could be viewed as the safer option, looking to get ahead of the game with a big first innings score. McCullum, on the other hand, admitted he would have chosen to bowl anyway, taking the proactive decision to try and put England under early pressure. McCullum is certainly an excellent captain, and performed admirably with the gloves when injury forced BJ Watling out of the side, but he performed poorly with the bat. A marauding, clubbing batsman in New Zealand, his average over the two tests in England was below 10, falling four times out of four to Stuart Broad.

Brendan McCullum was certainly not alone in his failures with the bat. Frankly, the Kiwis were atrocious with bat in hand. England’s bowlers may have been much improved on their performances earlier in the year, but questions must be raised about a side that failed to score above 250 in any of their four innings, including an appalling score of 68 all out at Lord’s. Despite scoring two centuries against England earlier this year, opening batsman Peter Fulton constantly looked like a wicket waiting to happen. His opening partner Hamish Rutherford is certainly a talent, and at 24 is full of potential, but he also struggled to make any meaningful contribution. At only 22, Kane Williamson already looks New Zealand’s most technically gifted batsman and perhaps only he, along with Ross Taylor, the only New Zealand batsman to score above 50 in the series, can come out of the series with any real credit. The occasional spot of swashbuckling lower down the order from the likes of Wagner and Southee was entertaining while it lasted, but is perhaps more of an indictment of the failures of the more recognized batsmen in the New Zealand lineup. Oh, and if you blinked at any stage while the Kiwis were at the crease, you might have missed the contributions of Doug Brownlie and Martin Guptill.
There is certainly talent in the New Zealand bowling lineup, and the pacey trio of Boult, Southee and Wagner (later joined by Doug Bracewell), performed well. Southee was named New Zealand’s man of the series after his 10-wicket haul at Lord’s, whilst Trent Boult and Neil Wagner also deservedly got amongst the wickets. The injury to spinner Bruce Martin was a blow to New Zealand’s chances, but part-time spinner Kane Williamson also performed admirably in his stead, taking a total of 6 wickets.
New Zealand were always going to struggle to replicate their performances from earlier this year and so it proved. They are a young, improving side with a bowling lineup that will win them test matches in the future. There are talented individuals in the batting lineup too, who will surely improve with time and experience. Unfortunately, under examination from one of the top test sides in the world, they were found wanting. If you are a New Zealand fan, don’t despair, this is one of the best New Zealand sides in years, and is one that will continue to improve over the coming years.

First Test: Lords, England win by 170 runs.

Fine Bowling Papers Over Batting Cracks.

Once the pats on the back and cheerful congratulations for Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad have finished, let us remember that this was a victory snatched from defeat.  Remarkably, this was the first test match since 1959 (that’s fifty-four years, by the way) where neither side could muster over 250 runs in either of their innings. And why? Most have pointed to some devastating bowling displays. And yes, the bowling was good but the real reason is, the batting was far worse.

Two hours of stunning fast bowling – that was a joy to watch – should not be allowed to paper over some growing cracks in the England foundations.

Just over two months ago, an England side brimming with enthusiasm went on their winter tour to New Zealand and expected to return victorious. However, after three tests they were lucky to return with a draw. Salvation was saved twice by some stoic individual batting displays that evoked the spirit of Dunkirk, with Prior holding up one end while the boats came to bring our boys back to Blighty with a draw.

As fans, we consoled ourselves in the knowledge that these performances were merely blips, one-offs, and hey – every team has them, right?

The trouble is, what if this wasn’t a blip? What if the first test of this British summer has already exposed a chronic flaw in the much-respected England middle order?

In the first innings at Lords, England lost their middle five wickets for just 44 runs. Similarly in the second innings, England fell from 159-2 to 213 all out. Batting collapses happen occasionally– but twice in one match?

You expect a green pitch in May but it wasn’t vicious. You expect swing at Lords but Tim Southee is no master of the art. At times however, the New Zealand paceman looked like he was. Indeed, there were times in this Test match when Mr Southee looked more dangerous than a summer holiday in Syria.

England’s top order got starts and their big scores will come. But the manner in which the middle order crumbled showed signs of degeneration. England are lucky that Joe Root, despite his inexperience and youthful age, is already demonstrating his world class potential. If Root had not played like a seasoned campaigner, all the magic that Broad and Anderson could muster may not have been enough to save this Test.

The middle order needs Ian Bell, the classiest strokesman in the side, to add Collingwood-esque grit to his game. As a senior member of the team, Bell needs to see off the choppy seas of a swinging new ball and steer us forth into calmer waters that are easier to navigate for those that follow. When Bell doesn’t build an effective shield, the middle order looks fragile.

The next test will be important for Bairstow. The selectors have placed enormous faith on his broad Yorkie shoulders to produce mass runs and to step in to Kevin Pieterson’s clown-like shoes. Undoubtedly he is a talent, but is it a case of too much, too early? Unlucky in the first innings but out too cheaply in the second, and a Test match batting average of 25 does little to ease the middle-order nerves.

Matt Prior, England’s player of the year and lauded before the first Test, spectacularly failed to reproduce his recent form. Undoubtedly, he has had a fine year and has looked every bit the belated successor to Alec Stewart’s Keeper-Batsmen throne. But a pair is always worrying. How we could do with a big score from the Sussex glovesman to restore last week’s unshakable confidence in ‘The Cheese’.

After Prior, comes the enigmatic Broad and Swann. Broad has talent with the bat, we’ve seen it, but we don’t see it enough. We know Graeme Swann is always hit or miss, it is the only way he knows how to play and is one of the reasons he’s endeared himself to all England fans. But Swanny, can we have a bit more hit please?

The first test match of the summer has gone down as a victory. Most likely, it will be remembered for the exploits of two world-class bowlers on a May Sunday morning. The England dressing room was satisfied, the New Zealand dressing room was despondent, but how different this could have been.

On another British summers day, against another side from the Southern hemisphere, a chase of 239 will be caught. And the England players will watch on while others pat each other on the back and congratulate themselves on how well they have done.

England’s non-stop summer of cricket – Who needs to impress?

Back on home soil after an uncertain 18 months, England cannot afford anything but a strong and convincing summer to see off an underrated New Zealand and retain the Ashes against a hungry Australia. Whilst England will need their stars firing on all cylinders, there are a handful of players in particular, who are in need of a big summer.

Nick Compton

Taking the place of outgoing captain Andrew Strauss, Nick Compton was always going to have big shoes to fill. Just a single score past 50 in six innings in India did little to dispel the doubts, but back-to-back centuries in New Zealand were timely and have gone some way towards easing the pressure on him. However, it is easy to forget that Compton scored a total of just 15 runs in his other three innings. Although he has two hundreds to his name, he has past 50 just three times so far in thirteen innings for England. Two failures at Lords last week, coupled with a very slow strike rate, means Compton is already under pressure. At 29, Compton has been around the county game for a long time. This summer, he needs to demonstrate once and for all that he has a future in test cricket.

Joe Root

As demonstrated by captaining the England Lions side at 22 years of age, Joe Root has long been touted as the future of English cricket. His test debut in Nagpur in 2012 exemplified the qualities that have marked him out as a prodigious batting talent, showing patience and discipline with England’s sixth-longest debut innings, making 73 from 229 balls on a painfully slow surface. Although he was not alone, Root found batting in New Zealand more difficult, making just a combined 14 runs in his opening three innings. However, scores of 45 and 29 as England saved the game in Auckland showed further encouraging signs. His still has much to learn and the number six slot in side, an issue since the retirement of Paul Collingwood, is not yet his own. But he has started the summer in explosive form, with scores of 182 and 236 for Yorkshire and 179 for the England Lions. He also top scored in difficult batting conditions at Lords last week, making 40 and 71. He could come of age for England this summer.

Stuart Broad

Perhaps a slightly controversial choice, but he is due a dominant summer.. A lacerated fat pad in his heel masked his dwindling form during England’s tour of India, where he failed to pick up a wicket in two test matches. At his best he can be devastating, such as when finishing with 5 for 37 in twelve overs at The Oval during the 2009 Ashes, or his hat trick against India at Trent Bridge in 2011, finishing with 6 for 46.  But, coming into the summer, he appeared to have lost his place as second strike bowler to Steven Finn, and with the likes of Tim Bresnan, Chris Tremlett and Graham Onions waiting in the wings, even his place in the side seemed no longer assured. Once considered a potential all-rounder to rival Freddie Flintoff, his batting has deteriorated alarmingly since his 169 against Pakistan in 2010. However, his return in New Zealand offered green shoots of recovery with both bat and ball. His 11 wickets made him England’s most successful bowler, whilst the record-breaking 103 minutes it took him to get off the mark as England dug in for a draw in Auckland suggests a new patience and maturity. His performance at Lords last weekend suggests he is back to his best. Although he picked up just a single wicket in the opening innings, he scored a typically swashbuckling 26 not out from 25 balls with the bat, before a devastating spell with the ball, taking career best figures of 7 for 44, saw New Zealand bowled out for just 68. If Broad can maintain this start to the summer, then England will be hard to beat.

Tim Bresnan

Although it was an elbow injury that kept Bresnan out of England’s tour of New Zealand, he is another England bowler badly out of form. Bresnan featured at Nagpur during England’s tour of India, but went wicketless for the second time in the series. In fact, he has taken just two test wickets at 210 runs apiece in his last 4 outings, dating back to the start of the series against South Africa. But 13 wickets at 27.07 for Yorkshire this season suggests that his form may be returning. He is an excellent lower order batsman, with an average of 31, having twice reached the nervous 90s, a weapon not to be sniffed at by a slightly vulnerable England batting lineup.. If he gets an opportunity this summer and takes it, England may not be able to leave him out.

Jonny Bairstow

The injury to Kevin Pietersen will see Jonny Bairstow start the summer in the England test side. However, some critics will need convincing that he can cut it at this level. He struggled particularly against the short ball in his debut series against the West Indies, and as a result was dropped in favour of Ravi Bopara for the series against South Africa. Bairstow must have thought his chance had gone when James Taylor was preferred to him after Bopara’s withdrawal from the second test, but after Kevin Pietersen was dropped for the third test, Bairstow grabbed his chance, scoring 95 and 54 in an ultimately losing effort. He made way again for the returning Kevin Pietersen in New Zealand, and given that he has played only one first-class innings since September 2012, before his recall at Auckland, his failure (3 & 6) was understandable. With Pietersen’s long term future in doubt, this summer represents a real opportunity for Bairstow to stake a claim for a regular place. He has started the summer well, with scores of 186 and 53 in his last two innings for Yorkshire, followed up with 68 runs for England Lions. As a specialist batsmen, a maiden century is a must this summer. Whilst Bairstow may see his long term future as England’s wicketkeeper, he is unlikely to take the gloves from the superb Matt Prior – recently named England’s player of the year. In the meantime, he will be nevertheless be valuable as one of England’s finest fielders. Although he was bowled for just 5 as England’s second innings collapsed, he top scored in the first innings, making 41. A solid start, but one he must build on.

What has been and what’s to come…

For years to come, 2012 will be remembered as one of the greatest years in British sporting history. Superlative performances from Team GB at the Olympics and Paralympics, the first ever Englishman to win the Tour de France, a Scotsman won Britain’s first tennis Grand Slam for 76 years and an Irishman conquering at the PGA Championship. Add to this an English club winning the Champions League and the biggest contributors to an away Ryder Cup win all being British and you can see why 2012 will remain in people’s memories for years to come

However, the 2012 cricketing year passed us by with not only disappointment but also embarrassment and controversy. The year started with a 3-0 whitewash against Pakistan with their spinners tearing through our top order followed by an unceremonious draw with Sri Lanka which was only saved by some magic from Graeme Swann and Kevin Pietersen. The highly anticipated clash between England and South Africa ended in an irrefutable win for the Proteas and England being convincingly knocked off the Number 1 spot. My main memory from that series is of spending hours watching Smith and Amla at the crease and sensing that Strauss had run out of ideas. KP’s texts message added serious insult to injury and was a sour way to end series.

However, it is time to put that behind us and time to enjoy what is being labeled as ‘The Summer of Cricket’. So, what do we have to look forward to? First off, England have the opportunity to settle the score with New Zealand after sending us home with a severely bloodied nose earlier this year. New Zealand’s youngsters were relentless and consistent so we need to be ready for them. Our group in the ICC Champions Trophy sees us face Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Australia, which will be a great opportunity for Andy Flower to finalise his plans for our middle order for the start of the Ashes.

We all know the controversies of moving the Ashes back a year and, whether you agree with it or not, it’s happening. 10^th July marks the start of a grueling two month schedule playing the Aussies thirteen times in test, one day and Twenty20. We then have a seven week break before our tour starts with a very similar program. Australia are not the force they once were and Flower has been given the perfect opportunity to have a highly intensive six months of cricket to allow older players to to prove their worth as well as breathing new life into the team by introducing our youngsters to top tier cricket.

There will be ups and there will no doubt be downs (Ravi Bopara) but let’s hope that 2013 will be the year that England reinstate themselves on the world stage.