England extra generous to a fault

How do you solve a problem like Collingwood?

When we reflect, in years to come, on the Ashes success of 2010-11 it will probably be the names of Alastair Cook and James Anderson that spring to mind.

But there were other, largely unsung, heroes. Not just those members of the tour party, like Tim Bresnan, who chipped in with valuable performances when their opportunity arose, but the support staff and coaches who helped the team remain fit and discover their best form. The likes of Graham Gooch (batting), Richard Halsall (fielding), Bruce French (wicketkeeping) and David Saker (bowling) all played a fulsome role.

And then there were the selectors. They have enjoyed a wonderful few months and deserve a great deal of credit.

The decision to replace Steve Finn for Bresnan, for example, was a masterstroke. Finn was, at the time, England’s leading wicket-taker, so the decision to omit him was controversial. After all, can you imagine a side dropping their leading run-scorer?

But Bresnan came into the side, bowled impressively and fully vindicated the decision. The recall of Tremlett was also astute.

Most of all, however, the selectors deserve praise for their faith in Cook. Coming into the series, Cook has passed 50 just once in his previous 10 Test innings and, but for a century against Pakistan in the penultimate Test of last summer, might have been struggling to make the tour.

Or so it was thought.

Actually, it appears Cook’s spot was never in doubt.

Such was the selectors’ faith in him, that Cook was certain to tour even if he’d failed in every innings against Pakistan.

“As far as I’m concerned, Cook was never anywhere near being dropped,” Ashley Giles said this week. “He has a very good Test record and we’re not into knee-jerk reactions.”

But, what would have happened if Cook hadn’t scored that century against Pakistan?

“It didn’t make much difference,” Giles replied. “We’d have stuck with him. Perhaps we’d have taken a reserve opener on the Ashes tour. But, in Australia, we all thought it was vital to have someone of Cook’s mental strength and we all thought he’d come good.”

766 Ashes runs later, it’s looking like an excellent decision. We can only speculate on how well Graeme Hick and Mark Ramprakash – who made their debuts in the same Test in 1991 – might have fared had they enjoyed such enlightened management. Against the far more modest bowling attacks of today, it’s not unreasonable to suggest that both men may have averaged around 50.

But every silver lining has a cloud. And if you were a batsman on the fringes of the England team, you may feel that the consistency of selection policy has allowed some to coast on reputation for some time.

Consider Paul Collingwood. England must pick their World Cup squad this week and the Collingwood issue is beginning to cause the selectors a major headache.

No-one disputes that Collingwood has been a wonderful servant of English cricket. His determination, his selflessness, his superb fielding and his all-round ability have rendered him an automatic selection in all formats for several years. It’s not hard to see why colleagues and supporters feel such loyalty towards him. He’s a good man.

But that’s not the criteria for selection, is it? If it was, Nelson Mandela would open the bowling for South Africa and Cheryl Cole would be keeping wicket for England.

Ultimately a batsman’s job is to score runs. And Collingwood hasn’t scored many in a long, long time.

Sound harsh? Well, consider this. In the last year, he’s played 13 T20 internationals. In them he’s scored just 119 runs at an average of 10.8. Despite batting at number four, his highest score is just 21.

Meanwhile, he’s passed 50 just once in his last 15 ODI innings (in a game that England lost) and, in his last seven matches, he averages only 19.

And, in Test cricket, he passed 50 just once in his last 14 innings and, in that time, averaged just 14.

That’s not just a poor run. It’s a crisis. You have to go back a long, long time to find a match-winning performance.

While it’s true that Collingwood adds value with his bowling and fielding, there are several prospective replacements who might feel they can also offer an all-round package.

Ravi Bopara, for example, has a better strike-rate with the ball (39.1 balls per wicket compared to Collingwood’s 46.2) and concedes his runs at almost the same rate (5.07 an over compared to Collingwood’s 5.01). Collingwood’s last 25 ODIs have garnered just 11 wickets at 52 apiece, while his record in India (four wickets at 72 apiece in 18 ODIs with an economy rate of 5.78) hardly makes a compelling case for inclusion, either.

While the smart money suggests Collingwood will be selected in England’s 15-man World Cup squad, his position now hangs by a thread. If he is to see off the threat of the likes of Trott and Bopara, he really needs to start repaying the selectors faith with something more tangible than being a good influence. He needs runs and he needs them now.

Cook leads the way for England

Alastair Cook 10/10
766 runs at 127.66

A magnificent series. By the end of last summer, Cook was clinging on to his place in the England side and, by his own admission, “couldn’t hit a beach ball.” He averaged just 26 in previous Ashes encounters and his troubles outside the off-stump had the Australian bowlers salivating in anticipation. His career appeared to be in the balance.

It’s not any more. Cook batted for more than 36 hours in the series – no Englishman has ever spent longer at the crease in a Test series – and scored an eye-watering 766 runs. Only Wally Hammond and Don Bradman have scored more in an Ashes series. He fully deserved his man of the series award.

How did he do it? He left the ball outside the off stump and waited for the bowlers to stray into his areas. Then he cut, pulled and flicked to his heart’s content. And, as his confidence grew, he even unveiled a surprisingly elegant cover drives. Aged just 26, he’s already scored over 5,000 Test runs and recorded 16 Test centuries: he’s going to break every English Test batting record in existence.

Credit, too, for the selectors who stuck with him and the coaches who worked with him. Their judgement and faith has been fully vindicated.

Andrew Strauss 8/10
307 runs at 43.85

A sound, if unspectacular, series with the bat. Bouncing back from his first over dismissal at Brisbane, he settled England’s nerves with their first century of the series in the second innings. He passed 50 three more times in the series, often helping his side steal the initiative, but failing to go on.

His greatest contribution, however, remains the captaincy. While he’s somewhat conservative on the pitch, his admirable calm head ans sensible disposition helped England regroup after a shaky start at Brisbane and the debacle of Perth. He’s now one of just three man (Hutton and Brearley are the others) to have led England to Ashes success home and away. There’s little reason to think he can’t go further and lead England to World Cup success and the top of the Test rankings.

Jonathan Trott 9/10
445 runs at 89

You have to go back a long, long time to find a better England No. 3 than Trott. His sound technique, calm head and relentless hunger for runs have created a wonderfully consistent Test batsman who is equally proficient coming in at 0-1 or 200-1. And he seems to love batting against Australia: before his duck in Sydney he averaged more than 100 in the Ashes. Don’t forget that run-out of Katich at Adelaide, either. Trott was superb and has now answered every question about his technique and temperament.

Kevin Pietersen 7/10
360 runs at 60
1 wicket at 16

A somewhat perplexing series. Magnificent at Adelaide – he scored a match-winning double-century and took a crucial wicket – he only passed 50 once more in the series. For a player with as much talent as Pietersen, that’s slightly disappointing. Some of his off-field comments – such as the swipe at Peter Moores – hardly helped team unity, either. Even if there was more than a grain of truth in them.

Paul Collingwood 3.5/10
82 runs at 13.83
2 wickets at 36.50

He took several wonderful catches and a couple of useful wickets but, from a personal perspective, this was a bitterly disappointing series from Collingwood. He rarely looked comfortable at the crease and, while all his colleagues flourished, often looked as if he were struggling to cope with the pace of the Australian bowlers. His retirement was inevitable. It was the right decision, too. For all his determination and all his positive contributions behind the scenes, it’s runs that define a batsman’s worth and Collingwood simply hasn’t scored enough.

Ian Bell 8/10
329 runs at 65.80

If there were still doubters before this series, they are surely silenced now. No-one on either side timed the ball as sweetly as Bell and his century at Sydney, an innings that ensured his side of a series win, was the coming of age of a man who has promised much for a long time. Batting at least one place too low, he was often obliged to sacrifice his wicket in the search for quick runs and the feeling persists that, with more opportunity, Bell might have gained many of the plaudits that have gone to Cook. It is surely telling that, in the first innings at Brisbane and Perth, with all his colleagues struggling, Bell top scored. The next few years promise much.

Matt Prior 7/10
252 runs at 50.40
23 catches

A much improved ‘keeper, Prior was very good against the fast bowlers and, the odd indiscretion apart, reliable against the spinners. His six catches in an innings at Melbourne equalled an Ashes record and he finished with an admirable 23 victims. With the bat, he improved after a shaky start (he was part of Siddle’s hat-trick in Brisbane) and scored a maiden Ashes century at Sydney. To underline the selfless nature of his play, it was the fastest Ashes century by an Englishman since Ian Botham in 1981.

Stuart Broad 3/10
0 runs at 0
2 wickets at 80.50

A bitterly disappointing series. A muscle tear forced Broad out of the series after the second Test, by which time he’d claimed just two wickets and suffered a first ball dismissal. He had bowled somewhat better than the figures suggested, however, conceding just 2.3 runs an over and ensuring his captain a measure of control in the field. The pitch at Perth would surely have suited him ideally bit, with Tremlett, Finn and Bresnan now all pressing for inclusion, Broad can no longer consider himself an automatic selection.

Graeme Swann 6/10
88 runs at 22
15 wickets at 39.80

It was presumed before the series that if England were to win, Swann would need to enjoy a big series. It didn’t turn out that way. Swann failed to find much help from the Australian pitches and found Hussey one of the toughest opponents of his Test career to date. Swann didn’t always look comfortable against Australia’s quick bowling, either. Still, when conditions suited, at Adelaide, he played his part with a five-wicket haul that helped his side to victory, while his excellent bowling at Melbourne went largely unrewarded. He remained cheerful on and off the pitch, too, and certainly contributed to the relaxed and happy mood in the England camp.

Chris Tremlett 9/10
19 runs at 6.33
17 wickets at 23.35

A breakthrough series. Seemingly in the cricketing wilderness just 12-months ago, Tremlett build on his excellent season in county cricket with a performance that announced him as one of the most fearsome fast bowlers in world cricket. Casting off his reputation as injury prone and small hearted, Tremlett bowled with pace, bounce, hostility and skill. In such form, he is as fearsome as fast bowler as any in the world.

Tim Bresnan 8/10
39 runs at 19.50
11 wickets at 19.54

Called into the side for the final two Tests, Bresnan responded with two highly impressive performances. Maintaining an excellent, nagging line and length, Bresnan gained movement in the air and off the pitch and generated surprising pace. While the highlight may have been the superb spell in Melbourne that accounted for Ponting, Hussey and Watson within 18 balls at the cost of just two runs, his batting at Sydney will also have reminded the selectors of his all-round ability.

James Anderson 9/10
22 runs at 4.40
26 wickets at 26.04

The series that established Anderson’s reputation as one of England’s finest post-war bowlers. Answering all the questions, Anderson swung the new ball conventionally, reversed the old ball, gained movement off the seam and, throughout, maintained excellent control and a wonderfully probing line and length. There are very few better fast bowlers in world cricket.

Steve Finn 7/10
3 runs at 3
14 wickets at 33.14

Started the series well, with six wickets in an innings at Brisbane and a brave performance in Adelaide. But he seemed to tire in Perth and paid the price for conceding more than four an over by losing his place for the final two Tests. It was a brave decision from the selectors, however, as, at the time, Finn was England’s leading wicket-taker in the series. Aged only 21, Finn remains one for the future.

Crushing margin of victory speaks volumes

Harry Pearson guests at SPIN Magazine Club at The Warrington on August 5

The SPIN Magazine Cricket Club welcomes Harry Pearson of The Guardian as our special guest on Thursday August 5.

Harry will be talking about his career and his new book, Slipless in Settle, in conversation with SPIN editor Duncan Steer. He will also be taking questions from the floor and signing books.

The kick-off time is 7 for 7.30. Entry is FREE but advance booking is advised. To book your place, please email: spincc@spincricket.com.

The Warrington is at 93 Warrington Crescent, London W9 1EH. Nearest tube: Warwick Avenue (Bakerloo)

Harry’s new book Slipless in Settle, published by Little, Brown, is an account of a summer spent watching league cricket in Yorkshire. It has all the eye for grim-up-north colour and telling/ridiculous detail that has won Harry’s previous books (and Saturday Guardian sports columns) so many fans.

There is an extract from Slipless in Settle in the current issue of SPIN. There’s more info on the book here: http://tinyurl.com/Slipless

Harry has previously written acclaimed books on, variously, football (‘The Far Corner – a mazy dribble through north-east football’), Belgians (‘A Tall Man in a Low Land’) and the secret (ish) world of North country fairs (‘Racing Pigs and Giant Marrows’). 

As ever, as well as the cricket chat, it’s a chance to enjoy some free Gordon Ramsay food and mingle with cricket movers and shakers. Plus there’s a free prize quiz to win dinner for two at Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant, upstairs at the Warrington. 

The SPIN Magazine Cricket Club is held once a month at The Warrington and features players and authors as guests within an informal pub quiz/chat show atmosphere. 

To be kept in touch with future events, please write to spincc@spincricket.com.

And if you join the SPIN Cricket Club, you get 10 issues of SPIN PLUS 10 per cent discount off dining at the Warrington for a year. http://www.tinyurl/SPINCCRamsay.