It does look like a batsman's dream, which is a problem when it's a four day test!
He has - but there are two things. Firstly he cannot do it on his own and secondly I am not entirely confident that he will get through one hard fought test match without injury, never mind two series.
Well yes and the selectors now have a problem with Pope, Crawley both scoring big v Zimbabwe.
Because (if I understand it right) he was on a very lucrative earner in the IPL and was told by the ECB that was fine and he could miss the Zimbabwe game. Seems a bit like the tail wagging the dog, but I suppose the way that England approach test cricket nowadays is pretty 'one day -ish' so perhaps the WI one dayers were thought to be enough of a preparation for him (???).
It's probably not brilliant. But you'd think that *some* preparation would be better than *none*,especially when facing such a strong side.
Yes I think this is the point. The current management don’t really care how well you do in County Cricket, on the whole. They pick players that they believe will do well internationally, and who fit the mould of what they’re trying to achieve.
Drop Bashir, play Bethell and root as the spin option, Bethall @3 Pope @5
That would be a bold decision! Bethell's bowling average in first class cricket is a rather eye-watering 75 runs per wicket. For comparison, Root's average in Tests is under 50 and Bashir's is about 35.
They really seem to trust Bashir as a front line spinner.
