All posts by n8rngtd.top

Familiar failings undermine England top order before tail comes to the rescue in fine style

Andrew Miller24-Mar-2022Close England 204 (Mahmood 49, Leach 41*, Seales 3-40) vs West IndiesIf variety is the spice of the Spice Island, then the pitch at St George’s served up a two-course taster on the first day in Grenada. After ten days of often enervating attrition in Antigua and Barbados, the façade of English batting competence crumbled at the first sign of heat from a pumped-up West Indies seam attack, before a mighty final-session rescue act from England’s tenth-wicket pair dropped a sizeable hint that the truest mischief in the surface had already been and gone.And by the close, who could rightly say where the balance of the series truly lay? In slumping to a nadir of 67 for 7 in the hour after lunch – a passage of play that included three key wickets for no runs in ten balls, and six consecutive single-figure scores from Nos. 2 to 7 – England seemed hell-bent on resetting their very own red-ball reset. After the earnest insistences from Joe Root and Paul Collingwood that lessons had been learned and progress had been made since the all-too-recent misery of the Ashes, the hyper-implausible figure of Kyle Mayers begged to differ, as his startling morning figures of 5-5-0-2 instigated a collapse that could have come straight out of Scott Boland’s playbook.But then, out of the wreckage strode the batting saviours of Jack Leach – still as diffident as ever, even with his contrasting heroics at Headingley and Lord’s to serve as cult-status proof of his unlikely prowess – and England’s newest recruit Saqib Mahmood, who fell to the day’s final ball for an agonising 49, the highest score of his professional career. With Leach left high and dry on 41 not out, Nos. 10 and 11 had top-scored in a Test innings for the first time since 1885, when Australia’s Tom Garrett and Edwin Evans had made 51 not out and 33 not out respectively, in what turned out to be a thrilling six-run win against England.Related

• Robinson ruled out once more as England hand reprieve to Woakes

• West Indies name unchanged squad for third Test against England

• Lawrence shaping up as the homespun hero of Root's new England

• Leach seeks attacking mindset after growing back into England role

• Root praises England progress as Kraigg Brathwaite takes pride in resilience

Only time will tell whether this stand will be as critical, but together Leach and Mahmood sapped the resolve of an all-too-easily deflated West Indies attack, whose collective legs were weary after the exhaustions of the first two Tests, and whose adrenaline bonked all too soon after the fall of Chris Woakes to the second ball after tea – at which point, with England in tatters at 114 for 9, their opponents seemed mentally to check out and put their pads on in anticipation of what promised to be the decisive innings of the series. They were still waiting, 90 runs and more than 46 overs later.Nevertheless, the final analysis of England’s innings revealed two men with scores in the 40s, and next to nothing else – and so on balance, West Indies’ decision to bowl first remained amply justified, even in a topsy-turvy fashion.From the outset it had been clear that a cracked and grassy surface with more than a hint of moisture underneath would be a prime bowl-first deck. However, when Kraigg Brathwaite unleashed an apparent four-pronged seam attack, following the decision to reinforce their batting at the expense of the spinner, Veerasammy Permaul, few could have expected it would be that extra batter, Mayers, who would prove to be the morning’s most penetrative option.For the first 40 minutes of the day, England’s openers Alex Lees and Zak Crawley seemed just about to have the measure of conditions that were closer to Chester-le-Street and Canterbury than they had faced all winter, as they withstood a torrid but occasionally over-eager burst from Jayden Seales in particular, to inch along to 23 for 0.But then West Indies clocked that less might well be more on a surface offering purchase for those who were willing to grip the ball on the track in the manner of an old-fashioned English seamer. And so Mayers, with his Darren Stevens-esque medium-paced wobblers, was tossed the ball in advance of West Indies’ fastest option, Alzarri Joseph. And from that moment on, it was a different dynamic.Kyle Mayers grabbed two early wickets for West Indies•Associated Press

Crawley, a centurion in Antigua, quickly lost patience with Mayers’ impertinence in the channel outside off. Having made his discipline on the drive such a feature of that apparent breakthrough innings, it was a familiar failing that sent him on his way for 7 as he flung his hands through a cunningly bowled legcutter, and spooned a simple chance to Brathwaite in the covers.Enter Root, with a hundred in each of the first two Tests of the series, but reunited with a situation more akin to England’s collapse to 48 for 4 on the first morning of the series in Antigua. And Mayers never offered him a chance to settle. His fourth ball hit the seam and wobbled wildly round Root’s outside edge; five balls later, Mayers scrambled that same seam, and kissed the edge of a defensive push down the line to have Root caught behind for a nine-ball duck.Lees’ introduction to the Test team has now featured a new highest score in four of his five innings, which must count as progress of sorts. He played a compact holding role throughout the morning session, but before England’s position could be claimed to have improved, they were three-down for 46 at lunch. Dan Lawrence – another player who seemed to have made visible strides in the first two Tests – had no answer as Seales returned with his discipline reframed. Despite burning a review after been pinned on the knee-roll by a nipbacker, he was sent on his way for 8 from 31 balls.In Antigua, England’s pre-lunch struggles had proven to be their nadir; here, however, they was merely the prelude. Four overs after the break, Ben Stokes – his blood pumping after a restorative century in Barbados – tried to take on Joseph’s short ball, and shovelled a spliced pull straight back into the bowler’s lap for 2 (53 for 4).Five balls and no runs later, Lees’ vigil was ended in uncompromising fashion by a pumped-up Roach, who was adamant that he’d found the edge two balls earlier, but when Brathwaite declined to waste his final review, he merely bombed the edge from round the wicket once more, and this time there was no doubt as Joshua da Silva sent him on his way for 31 (53 for 5).And then, as if it prove that the events of the previous fortnight had been a fever-dream, Jonny Bairstow capped England’s dramatic reversion to the mean with their third wicket for no runs in the space of 10 balls. Joseph – easily the quickest bowler on either side in the absence of Mark Wood – bent his back on another off-stump lifter, and Bairstow nicked off to da Silva for the 15th duck of his Test career, and his fifth since the start of 2021.From 53 for 6, it was now a familiar race to the bottom for England’s lower order. Ben Foakes was duly pinned on the crease as Seales ripped a bail-trimmer through his defences for 7, at which point England’s run of scores – +31 708207 – read like they were planning an international call to the Netherlands to fill the dead playing time on the final two days of this Test (though hopefully not for a T20I, to judge by past experience).Saqib Mahmood produced unexpected resistance from No. 11•Getty Images

At least Chris Woakes and Craig Overton broke the run of single-digit scores, not that this had been their original plan for first-day heroics, following their unlikely (and some might say, unwarranted) reprieves in England’s seam attack. But Roach prised them apart after an eighth-wicket stand of 23 – at the time, England’s joint-best of the innings – as he leapt wide on the crease to spear an outstanding nip-backer into the top of off stump (90 for 8).Woakes held the line well for the remainder of the session – during which time, in the absence of a regular spinner, Brathwaite even turned to Nkrumah Bonner and Jermaine Blackwood for an over apiece of speculative moon-balls. It seemed he had merely been stalling for time, especially when Woakes drove loosely at his second ball after the break to be bowled by Seales for 25. But it didn’t quite turn out like that.At first it was simply a matter of holding up an end – and few batters do that better than Leach, as shown by that epic 1 not out alongside Stokes three years ago. But as their stand extended, and both men’s eyes got in, a late-evening counterattack was the order of the day. Mayers, brought back in the hope of more magic, was slapped into the stands by Mahmood, while Leach’s love of a length ball became more and more apparent as he brought his favourite cover-drive out of mothballs.The new ball came and went, with ample swing but no major threat, but Blackwood’s return for the day’s final over proved a passion-killer for Mahmood, as he thwacked a fierce drive through the line to move to the brink of a memorable fifty, only to get too greedy to his very next ball, and under-edge a wild hoick into his own stumps. Nevertheless, he had given his team a chance – and his A game is still to come on what promises to be a pivotal second day.

“We’re just here to have some fun, enjoy this series completely, and take a lot of positives”

Varun Shetty06-Jul-2021The India players who are in Sri Lanka for the upcoming limited-overs series are paying no heed to conversations about them being a second-string team – as Arjuna Ranatunga called them – according to Suryakumar Yadav, who is focused on taking “a lot of positives” from the short tour.”Not really [thinking about being a squad of non-first-choice players]. Everyone is completely focused,” Yadav, 30 but still a newbie at the international level, said on Tuesday. “The way the practice sessions are going, the way the [intra-squad] game went yesterday, it’s going completely fine and we’re really excited about the challenge.”We’re just here to have some fun, enjoy this series completely, and take a lot of positives from here.”Related

• Hardik 'is bowling and it is a very good sign' – Suryakumar

• Dravid: Winning series against Sri Lanka the priority

• Sakariya – 'Would have been happy just as a net bowler'

The squad, on tour even as the expanded Test squad gets ready for a five-match series in England after finishing the World Test Championship final, features as many as five players who have earned their maiden call-ups to the national team, and a string of others who are new at the international level – like Yadav. He made his international debut earlier this year at home in a T20I series against England, but, in many ways, is among the senior-most players in the touring party.”That [England] was a different series. This is a different series. But the challenge remains the same – I’ve to go out and perform the same way I did,” he said. “So pressure will be there because if there’s no pressure, there’s no fun. It’ll be a great challenge and I am really looking forward to it.”Every year I’ve learnt something different from all my team-mates [at the Mumbai Indians]. That tournament is a great learning every year. It really helps me wherever I am playing. If you sum up, it’s a great learning process and it has obviously helped me gain a lot of experience.”The bedrock of Yadav’s game as an attacking batter in the IPL has been his ability to be innovative on slow pitches just as well as he is on true batting surfaces. India are scheduled to play all their games at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, and tiring pitches are more than likely to be a feature as the series begins on July 13.”From a conditions perspective, we play in similar conditions in places like Mumbai and Chennai, where the humidity is high,” Yadav said. “Most importantly, we have come here 15-20 days before the series to acclimatise to these conditions. We are adjusting well. Talking about the pitches, the surface for the intra-squad game [on Monday] was really good, and I hope it stays the same. If there are slow pitches, you need to take time and apply yourself. It will be a good challenge and I am really looking forward to it.”

Victoria routed for 114, with Hardie claiming 4 for 24, before Sam Whiteman’s 63 put WA infront as they seek to host their first Shield final in 24 years

AAP and ESPNCricinfo staff23-Mar-2022Victoria’s push to host next week’s Sheffield Shield final hit a major hurdle as Western Australia’s seam attack, led by career-best figures from Aaron Hardie, made light work of the competition’s in-form batting line-up at the WACA.Victoria could only muster 114 after being asked to bat first, while WA raced to 2-119 by the close of day one.Sam Whiteman led the way with a boundary-laden 63 off just 85 balls, while fellow opener Cameron Bancroft was the second wicket to fall on 30 with the scores level.Shaun Marsh remains unbeaten on 11, with nightwatchman Matthew Kelly on 4.But it wasn’t all bad news for the ladder-leading Vics, with the lack of bonus points earned at the matches in Adelaide and Hobart meaning the Vics are effectively assured of a spot in next week’s decider.Western Australia are already halfway towards the victory they need to both reach and host the Shield final thanks to some high-quality seam bowling.Hardie led the way with a career-best 4-24, knocking over a host of big names in the process.Hardie skittled last week’s centurion Travis Dean (3), Shield top-scorer Peter Handscomb (1), the in-form Nic Maddinson (4) as well as Jake Fraser-McGurk (4) during a dream first session.Opener Will Pucovski looked good in his latest comeback from another high-profile concussion but, having done the hard work, the youngster was caught behind wafting at a loose leg-side delivery from Kelly for 22.Kelly (2-27) returned to end the Vics’ biggest partnership – 47 between Matt Short (43) and Sam Harper (18). But Harper’s dismissal kick-started a tail-end collapse as the Vics lost 5-23 to end their innings after just 43.5 overs.Debutants lined up for each team with Victoria fielding medium-pacer Cam McClure and Western Australia including 17-year-old prodigy Teague Wyllie.

Ethan Bamber five-for, Ryan Higgins fifty help visitors take grip in tricky conditions

ECB Reporters Network 25-Jul-2023Middlesex took ruthless advantage of winning a valuable toss by bowling Warwickshire out for 60 on the opening day of their LV=Insurance County Championship match at Edgbaston.Warwickshire were skittled for their lowest championship total since 1982 – when they made 43 versus Sussex at Edgbaston – as Ethan Bamber took 5 for 20 and skipper Toby Roland-Jones 3 for 27. The seamers skilfully exploited helpful conditions but were abetted by some flawed defensive shots.Middlesex then replied with 199, with Ryan Higgins making 53 from 72 balls, for a first innings lead of 139 – and there was still time on a chaotic day for the home side to lose two wickets second time round, reaching 53 for 2 by the close.When Roland-Jones won the toss, he hoped his seam attack would make early inroads – to have the home side 17 for 5 after 23 minutes did that job.It all started swimmingly for Warwickshire as both openers struck their first ball for four, but Roland-Jones launched the clatter with a lifter which Alex Davies gloved to the wicketkeeper. Two balls later, the skipper sent a full-length ball into Will Rhodes’ stumps.Bamber then found Sam Hain’s edge and Sam Robson took a slick catch at second slip. A simpler chance, offered by Rob Yates off Roland-Jones, was also accepted by Robson before Bamber bowled the entire middle order in 44 balls. Dan Mousley and Jake Bethell were bowled through the gate, Michael Burgess was castled by one that kept low and Ed Barnard’s off stump was clipped by a peach of an outswinger.When Henry Brookes edged Higgins to third slip, No. 11 Mir Hamza found himself striding in at 12.20pm. He was soon making the return journey after nicking a pull at Higgins.In ten minutes’ batting before lunch, Middlesex lost Robson who edged Olly Hannon-Dalby to first slip. Soon after the interval, Steve Eskinazi edged Hannon-Dalby behind and Mark Stoneman fell lbw to Hamza who then bowled Max Holden through another open gate.After diligent innings of 18 from Jack Davies and Jon Simpson were ended by fatal edges, Higgins and Josh de Caires counterattacked. For the first time the pressure was turned on the bowlers as the seventh-wicket pair added 71 in 18 overs.Higgins has damaged Warwickshire in the past with the ball, notably with 11 for 96 for Gloucestershire in the Bob Willis Trophy at Bristol in 2020. This time he biffed seven fours and a six on his way to his 18th first-class fifty before becoming the first of three wickets for Barnard. Higgins was bowled, de Caires skied a slog and Roland-Jones struck the ball into the crowd at long-on but clipped off a bail with his after-stroke and departed hit wicket.When Bamber fell lbw to Hannon-Dalby, Middlesex had a chunky lead of 139 and, remarkably, Warwickshire were in again for 13 overs. Their traumas continued as Davies sliced Bamber into the cordon to add a first-baller to his morning second-baller and Rhodes nicked an indiscrete waft at Tom Helm. That was careless from the captain but it was Warwickshire’s morning of mayhem that has left them in a cavernous hole.

The Australia coach said both Handscomb and Stoinis would feature in the XI for the semi-final against England

Melinda Farrell in Birmingham09-Jul-2019Marcus Stoinis will be fit to play in Australia’s semi-final against England and Peter Handscomb will be in the XI as a replacement for Usman Khawaja, according to Justin Langer.Stoinis appeared to have recovered from a side strain he sustained in Australia’s loss to South Africa and batted and bowled during Tuesday’s training session at Edgbaston.”He looks good,” said Langer after training. “It was a very good nets session actually, there was a bit of heat in there again and it was very competitive and that always brings the best out in ‘Stoins’, so he did a good job today and he’s fit to go.”Handscomb initially joined the squad as a replacement for Shaun Marsh, who was earlier ruled out of the tournament with a broken forearm. Matthew Wade and Mitchell Marsh were also called in as cover for Khawaja and Stoinis, but Langer indicated that only Handscomb was likely to come straight into the team.”I’ll tell you the truth. Peter Handscomb will definitely play, 100 percent” said Langer. “He deserves it. He was stiff not to be on this tour, he was so unlucky not to be in the initial squad after what he’d done to get us to that point. He’s in good form, he played well for Australia A, gives us that nice balance in the middle order. He’s got good temperament, he plays spin well, he’s on top of his game, so Pete will definitely play.”Australia’s relaxed air was evident as they prefaced their training session by singing happy birthday to Austin Marsh, son of Shaun. Later in the afternoon, some of the players wrestled with the toddler on the outfield. The previous day the entire squad walked barefoot around the outfield, a practice described by some onlookers as a type of connecting or ‘earthing’, but the notion of any new-age ritual was shot down by Langer, who said it was something he would often do with his opening partner, Mathew Hayden.”What was it called?” asked Langer. “I don’t know what you call it, we just took our shoes and socks off and walked a lap of the oval. It’s a nice thing to do, it’s a nice place to be. Haydos and I used to do it, just as a bit of a ritual before every Test match.”You can walk on the best grounds in the world with your shoes off. So there’s nothing to it. We walked a lap of the oval, we had a tough game against South Africa, it’s just about staying as relaxed as possible.”We know we’re going to be up against it. England are a great team and we’ve got to be at our best, and the best way to be at your best is to be nice and relaxed. It was just walking a lap of the oval with our shoes off. We could’ve done it with our shoes on and nobody would’ve said anything.”There is certainly a far more laid back appearance to this squad than the last time they faced England at Edgbaston. In the only T20I of their 2018 tour, Australia lost by 28 runs before going on to lose all five ODIs of the series. But this Australian squad has a very different look, both in personnel and mental state.”If you go back 12 months ago there wasn’t too much to be relaxed and chilled about in Australian cricket, was there?” Langer said. “And that’s the truth. We went through a major crisis in our cricket. It didn’t just affect our cricket, it affected our country, so there wasn’t too much to be relaxed about. We’ve had to work hard on being more humble in what we do and being focussed on playing good cricket but also being good people as well. And I know there will be some English people who will laugh about that but its actually true. We had to work hard on that and that’s a good bunch of players.”You get more relaxed as you start playing better as an individual or as a team. Maybe we are a bit more relaxed but only on the back of playing good cricket and having had to work hard on that.”While Australia’s squad bears little resemblance to the one that was trounced last summer, Langer said he admires the way England have built a strong squad through continuity.”They’ve been together for four years,” said Langer. “And going back to the question about this being a more relaxed squad, you get to know each other and enjoy each other’s company. They’ve got great continuity, England, and obviously have unbelievable confidence because they have played together for four years.”And they’ve obviously got a good game plan and a lot of very talented cricketers. All those factors combined is why they’re the best team in the world at the moment. And we’re aware of that – it’s going to be a really tough game on Thursday – but looking forward to it as well. It’s always nice, England playing Australia in the Ashes or big games like this. We’re looking forward to it. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”I have maintained it from day one, England are going to be really hard to beat in this tournament. They had a couple of little blips, but they fought back really strongly and that’s what we expected to happen.””Regardless of what happens on Thursday – and I’m sure Trevor Bayliss and Eoin (Morgan) are saying the same thing – regardless of what happens Thursday they would very proud of what’s happened in the past four years.”

Alarm bells had gone off across the cricket world after images of the West Indian fast bowler’s massive no-ball were shared

Mohammad Isam13-Dec-2019The BCB has kept deliberations on – and discussions into a possible investigation into – Krishmar Santokie’s massive no-ball “internal”, after alarm bells went off across the cricket world on the BPL’s opening day. Social media was understandably abuzz, with the image of Sylhet Thunder bowler Santokie going over by several inches during their match against Chattogram Challengers in Dhaka being shared around.BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said that that the board wouldn’t make a public comment on the matter, but he did mention the steps that have already been taken to guard against corruption.”Any anti-corruption matter is dealt internally, so it won’t be wise to comment on this matter. We have already deployed anti-corruption officers with every BPL team,” Chowdhury told ESPNcricinfo.Sylhet captain Mosaddek Hossain said in the post-match press conference on Wednesday that he was unaware of the distance by which Santokie had overstepped, which came in the same over in which the bowler had bowled a big wide down the leg side.ESPNcricinfo has learned that once the no-ball was brought to the attention of the Sylhet team officials, they expressed their shock, but they didn’t discuss it among themselves or with the players and coaching staff in any great detail.Santokie has since become the only talking point in an otherwise dull start to the BPL, which for the first time in its seven-year history is being run by the BCB without the involvement of franchises.

Brook’s 153 caps record-breaking display but England toil for breakthroughs in reply

Valkerie Baynes02-Dec-2022With a mountain to climb, Pakistan openers Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique harnessed up and shinnied towards England’s monster first-innings total on the second day of their contest in Rawalpindi.After Harry Brook pressed on from his overnight 101 to reach 153 off just 116 balls as England were bowled out for 657 at better than a run a ball shortly before lunch, the home duo negotiated more than two sessions unscathed. On a pitch that remained a road throughout both days, to the disgust of PCB chairman Ramiz Raja, they staged an opening partnership approaching the 200-mark with Imam 90 not out at stumps and Shafique on 89.The pair faced up to a spin attack comprising Jack Leach, Will Jacks and Joe Root with class through a middle session, which contrasted with England’s fireworks of the previous four, but still contained flashes of excitement.Imam launched Leach over the rope at deep midwicket to break a run of 11 dot balls from England’s only frontline spinner and Shafique advanced down the pitch to dispatch Jacks over long-on to bring up Pakistan’s fifty.Shafique raised his half-century with a glorious drive to the cover boundary off Jacks, his seventh four of the innings, and Imam followed suit a short time later, pushing a Root delivery towards cover for a single.England served up 21 consecutive overs of slow bowling as captain Ben Stokes set attacking fields. Jacks fulfilled the part-timer role which helped secure him a Test debut when Ben Foakes failed to recover from the sickness bug which swept through the touring camp on match eve and Root reprised one he has played many times before with Liam Livingstone, England’s other debutant and sometime spinner, suffering a jarred knee that kept him off the field for much of the afternoon and evening.It was all a precursor to James Anderson returning to try and extract some reverse swing. There wasn’t much on offer from the limited evidence of the one over he sent down before tea, nor was there any more than a hint after the break, although there was a chance.With the fifth ball of the evening session, Anderson fired one into Shafique’s ribs which kissed the glove before sailing down the leg side to Ollie Pope, standing in for regular keeper Foakes. Diving to his left, Pope made an excellent take but the on-field umpires deferred to their TV counterpart, Marais Erasmus, and replays showed that the ball had gone to ground a fraction before meeting Pope’s glove.Searching for a breakthrough after Leach conceded 12 off the 41st over, Shafique hitting a six down the ground and Imam clearing mid-off for four, Stokes entered the attack to no avail as the hosts stood firm.Pakistan managed to prise out England’s remaining six wickets by lunch, but not before England had added a further 151 runs, having already amassed 506 for 4, the most runs ever scored on the opening day of a Test match.Stokes, who had taken England past that milestone with a brutal six over long-on off Mohammad Ali in the dying light on Thursday, unleashed another back over bowler Naseem Shah’s head off the second ball on Friday en route to 41 off 18 deliveries. He was out four balls later when Naseem took the pace off and took out the top of middle stump.Related

• Pakistan and the consequences of fixing what wasn't broken

Naseem’s fellow quick, Haris Rauf, sat in the dressing room with his right quad wrapped in an ice pack after rolling over the ball while fielding the previous day. Meanwhile, legspinner Zahid Mahmood suffered agony of another kind, his four wickets coming at an eye-watering cost of 235 runs in 33 overs – the most-expensive analysis by a Test debutant.Livingstone lofted Zahid for six down the ground on the seventh ball he faced in Tests, but he faced just three more before holing out to deep square leg off Naseem.Brook took to Zahid in a remarkable over, which went for 27 runs. He reverse-swept a six over extra cover, swept the next ball fine for four, and reverse-swept again for another four. He wasn’t done yet either as he hammered the fourth ball for four through long on and lofted next for six back down the ground. Brook tried to go big once more on the last ball and while he miscued and sent a top edge back over his own head, the ball trickled away for another three runs to compound Zahid’s woe.Two fours in three balls off Naseem’s next over, the second of which split keeper and first slip for four, brought up Brook’s 150, although he lofted an attempted sweep next ball to Saud Shakeel at deep square leg.Ollie Robinson took England past 600 with a six off Zahid down the ground before Jacks picked out Naseem at midwicket off Mohammad Ali after a 30-run cameo. Robinson failed to overturn his lbw dismissal off Zahid for 37 and Anderson miscued Zahid’s googly straight to Imam at deep square leg to be last man out.

England head into their home summer with five spin bowlers pitching their case for a spot in the Test side

Matt Roller02-Jul-2020It is hard to remember an occasion when England have gone into their first Test of the home summer with five different spinners all pitching a case for inclusion in the side, but these are unprecedented times.England’s spin cadre have worked closely with Richard Dawson in the nets over the past week, and all have had the opportunity to bowl in this week’s intra-squad warm-up match.Amar Virdi looks the least likely to play at the Ageas Bowl next week, having been parachuted into Team Buttler at the last minute when Sam Curran went down with a suspected diarrhoea and vomiting bug, while Matt Parkinson’s relative inexperience may count against him, despite him luring Ben Stokes into a false shot on the stroke of tea on Thursday to have him stumped.That leaves Moeen Ali, Dom Bess and Jack Leach: all three of them fingerspinners, with similar batting returns in recent years despite Moeen’s greater pedigree. All three have strong claims to the role, but it appeared instructive that it took 68 overs for Moeen to be brought into the attack on the first afternoon. When he did come on, newcomer Dan Lawrence found it easy to knock him about, and a 27-ball 5 on the second day did little to further his case.Seemingly, then, England have a choice next week between Leach and Bess, the Somerset team-mates: the former was first-choice going into the winter before his various illnesses, while the latter took his unlikely opportunity with both hands in South Africa.In this warm-up match, it has been Bess who has impressed more. Leach went wicketless across 15 first-innings overs while Bess took two in his 20 on Thursday; Leach also conceded 3.8 runs per over compared to Bess’ 3.0, and bowled one maiden compared to Bess’ six.Bess and Leach: Somerset team-mates, England rivals•Getty Images

But the make-up of the West Indies batting line-up poses an interesting conundrum, given that there are 13 right-handers and only two left-handers in their 15-man squad. One of those lefties, Raymon Reifer, looks unlikely to play the first Test, while John Campbell is an opening batsman, whom England will hope to dismiss before the spinners come on.It may be a simplification to look at fingerspinners only through the lens of whether they turn the ball into or away from a batsman, but raw statistics help illustrate the point. Across the last five English Test summers, offspinners average significantly more bowling to right-handers (37.58) than left (28.38), while the disparity is only slightly smaller among slow left-armers (36.42 to left-handers, 30.87 to right-handers).What’s more, the players in West Indies’ middle order that a spinner may well be relied upon to dismiss have substantially better records against offspinners than slow left-armers, in particular the engine room of Jason Holder, Shai Hope and Shane Dowrich.