Contrasting captains

 

 

Ashes 2013

 

A Tale of Two Captains

 

July 16^th

 

In all the post-mortems about the 1^st Test, there were a couple of details that did not get much mention. All through the winter Australian fans were saying that Alistair Cook was doing fine as captain, but how would he react when put under real pressure? The suggestion was that Australia would have a big advantage having the experienced Clarke against the untried Cook. Well, now we know. In the critical moments Cook kept a cool head. Whereas Clarke used his DRS reviews poorly and has admitted that he was outmanoeuvred, Cook’s reviews were spot on. Cook made just 4 reviews in the Test, 3 of which were successful. In contrast, Clarke made 9 reviews, just 2 of which were successful and, the ICC assessment was that one of those two successful reviews – the Trott lbw – should have been rejected too, giving Clarke just 1 out of 9.

Alistair Cook also took a couple of excellent catches when the pressure was on that final morning. He was calmness personified in the field as Australia threatened to reach their target and showed a ruthless streak by refusing to use Steve Finn because he did not feel confident in his bowling.

Another small detail that was easy to overlook was the pressure that Cook exerted in the field after lunch, as Australia tried to get over the line. Graeme Swann did not have a vintage Test – the wicket did not really suit him and Australia decided back in the last Ashes series not to let him settle and to attack him – but his final over was a good one, including one inside edge that almost got through and another false shot, not giving the batsmen anything to get the scoreboard ticking over again. Similarly, in Jimmy Anderson’s over when the final wicket fell there was two great stops, one by Ian Bell from a shot that looked to be four off the bat and another from Jonny Bairstow where the batsmen thought that they had a comfortable single available and suddenly Haddin found himself scrambling back to avoid a potential runout. The next ball was a dot ball with Haddin defending a little awkwardly. Those balls ratcheted up the pressure on Haddin, who was set up to flash at the next ball to try to relieve the pressure a little. Haddin watches carefully the flight of the ball through to Matt Prior, his neck twisting fast as he feels the nick. Prior reacts quickly and his look of elation as he raises the ball is obvious, with Haddin still watching Prior intently as he rises.

Watching the images again, the change in position of the HotSpot mark on the ball as Haddin plays is quite obvious on the replay – the initial mark, presumably from a slight contact with the pad flap as the bat appears on the HotSpot image, threw the commentators badly; it is the second mark that was caused by the edge. Snicko then shows a classic signal just as the ball passes the edge, with the bat well off the ground and away from the body, to ensure that there was no possible doubt where the sound came from.

As players and fans digest the lessons of the first Test, there are further shock waves from previous events. Mickey Arthur has decided to sue the Australian Cricket Board for $AU 4 million compensation over his sacking and has made a series of revelations and accusations. Apart from pointing out that the David Warner incident might not have come to light without a tip-off from Shane Watson, he revealed that the relationship between Watson and Clarke is very poor. It is hardly the sort of news that Michael Clarke would have asked for between back-to-back Tests. However, 12000 miles and a 10 hour time difference do help insulate the side from new ructions, even if this is yet another unwanted distraction for the players.

One of the more interesting and potentially alarming complaints though, made by Mickey Arthur, is the one that he felt discriminated against for not being Australian; some Australian fans had already remarked on his sacking that he could never be a good coach for Australia because he is not Australian. When there is institutional insularity – no one can teach us anything – it tends to lead to mediocrity. England’s rise from that mediocrity started when Duncan Fletcher was brought in as coach and, after an unsuccessful English interlude under Peter Moores, has continued under another foreign coach in Andy Flower. Similarly, India, although initially struggling with results under Duncan Fletcher are, now, very much on the rise again.

One person who may no longer be on the rise, is David Warner. Sent to South Africa with the “A” squad, he will miss the 2^nd Test and the match v Sussex between the 2^nd and the 3^rd Test. The implication is that unless he makes big runs in South Africa, his chances of a return, which cannot now be before the 4^th Test, are very slim indeed. Warner, his place as an opener gone, will bat at #4 in South Africa, with a view to batting at #6 if he returns to the Test side at some point in the future.