England players and selection discussion thread

[Uppercut]

Burns had about five decent seasons on the bounce before he was picked. He probably still is the best option but runs are the only currency at Test level and he's only done marginally better than the other guys. Sibley deserved his selection and started superbly but really fell away when teams choked off his scoring options. But even then his legside game was worked out when teams played a short midwicket because he tended to chip the shot off his legs a little.

They've been the two best openers in the CC and have both fallen short.

Yeah I didn’t think either should have been dropped. Burns especially.

The thing about Compton averaging 87 over a half-season is that if he averaged 20 until the end of 2023, he’d still be averaging 40+ over the two years. Which would itself probably be enough to justify selection if there’s an opening at opener. So waiting for him to prove it doesn’t really make sense.

 

[BoyBrumby]

I guess the most obvious pro-Compton argument is that he's played on exactly the same decks as one of the incumbent England openers and is averaging nearly three times as much.

 

[grecian]

I guess the most obvious pro-Compton argument is that he's played on exactly the same decks as one of the incumbent England openers and is averaging nearly three times as much.

Surprised the Kent number 3 isn't mentioned more too, been outscoring crawley steadily too.

 

[Flem274*]

I fundimentally believe you need more than one good domestic season to deserve anything in terms of international recognition, even allowing for the mediocre at best nature of the current options you guys have

You remind me a lot of PEWS in the 00s - very structured selector around well defined and sensible criteria.

But IRL sometimes you need to make the best play possible in a messy situation. This is where selectors are actually meant to earn their pay tbh - making a decision with imperfect information and/or players and live with it.

 

[Tom Flint]

Interesting section in Vithushan Ehantharajah's Cricinfo piece

He attended a fee-paying school - Tonbridge School, in Kent - and his father, Terry, was at one point the fifth-richest Briton on the Sunday Times rich list after switching one floor for another when he became a city trader following years as a carpet fitter.

That level of affluence meant that he could invest more than time and effort into his son's cricket. Crawley was able to buy a flat on Kent's St Lawrence ground in Canterbury for regular access to their training facilities, and pay for trips to India and Perth to improve his game against spin and pace.

Sounds like his old man was a smart hard working bloke who made his own money. Good luck to him

 

[Chubb]

Sounds like his old man was a smart hard working bloke who made his own money. Good luck to him

maybe his father was, that doesn’t mean he himself should get better treatment than the son of a club cricket groundsman or an Indian immigrant driving instructor. And yet apparently it does.

 

[kevinw]

maybe his father was, that doesn’t mean he himself should get better treatment than the son of a club cricket groundsman or an Indian immigrant driving instructor. And yet apparently it does.

Basically he had all the privileges his dad could afford but that still didn't get him far.

 

[Chubb]

Basically he had all the privileges his dad could afford but that still didn't get him far.

The article rightly points out its not Crawley’s fault this perception has arisen, but equally rightly it makes clear the only answer is to score runs and earn his place in the team.

 

[the big bambino]

Basically he had all the privileges his dad could afford but that still didn't get him far.

He's playing test cricket ...

 

[kevinw]

He's playing test cricket ...

Well indeed but you'd have to wonder what his natural talent is if all the elite coaching imaginable for a young kid still only gets you a 30 FC average.

 

[Tom Flint]

maybe his father was, that doesn’t mean he himself should get better treatment than the son of a club cricket groundsman or an Indian immigrant driving instructor. And yet apparently it does.

That's complete rubbish. Do you know the family wealth of all the other openers that England have tried the last ten years? I'm sure there are a few upper class lads that were dropped like hameed was

 

[Tom Flint]

They are sticking with Crawley as they think he may come good. I don't think he will but they are the ones picking the team.
Trying to get my head around why anyone would think mccullum and stokes are sitting there and looking at which players in cc have the most money before picking them lol

 

[the big bambino]

Well indeed but you'd have to wonder what his natural talent is if all the elite coaching imaginable for a young kid still only gets you a 30 FC average.

Probably the same coaching as his current team mates.

 

[Starfighter]

They are sticking with Crawley as they think he may come good.

It's about the equivalent of picking a bowler with an average of 36 and hoping he might come good, rubbish even with one random spectacular performance. Sort of like picking Ravi Ratnayeke with his random test 8-for.

 

[kevinw]

It's about the equivalent of picking a bowler with an average of 36 and hoping he might come good, rubbish even with one random spectacular performance. Sort of like picking Ravi Ratnayeke with his random test 8-for.

How many other pace bowlers did SL have back then? How many regular county openers have an average lower than ZC?

 

[honestbharani]

It's about the equivalent of picking a bowler with an average of 36 and hoping he might come good

 

[ma1978]

FFS - they’re sticking with Crawley because of the 267. This is a high upside seeking management team and they want the high upside guy. He does look terrible though.

 

[Flem274*]

Well indeed but you'd have to wonder what his natural talent is if all the elite coaching imaginable for a young kid still only gets you a 30 FC average.

averaging 30 in county cricket still puts you comfortably in the top 1 percent of cricketers in the world. you could give the vast majority of this forum the same opportunities and coaching as crawley and we wouldn't get anywhere near county level.

 

[Pothas]

FFS - they’re sticking with Crawley because of the 267. This is a high upside seeking management team and they want the high upside guy. He does look terrible though.

They are not going to stick with him though. It really does not matter what is said in public. If he does not make runs in the second innings he will be gone.

 

[Starfighter]

How many other pace bowlers did SL have back then? How many regular county openers have an average lower than ZC?

Not many SL bowlers probably (you asked, you can dig through their domestic records), whereas there are other batsmen in CC who average more, the fact there's some who average less is irrelevant.

.

Had a better FC record than that.