Malan eases his nerves but lets golden chance slip

Dawid Malan admitted he "needed" his half-century against West Indies after a tough start to his Test career.

Malan made just 35 runs in four innings against South Africa and accepted he "didn't look like scoring a run."

In easier conditions at Edgbaston, however, he contributed 65 to help England to an imposing 514 for 8 before the declaration came. While it might be stretching a point to conclude he has booked his place on the plane to Australia, it is probably fair to suggest he has considerably improved his chances. It is not as if a host of other batsmen have made unassailable cases, after all.

There were noticeable improvements in Malan's performance here compared to his previous two Tests. Whereas at Old Trafford he was lured into a flashing drive outside off stump which sent an edge to the slip cordon, here he left with much improved judgement outside off stump. It was, as he put it, a far more "composed" performance.

But why wouldn't it be? Without Morne Morkel et al. steaming in on seaming surfaces, neither his composure or his technique were tested in anything like the same depth. Judging a player's suitability for the Ashes on such evidence would be like judging a boxer's readiness to fight Vladimir Klitschko by how they took tea with Ronnie Corbett.

For that reason, Malan may, in time, reflect that this was an opportunity only partially taken. Against a modest attack and on a sedate pitch offering little assistance to bowlers, he was unable to record the commanding total that would have cemented his place in the side for the foreseeable future. He survived a dropped chance on 2 and Jason Holder's bewildering decision to delay taking the second new ball as soon as it became available.

The manner of his dismissal - prodding half-forward to one that left him a few deliveries before the scheduled lunch break - was also disappointing. He may never have a better opportunity to score a Test century.

His frustration will have been shared by the England management. While they will have been delighted to see Alastair Cook and Joe Root score heavily, they already knew those two were fine players. What the management really needed to see was one of the three unsettled men in the top five take a really significant stride forward. Malan had the chance here.

The England selectors have come in for increasing criticism in recent weeks, but they are, at times, powerless to help. Certainly their batting selections this summer - the likes of Gary Ballance and Mark Stoneman, who have both scored heavily at county level - have been reasonable. Even the decision to stick with Keaton Jennings was understandable on the basis that he had started his Test career with a century and earned a prolonged opportunity.

But, as Malan reflected on his first few weeks in Test cricket, it was apparent how large the step between county and international cricket has become.

"In county cricket there's usually one bowler you can target," Malan said. "But in Test cricket, the pace of all the seamers is quicker and you receive fewer bad balls. You have to work much harder for your runs and, if you make one mistake, you're back in the pavilion."

And it's not just the standard of cricket, either. Perhaps the most shocking aspect of international cricket for new players is the level of media scrutiny to which they must become accustomed. While that may not sound a huge problem, the inability to relax or shut out cricket in moments away from the game can cloud the mind of a player and leave them feeling the pressure upon them is intolerable.

This has always been an issue and there are stories of captains and coaches banishing newspapers from hotels and dressing rooms. But in the days of wall-to-wall coverage on TV, in the days of Twitter and targeted news, it can be almost impossible to stop the outside world permeating. Jonathan Trott used to tell a story about turning on his phone to make a change to his fantasy football team and being sent the headline 'Botham says Trott must go.' These things can be tough to deal with.

"There is a lot of media scrutiny," Malan agreed. "There's a lot of hype and a lot of eyes upon you."

For these reasons, the selectors are surely right to give each player a prolonged opportunity in the side. But they must be wondering when any of their investments are going to pay them a dividend.

This was a step forward from Malan and it may be the confidence he takes from the performance allows him to relax and bat with the class he demonstrated on his debut in international cricket; the T20 match against South Africa in Cardiff.

The fear remains, however, that he may have allowed a golden opportunity slip through his fingers.