CMJ: Headley could be missing piece in England`s jigsaw (3 July 1997)

Thursday 3 July 1997

Headley could be missing piece in England`s jigsaw

Christopher Martin-Jenkins.

IF certainty of team selection is any guide to confidence, Australia will enter the third Test match at Old Trafford this morning in an even more sanguine frame of mind than England.

They made their tough decision yesterday, telling the likeable Queenslander Michael Kasprowicz that, despite honest performances in the first two Tests and a good one in the only match since Lord`s, he must make way for the faster bowler, Jason Gillespie.

It was selection from a position of strength. Gillespie bowled formidably well at Southampton to prove his fitness and with Glenn McGrath, Paul Reiffel and Shane Warne, Australia have four bowlers of quality who will test the mettle of England`s top six to the full for the rest of the series. Nor is there any doubt that, as expected, England are facing a much better prepared team than the one they beat at Edgbaston to go one up.

This makes the choice of England`s last bowler for this game potentially crucial. Darren Gough and Robert Croft can now be relied upon to produce bowling of true Test standard in all conditions but a question mark remains against Andrew Caddick both in the consistency of his line and his tendency - admirably overcome in the first innings at Birmingham - to bowl a fraction too short. He may be a little flattered by his nine wickets at 23 from the first two Tests but when he gets a rhythm he can be every bit as awkward to play as Gillespie, and he is more experienced.

Until Mike Atherton, David Lloyd and David Graveney are able to make a final assessment of the pitch and the weather this morning, they are postponing the choice between Dean Headley, Mike Smith and Devon Malcolm. Of the three, Headley is the best fielder and has the greatest potential for the future, but for the simple reason that he looks the best bet in condi- tions here, he should be chosen. Provided he suffers no reaction from the hard work he has been made to do these last two days to establish that he has fully recovered from a soft tissue injury in the lower back, he is likely to be selected to become the third generation of his family to play Test cricket.

The link between Jamaica and England since the war has been a close and generally happy one and there should be noth- ing but pleasure that the grandson of one of the greatest of all West Indian batsmen, George Headley - Dean was born and educated in Worcestershire - may be about to give England the last piece in their jigsaw as they seek to regain the Ashes.

Malcolm, of course, has already strengthened the crick- eting connections between Jamaica and the United Kingdom but the reluctance of his captain to give him more than seven overs at Lord`s and the expectation that the pitch will be slowish - it is still green and was covered all day despite a strong, drying breeze yesterday - suggests he will be omitted.

A better forecast for tomorrow and the weekend suggests that the odds on a draw may be misplaced. Australia are more fancied than England to win, which re flects the fact that England were saved by a mixture of fair means and foul weather. The hope for England now is that this was one bad match rather than a return to normal. Provided they hold their slip catches, there is no reason why that should not prove to be the case.

Four years ago, when Old Trafford staged the first match of the series, it was Peter Such`s off-spin which exploited a soft pitch and Shane Warne`s leg-breaks which won the match for Australia. Graham Gooch put Australia in, which seemed logical at the time but it remains a strange fact that no captain putting the other side in at Old Trafford has finished on the winning side. Atherton would have batted first in the first two Tests had he won the toss and been wrong both times. This time he would be right, even with showers expected.

Australia`s only remaining problem seems to be Michael Bevan`s unconvincing performances against quick bowling at No 6. Ian Healy has played many a fine innings for Australia at seven - none better than his maiden hundred against England at Old Trafford four years ago - but if they do not manage to level the series here the solution might be to follow the same course that England have taken with Alec Stewart.

It was very evident from the way he played in the oneday internationals that Adam Gilchrist`s reputation as a batsman of high class was in no way exaggerated. He is an inferior wicketkeeper to Healy, as yet at least, but a specialist wicketkeeper nonetheless, and by putting him in at six and omitting Bevan and Healy, Australia could play five specialist bowlers later in the series if they felt that was the best way to win matches. Their hope, naturally, is that events over the next five days will make that unnecessary.

The Teams

England (from): *M A Atherton, M A Butcher, -A J Stewart, N Hussain, G P Thorpe, J P Crawley, M A Ealham, R D B Croft, D Gough, A R Caddick, D W Headley, A M Smith, D E Malcolm.

Australia: *M A Taylor, M T G Elliott, G S Blewett, M E Waugh, S R Waugh, M G Bevan, -I A Healy, S K Warne, J N Gillespie, P R Reiffel, G D McGrath.

Umpires: G Sharp & S Venkataraghavan (India). Third umpire: J H Hampshire. Match referee: R S Madugalle (Sri Lanka).

Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/)