Lewis Aims to Prove Selectors Wrong (11 Sep 1996)

Lewis aims to prove selectors wrong

By Ian Whittell

WHILE Chris Lewis fumed over his omission from the England squad to tour Zimbabwe and New Zealand this winter, Chris Silverwood, 21, an uncapped Yorkshireman, could scarcely believe that he had been included.

Lewis admitted that he had expected to be left out after turning up late for the third Test with Pakistan at the Oval but said: "I would like to know the reason why they haven`t picked me. If it`s disciplinary then I would just say b******* to that."

"If it`s for form reasons, then that`s something I have to take. Many people have been left out of many sides before when they thought they should have been included."

Lewis was disciplined by captain Mike Atherton after he turned up more than an hour late for the fourth day of the third Test, claiming he had suffered a puncture on the way to the ground. He was dropped from the subsequent Texaco Trophy series.

In a clear reference to Atherton and chairman of selectors Ray Illingworth, Lewis added: "I`m looking forward to next season and proving many people - well two people in particular - wrong.

In contrast, fast bowler Silverwood, who had been planning to spend the winter working on the house near Leeds he is buying, said: "I felt numb at first."

He heard the news at a benefit pro-am golf tournament for team-mate Peter Hartley at Scarborough South Cliff.

He said: "This has been a big season for me. It`s my first full season in the side and it`s been hard work. But I`ve enjoyed it. It will be nice to have Darren Gough in the squad, though. He`s a good friend and he`s been through all this kind of thing himself."