Media hype on Ramprakash
The ayes and no's for Mark Ramprakash's selection to the squad for the final Test continue to increase
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
The ayes and no's for Mark Ramprakash's selection to the squad for the final Test continue to increase. The Times' John Woodcock hopes the Surrey batsman will be recalled for not only would it add a romantic element to an already tantalising prospect, but history also points to it being a gamble worth taking.
I do not believe that Ramprakash’s age should count against him, nor his reputation as a victim of Test-match vertigo. There has been much talk recently about aura, and Ramprakash has acquired one. He is 39, very fit and has a hundred for England against Australia at the Oval to his name. When Denis Compton was brought back for the last Test against Australia in 1956 he was still recovering from the removal of a kneecap (now preserved in the archive at Lord’s) and was no fitness fanatic or avowed teetotaller. England, it is true, had already retained the Ashes, but, even then, Compton confessed to being as nervous as at any time in his career.
In the Guardian Mike Selvey kills the romance by saying Ramprakash's comeback is media-driven and it won't happen.
Yesterday, even the Guardian leader page had a go. That is more than it would do for Ian Bell. Geoff Miller, the national selector, refused to rule out Ramprakash on the grounds that he has never retired from Test cricket. He probably did so to stop being pestered, but it was not an endorsement. Ramprakash's own PR machine has cranked into action – he would "cherish" the opportunity.
In the Wisden Cricketer Gideon Haigh, who supported Ramprakash's selection for the third Test at Edgbaston, is not so sure any more.
Nishi Narayanan is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo