Peter Deeley: Smith poised for `home` debut (23 July 1997)

Wednesday 23 July 1997

Smith poised for `home` debut

By Peter Deeley

MIKE SMITH, Gloucestershire`s Yorkshire-born swing bowler, has been called into the England 12 and is likely to play against Australia in the fourth Test, which starts at Headingley tomorrow.

With Dean Headley feeling no reaction after a 50-minute bowling spell in practice yesterday, the likelihood is that Smith will replace Andrew Caddick, despite his having taken 11 wickets in the series to date.

Despite the change, David Graveney, the chairman of selectors, continued to defend the policy of having chosen the England side immediately after the third Test, which Australia won to square the six-Test series at 1-1.

"It was not folly," he said. "We left ourselves at the time with the option of altering the squad."

Graveney said of Smith, who left Yorkshire at the age of 19 because of a lack of opportunities: "This season he has come out of the shadow of Courtney Walsh at Bristol. There has been a massive step forward in his confidence."

David Lloyd, the England coach, added: "Smith`s special qualities are late swing and movement. And this is a `swing` ground."

Smith, who has taken 55 first-class wickets this season at an average of 14.14, learnt that he was in the party on Monday night. "I am obvously very happy at the news," he said. "The third Test at Old Trafford was a terrific experience for me even though I was eventually omitted.

"It was made clear to me then I could get into the side through the back door if I bowled well."

The selectors will not settle on their pace attack un- til Headley has had a further rigorous try-out today. The Kent bowler feels he has overcome his side strain and is confident of being fit.

One decision already taken is the release of Phil Tufnell, sent home early last night. It was the fourth time this sum- mer he had been dropped from Test duty after being named in the 13-man party.

As Andy Fogarty, the Yorkshire groundsman, prepared the new pitch, Graveney denied that the original one had been discarded because of fears of what Shane Warne would do on it.

"It was Harry Brind`s decision, having looked at the pitch, that there was not enough grass cover on the original one," said Graveney. "It was an uneven cover, looking rather bare at the ends. I was called in simply to support his case.

"It is common practice for two pitches to be prepared at every Test ground. There was nothing sinister or strange in the decision." Lloyd backed up Graveney`s comments and said there had been "no skulduggery on our part".

The original pitch was used for this summer`s one-day international here and the England view is that it has not yet properly recovered. But Fogarty defended his number one Test pitch. "It is still the best on the square. The problem has been that the rolling we have done has tended to squeeze out the moisture and kill the grass growth. But there is no long-term problem with the original pitch."

Mark Taylor, the Australia captain, clearly feels that there is some ulterior motive in the change. "I`m disappointed about what I hear," he said. "A Test is a showpiece and the groundsman should be left in sole charge to put out the best wicket he can.

"If England are doing this it shows we`ve got them wor- ried. England obviously believe it`s the best chance they have of beating us. It`s flattering that they are worried."

Taylor feels this flies in the face of the backing he got from Michael Atherton when the world`s Test captains met at Lord`s the weekend before last. "We discussed the standard of wickets and agreed we want groundsmen left to put out the best possible surface without interference."

The England 12, along with five other players, had their second get-together of the summer at Rudding Park, near Harrogate, on Monday night. Lloyd preferred not to call it a "motivational forum" and said: "It`s a chance for one player to get to know how the others tick."

They were addressed by Sebastian Coe, the former Olympic champion - and more recently defeated Tory MP - who talked to them on the art of winning.

Lloyd said the players had not got into any "over-physical activities". They had participated in archery and claypigeon shooting. Future gatherings might be more physically demanding, "even with an element of danger", Lloyd hinted.

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