Making The Same Mistakes

England has made great strides in selecting squads for the one day and twenty20 formats. However, where test cricket is concerned the same mistakes are being made. If five bowlers were selected instead of four against the South Africans during the winter, they would have probably won that series instead of narrowly scraping a draw.

The worrying thing is, England has gone into a test match against Bangladesh with the same set-up. If we have not got the courage to use five bowlers against Bangladesh, then it is unlikely that will change for the Ashes series later this year. It is doubtful that England could win a series in Australia playing four bowlers.

It is a defensive selection policy and sends all the wrong messages to the opposition. A four pronged attack, suggests the objective is to merely avoid defeat rather than to aggressively pursue victory. England should not be short of runs and there should be no need for an extra batsman. After all, bowlers like Swann and Broad can both score runs down the order.

It is time the emphasis was once again placed on bowling sides out. That means taking 20 wickets to win a test match. You are not going to achieve that by constantly playing four bowlers.

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