by sussexpob » Fri Aug 11, 2017 3:02 pm
On the most general of levels, you get two types of players who generally make test candidates, and their routes are obviously different; the youth prodigy that scores runs instantly is fast tracked, or those that go under the radar as younger players who get to the mid 20s with standout performances and are picked then. For me you should only be picking 30 year olds if they are one of these types of players, maybe been ignored by a strong setup, or failed in a limited sample and have gone back and worked on their game and matured.
It gets more nuanced in terms of what the other categories of picks are. I dont personally agree with your assessment above, not because its inherently wrong, but because I feel that Fletcher created the a 4th type of selection criteria. Whether or not this has any use in the modern game is neither here nor there, as Fletcher was overseeing a period of English cricket that was radically different to all others; that being, a huge spell of decline in the game, where anyone who had played 4 matches well got a cap and was dropped for not instantly becoming Bradman. He had to come into a scene where all of his options were damaged goods and dig up some gold.
I think rather than looking for magic, Fletcher went back to players who had excelled at junior levels, and had gone towards the mid-20s without standing out. Its worth noting that, again, the culture of cricket in those days was much less professional, less centralised, much more detached. Players had other careers outside the game to earn money. I think Fletcher realised that, tried to create an environment where those players could flourish, gave relevance and the places for them to bring out their latent abilities. And that worked. I dont think he picked Trescothick and Vaughan out of desperation, I think he looked at them and thought he could properly make them play to international class given the right space and time. Someone like Vaughan got good backing for instance, apart from maybe his innings on his home ground vs Windies in 2000 (the Caddick test) where he played a gorgeous innings in tough conditions, he spent a lot of his early few series failing. But he kept getting innings.
Stoneman isnt this though. I think he is the last category. The pure magic pick.
The interesting thing is, without the consistent failure, the late 90s environment is starting to come back. The national team and ECB are pushing 4 day county cricket towards oblivion. The test scene has rendered the county scene as a graveyard of talent thats been chewed up and spat out. And the development teams have started to simply reward teenagers or barely experienced first class cricketers who came out of schoolboy representation, rather than looking to capture those doing well. For people who are 23-24, not in the Lions, and not currently smashing 60 runs per innings, there is little motivation to perform. The best example can be found in Stoneman's batting partner, who is 25 and not got a mention, despite averaging very similarly to him for the last 2 years. Whats the point of averaging 42 for a decent team if you cant even get your name mentioned in a hat filled with pure desperation?
Without any standout selections coming in, Id rather see England go back to another approach other than this "magic" nonsense. Sam Robson came into test cricket with a reputation and is averaging 50, why not give him another longer run? Why not start to check out a few of the younger guys?
If we are picking mid 30s averages, Id much rather see someone like Daniel Bell Drummond given a chance. He's done well at times, was ignored, so maybe thats the reason his career has lost focus? What about people like his team mate, Northeast, who was a kid prodigy who struggled under the radar as a younger guy looking to cut it, but has quitely now taking his career average a fraction below 40?
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