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Krejza puts a new spin on his career

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Jason Krejza knows better than most that bowling spin for Australia can be a short-term vocation, so he’s determined to make the best of his unexpected second calling

Brydon Coverdale03-Feb-2011Jason Krejza knows better than most that bowling spin for Australia can be a short-term vocation, so he’s determined to make the best of his unexpected second calling. Two years after he took 12 wickets on his Test debut only to be dropped one match later, Krejza has the chance to show off his one-day skills, after being named in the squad for the final ODI against England.His opportunity has only arrived because Nathan Hauritz dislocated his shoulder and is in doubt for the World Cup, Xavier Doherty is suffering from back pain and Steven Smith has a hip injury. But however it has come, Krejza is thrilled at the chance to once again represent his country, which could yet turn into a World Cup dream if the injuries to the others persist.”It’s a complete surprise, full-stop,” Krejza told ESPNcricinfo of his call-up. “Hopefully I get the opportunity. Playing one-day cricket has been at the top of my list as the next thing to do, and it’s finally come around. I’m trying not to think about [the World Cup]. It might only come through injuries to other people, which is never good. There’s a slim chance but I’m not holding my breath.”For the time being, Krejza is focused solely on Sunday’s series finale at the WACA, where he last played for Australia in late 2008, taking match figures of 1 for 204 in a record defeat at the hands of South Africa. After that, the selectors preferred spinners who could tie up an end rather than overly attacking options, which meant Krejza had to go back to Tasmania and adjust his game to have any hope of an international return.”Waiting for the right moments to attack, that’s the thing that I’ve worked out,” Krejza said. “I was always attack, attack, attack, but now I’ve been bringing it back a notch and having a defensive mindset and being patient and being happy doing that for a while and waiting for that opportunity to attack again.”[The WACA] has become pretty good for spinners, although of course it could be a complete road again and not spin at all. But you’ve got the breeze there and it’s a big ground sideways. It’s a tough ground to bowl at but if you bowl well, you’ve got the bounce and you can pick up wickets.”Whatever happens in Perth, at least Krejza knows that the selectors hadn’t drawn a line through his name, as seems to be the case with some other players. And at 28, he still has plenty of years left to push for further chances in Australian colours, or whites.”If you play really good cricket, things can happen in quite a rush,” he said. “That’s happened for a few players, Doherty did the same thing, got a few wickets and it all came in a rush. It’s still my dream to put that baggy green back on but I just have to concentrate on this game and play each game as if it could be my last.”

Taylor calls time on first-class career

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Chris Taylor has parted ways with Yorkshire a year before his contract with the county was due to expire in order to focus on his business interests.

Cricinfo staff08-Jan-2010Chris Taylor has parted ways with Yorkshire a year before his contract with the county was due to expire in order to focus on his business interests. Taylor, 28, founded the Pro Cricket Coaching Academy in 2006 with Andrew Gale, his Yorkshire team-mate, to provide coaching across the Midlands and northern England. He came to the decision by mutual consent with the county after becoming frustrated by his lack of opportunities since rejoining the club after a two-year spell with Derbyshire.”Following my successful stint with Derbyshire I genuinely thought I could make a real impact back at Yorkshire,” said Taylor, who made his first-class debut for Yorkshire in 2001. “However, I have been somewhat disappointed not to have played more first-team cricket. That said, I do realise there are some very exciting young cricketers emerging at the club and, as such, it is unlikely I will get any first XI opportunities in 2010. The last thing I want is to block the development of talented young cricketers making their way in the game.”Stewart Regan, the Yorkshire chief executive, added: “Chris is a great guy and I am sorry that he has not had the breaks he needed to establish himself in our first team. I would like to thank him for his contribution over the last two years and wish him well in his new venture.”

Dickie Bird criticises review system

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Former umpire says the UDRS undermines the authority of on-field umpires

Cricinfo staff07-Dec-2009Former umpire Dickie Bird has criticised the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS), saying it undermines the authority of on-field umpires. The system is currently being used in the Test series between Australia and West Indies, and New Zealand and Pakistan.”I would never have brought them in,” Bird told the . “They are taking the authority away from the on-field umpires, and the whole thing is causing more problems than it’s worth.”Bird’s comments come in the aftermath of umpire Mark Benson’s sudden withdrawal from the Adelaide Test between Australia and West Indies, and reports stating he was heading towards retirement out of frustration with the UDRS. The reported yesterday that Benson was upset over several incidents involving the UDRS on day one of the Test, one of which led to his original decision being overturned.”In the old days, controversial decisions became talking points in the bars and clubs but everybody respected the umpire’s authority,” Bird said. “I am in agreement with Roger Federer, who wanted Hawk-Eye thrown out of Wimbledon, and [FIFA president] Sepp Blatter, who says that refereeing decisions are part of football.”Players should accept these things and move on, but all the money that has come into sport has turned their heads.”Jeremy Lloyds, the English umpire, who stepped down from umpiring at the highest level in 2006, spoke of the strains involved, given the nature of the job, and the effects of decisions coming under scrutiny on television. “I was working 230 days a year, of which 150 were spent in airports or hotels,” he said. “The time you actually spend on the field, you feel that you’re in a goldfish bowl, and you can’t be yourself with the players in case it doesn’t look right on TV.”

Capsey feeling 'in control' of her game after taking a step back

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England’s No. 3 is still a teenager and has benefited from managing her schedule better

Valkerie Baynes12-Jul-2024The day Alice Capsey turned 18, she walked towards a pod of journalists, delighted that she no longer needed a chaperone during interviews.She’d been doing these – accompanied – for a while and her team, Oval Invincibles, had just pulled off the highest successful run chase in the Women’s Hundred to defeat Northern Superchargers at The Oval after the men’s teams had played the curtain raiser.As eager and comfortable as she was on that night almost two years ago, it’s easy to forget she is still a teenager now and to overlook how the sheer volume of cricket she has played since took a “toll” on her. Since July 2022, Capsey has played a staggering 93 top-level T20 matches. As a result, she hasn’t played regional cricket this season, opting to focus on playing for England and, when she’s not, taking a break from cricket.Related

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Speaking in Canterbury after her career-best 67 not out off 60 balls secured victory for England in a nervy third T20I against New Zealand, Capsey revealed that she felt in a much better place than she had over the past year and just how hard it had been to reach that point.”I’ve been kind of under the spotlight for the last three years and it’s taken its toll a little bit, especially over the last year,” Capsey said. “So I really have taken a step back this year and gone, ‘What’s going to be the best option for me to go onto the pitch and perform?’ Prioritising myself a little bit more… not listening to the outside noise as much and really focusing on what matters to me as a person and as a cricketer and what’s going to make me the best cricketer for this team.”Capsey enjoyed a breakout season during the inaugural Women’s Hundred and was part of the first England A squad to tour Australia during the Women’s Ashes at the start of 2022, earning her senior call-up for the Commonwealth Games later that year. Since then, she has become a fixture at No. 3 in T20Is and played in franchise tournaments around the world while floating round the middle order in 17 ODIs.But her half-century against the White Ferns to help England to a 3-0 lead in their five match T20 series on Thursday was her first fifty in the format since last August. Her highest score in the 11 innings she played in between was 31 – made against Pakistan in May – and sat alongside a string of scores either in the 20s, or in single figures. Her highest score in ODIs is 44, also reached during Pakistan’s recent visit. In her two other ODI innings this English summer, she was unbeaten on 39 and 35 against Pakistan and New Zealand respectively.All of these numbers serve as a reminder that Capsey is still a young player learning her craft, and suggest she is figuring out what works for her at the right time.”For someone of my age, I feel really experienced within T20 cricket and I feel really comfortable with my role at No. 3,” she said. “I know that it’s not going to come off every time and I know that there’s going to be critics about how I go about the game. But on nights like these, it is just about going big and really securing the win.Capsey has played a high volume of T20, including at the WPL•BCCI

“I missed the regional cricket this year. I have played so much cricket and I thought the best way to actually perform for England and get myself in the best positive space to be able to perform was to have a little break. We’ve obviously got huge winter and playing for England and performing for England is my main priority. Playing the amount of games I have, I’ve been exposed to a lot of different situations, which is just going to help me as a batter but as an allrounder. Then, obviously on the flip side, it’s a hell of a lot of cricket.”Taking time off between international series appears to be paying dividends, with a T20 World Cup in October, followed by an away Ashes series, then a 50-over World Cup in India in 2025.”As much as I probably haven’t played the amount of cricket that I have in the past couple of years, I feel the most calm and controlled I’ve felt in a very long time,” Capsey said. “I feel really calm, I know what my options are and yeah, I just feel really confident and it’s amazing that if you’re in a good head space that you then take it onto the pitch and feel a lot better about yourself.”Jon Lewis, England’s head coach, said recently that he’d like Capsey “to be one of our best top-five batters” in ODIs, while recognising that her schedule is currently focused on the shorter format. He has also been keen to deploy her part-time offspin, albeit in a side spoilt with spin-bowling riches in the form of left-armer and world No.1 Sophie Ecclestone, legspinner Sarah Glenn and offspinner Charlie Dean.But, as shown in fielding an experimental line-up missing captain Heather Knight, opening batter Danni Wyatt and seamer Lauren Bell, England are all about exploring their options ahead of the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh.”We’ve been spoken to by the coaching staff before the series, saying that there will be a bit of chaos thrown in front of us, a few different situations about how we adapt to it,” Capsey said. “The performances are showing we are getting the results, but I think as a group we’re really calm with the different changes and we all feel like, especially from my point of view, I feel like it doesn’t matter who’s in the team, we can all just go out in there and play with freedom and play to our strengths.”I’d love to bowl, but I stand no chance with those three,” Capsey added. “They perform day in, day out and when I do get the opportunity, don’t get me wrong, I’m going to make the most of it, but if I’m not having to bowl, then they’re doing their job and we’re probably winning more games than we’re not.”

Labuschagne, Clayton, McDermott guide Queensland home

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Labuschagne overcame back soreness to make patient 45 before Clayton’s unbeaten half-century and McDermott’s unbeaten 46 saw Queensland home against South Australia

AAP and ESPNCricinfo staff18-Feb-2024Assured innings from Marnus Labuschagne, Jack Clayton and Ben McDermott helped guide Queensland to a seven-wicket win over South Australia that keeps alive faint hopes of a berth in the Sheffield Shield final.The Bulls defied two days of play dominated by the ball – and some batting struggles of their own in recent matches – to ease to South Australia’s target of 206 with seven wickets to spare at the Adelaide Oval.Labuschagne (45), Jack Clayton (54 not out) and Ben McDermott (46 not out) played contrasting innings, McDermott’s a breezy cameo to see the visitors home after Labuschagne batted with supreme patience earlier in the day.It was only the second win from eight Shield matches for Queensland this season, but it was enough to mathematically keep them in the hunt for a top-two finish with two games still to play.The Redbacks had lost 5 for 18 on Saturday after putting themselves in a dominant position following paltry first-innings totals from both teams.Alex Carey’s 90 at least gave them 205 to defend, and when Matthew Renshaw popped his pull shot straight into the air early on day three the hosts were right in the mix.But second-gamer Angus Lovell (35) and Labuschagne steadied before the Test No.3 broke the shackles with three boundaries and a six over mid-off inside two overs. He did battle some back tightness, receiving treatment from Bulls physio Martin LoveHe, like Lovell, fell attempting a pull shot, but the Bulls still cruised to victory a dozen overs after the tea break.

Kohli on 49th ODI hundred: I had this sense of 'it's going to be something more today'

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India batter says Sachin Tendulkar’s message is ‘special’ after equalling his world record

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Nov-20231:29

‘Ridiculous!’ – Anil Kumble marvels at Virat Kohli’s ODI numbers

“I had this sense of ‘it’s going to be something more,’ today rather than ‘it’s just one more game in the World Cup.’ I did wake up with that excitement, yes,” Virat Kohli said after his match-winning 101 not out off 121 balls against South Africa in Kolkata, on his 35th birthday, an innings that brought him level with Sachin Tendulkar’s world record of 49 ODI hundreds.”It was a big game,” Kohli said after winning the Player of the Match award. “We were probably playing the toughest team in the tournament that we had played so far, to be honest. They played some amazing cricket. There was this motivation of wanting to do well for the team. Because it happened on my birthday, people made it a bit more special for me. I had this sense of ‘it’s going to be something more today’ rather than ‘it’s just one more game in the World Cup’. I did wake up with that excitement, yes.”Related

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After Kohli completed his 49th hundred, Tendulkar posted a congratulatory message on the social media platform X, saying: “Well played Virat. It took me 365 days to go from 49 to 50 earlier this year. I hope you go from 49 to 50 and break my record in the next few days. Congratulations!!”When asked about Tendulkar’s message and his achievement, an emotional Kohli said, “it’s all too much to take in right now.””Tendulkar’s message is quite special. For me, it’s all too much to take in right now, to be honest, to equal my hero’s record in one-day internationals is something that’s a huge honour for me. I know that people like comparisons, I am never going to be as good as him. There’s a reason why we all looked up to him. He’s perfection when it comes to batting. I am trying to do my best, trying to win games for my country. He’s always going to be my hero regardless of what happens. It’s a very emotional moment for me. I know where I come from, the days that I watched him play on TV. So to stand here and get this appreciation from someone like him means a lot to me.”

After Rohit Sharma gave India a flying start against South Africa, Kohli began his innings in the sixth over and then lost Shubman Gill in the 11th, with the score 93 for 2. He reached the record-equalling hundred off 119 balls, getting to the milestone in the 49th over by punching Kagiso Rabada to cover for a single in front of a near-capacity crowd at Eden Gardens. While Tendulkar scored his 49th century in his 451st ODI innings, Kohli got there in just his 277th innings in his 289th match. His innings – and partnership of 134 off 158 balls with Shreyas Iyer – helped India score 326 for 5 in a game they eventually won by 243 runs.”People from the outside probably look at the game in a different way,” he said. “When the openers start in that fashion when the ball is new, you feel like wow, this is a belter and everyone has to keep going that way. But the conditions changed with the old ball, the pitch slows down. Message from the management was simple: I bat deep, the guys around me they bat with me, string in partnerships, express themselves and keep doing the job that the team wants me to do. That’s my role, has always been my role. I was just happy from that perspective because on pitches like these, if you get out, you can always look back and say 295, maybe we could have got 320-325. Once you are above 315, we knew it’s above par and we are in a comfortable situation.”Getty Images

Kohli now has two hundreds in the 2023 World Cup to go with four half-centuries in eight league games so far. He is the second highest run-scorer in the tournament behind South Africa’s Quinton de Kock, his 543 runs coming at an average of 108.60 and strike rate of 88.29. It is the first time he has scored more than 500 runs in an ODI World Cup.After a couple of low-key years, Kohli’s hundred continues a prolific 2023 for him in the ODI format. He has more than 1000 runs with five centuries in 2023, at an average of 72.18 and strike rate of 99.82. It is the eighth time he has scored more than 1000 ODI runs in a year, surpassing Tendulkar’s record of seven.”I would say I am enjoying myself, playing cricket all over again which is more important now than thinking about phases and such,” he said. I think in a phase where things were not working, you are not enjoying yourself. That’s what I take out of it. You are still able to score runs because of your experience. But being out there, even for those 50-60 runs is not as enjoyable as it is right now. I am just happy with God’s blessed me with that enjoyment again and I can do the things that I have done for so many years all over again.”

Joe Leach makes the early inroads as Worcestershire dominate Sussex

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Promotion prospects still alive after openers back up strong bowling display

ECB Reporters Network12-Sep-2022Worcestershire 87 for 0 (Libby 42*, Pollock 36*) trail Sussex 220 (Carson 58, Coles 54, Hudson-Prentice 51, Leach 4-37) by 133 runsJoe Leach took his 400th first-class wicket as Worcestershire dominated Sussex on day one at Hove to keep their slim promotion hopes alive in the LV= Insurance County Championship.The Pears realistically need to win all three remaining Division Two games and put themselves in a strong position after dismissing Sussex for 220, with Leach claiming four for 37.That modest total represented a recovery by Sussex who had been 23 for five before half-centuries by Fynn Hudson-Prentice, James Coles and Jack Carson revived them.But the pitch held few terrors for Worcestershire’s openers Ed Pollock and Jake Libby who posted 87 without loss before bad light ended play six overs early.After the teams observed a minute’s silence in memory of Queen Elizabeth II, Leach settled into a probing line to the four left-handers at the top of the Sussex innings, taking three for 16 in his seven-over new-ball spell to leave Sussex in tatters after they had won the toss.Ali Orr played on to his Leach’s fifth ball and he pinned Tom Alsop lbw with the second delivery of his second over, a fullish delivery that swung back just enough. A similar length accounted for Tom Clark in Leach’s fourth over as the batsman played across the line.Dillon Pennington struck with his first ball when he extracted some extra bounce and Oli Carter touched it tamely to the wicketkeeper. Tom Haines, returning from a broken hand, faced 36 balls and batted for 63 minutes for his two runs but the Sussex captain played on to Ben Gibbon’s second ball.But as is so often the case at Hove, batting gets easier once the new ball loses its hardness and Hudson-Prentice, Coles and Carson led the recovery.Hudson-Prentice was dropped at second slip by Jack Haynes on 36 but added 76 with Coles, counterattacking effectively until Pennington found just enough seam movement to have him caught behind for 51 (64 balls, 7 fours) just after lunch.Leach returned and reached his milestone courtesy of a smart low catch by Hayes off Pakistan all-rounder Faheem Ashraf, who has joined Sussex for their last three Championship matches of the season. His side were back in trouble at 106 for seven.But Sussex’s last three wickets more than doubled the score, the fightback led by Coles and Carson, who was playing his first match of the season after recovering from knee surgery.Coles progressed to his second half-century of the season, made in a shade under three hours. At the other end Carson was more aggressive as they added 87 in 18 overs. Coles had just reached his second half-century of the season when Pennington dropped short, and he picked out Azhar Ali on the deep backward square boundary for 54 (132 balls, 9 fours).After Henry Crocombe holed out to mid-off, Carson was last out for 58 (74 balls, 9 fours) when he was run out by Libby’s direct hit coming back for a second run.Ashraf has been brought in to bolster a seam attack without Ari Karvelas and Steve Finn, who are out for the rest of the season but both he and the rest of the Sussex seamers struggled to break through.Pollock gave one chance on 34 but was dropped at slip by Tom Alsop off Haines to confirm it was Worcestershire’s day.

Alex Hales, Ben Duckett pull out of PSL

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It is learnt that both players left because of the toll bubble life was taking on them

Umar Farooq15-Feb-2022Islamabad United batter Alex Hales has pulled out of the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) because of personal reasons. ESPNcricinfo has learnt it is because of Hales experiencing tiredness in the bubble life. England and Quetta Gladiators batter Ben Duckett has also withdrawn from the league, aiming to spend time with his family ahead of the English season in the summer, while also mentioning bubble life in his tweet to announce his departure.”To all the Islamabad and PSL fans, I am extremely sorry to have to leave the tournament early,” Hales wrote on Instagram. “Unfortunately, the last four months away from home in Covid bubbles has taken a considerable toll on me. The BBL bubble being enforced midway through the tournament was unexpected and the PSL bubble has been understandably very strict and unfortunately it has just all caught up with me.”I would like to thank everyone at Islamabad for understanding and respecting my position. Coach Azhar [Mahmood] and Shadab [Khan] are exceptional leaders, who are supported off the field so well by Rehan [Ulhaq] and the guys, and I’ve no doubt they can win the tournament from here. I will be following it all very closely from home and look forward to coming back next year all being well.”With Rahmanullah Gurbaz also departing for international duty, United have signed another English batter, the uncapped Will Jacks – who has enjoyed a productive spell with Chattogram Challengers in the BPL – while Gladiators have opted to bring back Will Smeed, who played three games earlier in the competition, which included scoring 97 off 62 balls against Peshawar Zalmi.Hales was among the 20-plus contingent of English players across the six PSL franchises in his fifth PSL season. Hales’ England career was put on hold in 2019 because of what Eoin Morgan called “trust” issues, after Hales put their 2019 World Cup campaign at risk with the timing of his drugs ban.However, Hales has been playing T20 leagues around the world, having also featured in the BBL earlier this year. Over the weekend, he was picked up by Kolkata Knight Riders at the IPL auction for INR 1.5 crore (USD 200,000 approx.).Hales had been part of last five PSL seasons and part of all the editions played in Pakistan. He was in his second stint with United, having won the league once with Karachi Kings in the past, and he has been one of the league’s standout openers, averaging over 42.50 for his 255 runs at a strike rate 156.44. This season, he was retained by United in the Gold category with a mentor’s role as well, and started out with a 54-ball unbeaten 82 in their first match.Duckett, on other hand, came to Pakistan from the BBL after finishing as Brisbane Heat’s leading scorer but couldn’t continue the same kind of form for Gladiators in the PSL. He played four games for them with little success. He also found it tough to get into the top three because of the presence of Jason Roy and James Vince. He scored 11, 47, 2 and 0 during the Karachi leg and was benched for the Lahore leg.

He tweeted on Monday announcing he would leave for England to spend time at home and prepare for the summer ahead, while also mentioning it was his “first proper experience of hotel bubbles”.Another English import, left-arm seamer Luke Wood, is out of the competition through injury and will return to the UK soon. Gladiators have also brought in Mohammad Irfan, as a replacement for Mohammad Hasnain, whose bowling action was recently found to be illegal.

Remainder of PSL 2021 could be postponed further, says PCB

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“Some clarifications on certain exemption requests are still awaited,” says PCB CEO Wasim Khan

Umar Farooq19-May-2021The remaining 20 matches of the sixth edition of the PSL could face postponements if the PCB doesn’t get “clarifications” from the Abu Dhabi government by Thursday, casting doubts on when – if at all – the disrupted season can be completed. After a meeting on Wednesday, the board and franchises agreed to defer a decision on the fate of the season by 24 hours.”In today’s online discussion, we updated the team owners that the PCB had been advised that the PSL had received approvals from the relevant authorities in the UAE,” Wasim Khan, the PCB chief executive, said after the meeting. “However, some clarifications on certain exemption requests are still awaited, which are expected at some stage on Thursday.”The team owners agreed that if we do not receive clarity by Thursday afternoon, then they’ll have no other option but to request postponement of the remaining 20 matches.”Related

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That deferment followed two days of growing speculation about the future of the season, which initially hinged on gaining approvals from the Abu Dhabi government to stage the tournament there. That approval was given in principle though the details of it is where the impasse seems to have struck.The “exemptions” the PCB’s release refers to are believed to include for a broadcast crew who will carry out the production: most of them are from India and current travel restrictions into the UAE from India because of the pandemic have made that specifically complicated. Another detail is around every member involved in the PSL – from players to officials to broadcast and production personnel – needing to be vaccinated against Covid-19. That is no simple ask, given that people are flying in from various different countries and vaccination campaigns are at different stages of being rolled out in each of them.The season, which started off in Karachi in February, had to be suspended in March because of a Covid-19 outbreak among players and support staff. The PCB identified the June window to play out the rest of the season in Karachi.But a decision to move out of Karachi was taken earlier this month, after worries about an impending surge in Covid-19 cases in the city. The UAE was always a frontrunner, given it was Pakistan’s home for international cricket for so long and the birthplace of the PSL.Though a final decision will now come tomorrow, a significant reworking of the timeline is inevitable. The league was supposed to restart on June 1. Franchises and officials were supposed to check in to hotels in Karachi and Lahore on Thursday as part of the pre-departure routine before flying to the UAE but that has been put on hold. And given that a quarantine period in Pakistan and the UAE will also have to be factored in, a June 1 restart looks highly unlikely.

Dom Bess feeling 'really dangerous' and keen to spin series England's way

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Offspinner raring for another crack despite going wicketless in West Indies’ chase

Alan Gardner14-Jul-2020He may have gone wicketless during the fourth innings as England fell to a bruising defeat in the first Test, but Dom Bess isn’t the sort of cricketer whose confidence is easily dented. England’s offspinner, still only five matches into his Test career, has declared that he is feeling “really dangerous” and said he was keen to get back into the thick of it when the teams resume their behind-closed-doors contest at Emirates Old Trafford this week.Bess is used to playing with a burden of expectation of his shoulders, having developed at Somerset where the Taunton surfaces are often tailored to suit himself and Jack Leach, the other spinner in England’s 21-man party. Ben Stokes, standing in as captain during the first Test, had partly based his decision at the toss on the theory the Ageas Bowl pitch would take spin in the fourth innings, but while Bess was unable to make a decisive contribution he seems in no way cowed by the experience.In fact, had a tight review for lbw against Roston Chase gone his way – it came back as umpire’s call despite Hawk-Eye suggesting the ball would have hit the top of middle stump – West Indies would have been 31 for 4 and the eventual outcome of the game might well have been different.ALSO READ: Denly facing final curtain as England prepare to bounce back“Personally I was really happy with how it came out, it’s just the opportunities that went missing in that last innings,” Bess said via video conference from Manchester. “It would have been nice to have that lbw shout, it could have potentially got us on a roll to have them four down. It’s coming out really nicely and if I get picked, hopefully we’ll get a big score and I can spin a couple out.”I know I went wicketless [in the second innings], but like I said it could have turned… And actually, the thing I’m focused on is how well it’s coming out at the moment, I do feel really dangerous and that’s a great place to be. I think as a spinner, some will go your way some days, some won’t. That’s cricket. I don’t look too much into that. I want to contribute with bat, ball and in the field, and when opportunities come I just want to make sure I take them.”Old Trafford has traditionally been viewed as a ground on which spinners can thrive, largely due to the extra bounce. Recently that advantage has been less pronounced, with spin in first-class games averaging 37.95 over the last five years – higher than at all of England’s Test grounds bar Cardiff and The Oval – which might suggest Bess, who has never previously played in Manchester, will asked to fulfil more of a holding role.Even so, he will not be fazed if asked to try and win the game in the fourth innings again (a cause that would be helped by England’s batsmen putting up a few more runs), comparing the scenario to that of quick bowlers being presented with seaming conditions.”I’m used to bowling on spinning wickets,” he said. “People talk about this pressure of it being on me, the last day… I’ve spoken a lot with Leachy about it, this pressure that people put on us. I actually flip it around, it’s a great opportunity – it’s like saying to a seamer, it’s a green one today, are you worried about getting them out? Course you’re not, you’re excited because it’s probably in your favour a little bit more. And that’s how I look at it, certainly the last couple of days and hopefully when it spins, it’s my time to shine and stand up.”As for his own form, the encouraging signs are simple: bounce and spin. “I feel like I am attacking both edges of the bat. My consistency and accuracy within where I am landing it is dangerous. That comes through training, getting that feel, that rhythm. I’m very big on my rhythm, getting into it. It’s just a feeling, I guess and that’s certainly what I think I have got at the moment.”The Southampton Test was Bess’s first at home since his debut in 2018, having come back from a period in the wilderness to dislodge Leach, his county team-mate, as No. 1 spinner. Bess, who is out of contract with Somerset at the end of the summer, may have to move in order to secure more regular cricket but suggested that as far as he was concerned there was no rivalry with England.”I am playing at the moment but I am not taking it for granted. I know Leachy is behind me and I know how much he is working. I’ve had to fight for my spot for a long time I guess, always being behind. Potentially it’s a little bit different at the moment, the feeling. But it’s about making sure that I focus on what I can control. I know it’s a big cliché but it is as simple as that. I’ve got to make sure I am doing what I can do, day in and day out. There is no rivalry with it. We are helping each other to be as best we can for the England side. That’s a great place to be.”Bess’s other noteworthy role in Southampton was to contribute to the ball-shining process. “Being a very sweaty man out on the field, I took a little bit of responsibility,” he said. Sky’s cameras even picked him up collecting sweat from his back – England might need such a combination of inspiration and perspiration if they are to level the series this week.

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