Mike Atherton Graeme Hick Tim Robinson Robin Smith Alec Stewart
Jack Russell
Chris Lewis
Angus Fraser Syd Lawrence Devon Malcolm Gladstone Small
Phil Tufnell
With the Sri Lankans visiting England for a single Test match at Lord's the TCCB is considering offering recalls for two players whose Test careers have so far spanned a single match: Syd Lawrence, who played last time Sri Lanka visited in 1988 and took three wickets, and Alec Stewart, who failed twice on debut in the West Indies, are both players that the selectors have kept an eye on as they enter what should be the peak years of their careers. Whether or not they will be in the starting eleven at Lord's remains to be seen.
England XI Graham Gooch Mike Atherton Alec Stewart Robin Smith Graeme Hick Jack Russell Chris Lewis Gladstone Small Syd Lawrence Phil Tufnell Devon Malcolm
Sri Lanka XI Brendon Kuruppu Chandika Hathurusingha Asanka Gurusinha Aravinda de Silva Roshan Mahanama Sanath Jayasuriya Hashan Tillakaratne Rumesh Ratnayake Champaka Ramanayake Kapila Wijegunawardene Don Anurasiri
- - -
England win the toss and choose to bat
- - -
As expected, England gave opportunities to fringe players Alec Stewart and Syd Lawrence, with Graham Gooch explaining at the toss that this was their chance to prove they should be on the tour to New Zealand. Sri Lanka meanwhile looked fragile: while the batting is generally regarded to be strong, their bowling attack is very weak: only Rumesh Ratnayake performed well in the tour matches, with the rest providing some helpful runs to any and all county players who needed them.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, England did exactly that. Graham Gooch played chancelessly until he was run out by Michael Atherton, who clearly decided that the only option at that point was to stay at the crease until his captain had cooled down. He managed to do so, recording his second successive Test fifty, but that was completely overshadowed by a stellar partnership between Alec Stewart and Graeme Hick. The pair added 191 impressive runs, with Hick recording another fluent hundred and Stewart a very determined 166. He may well have just claimed the number three spot that had been left vacant by Rob Bailey's removal from the team.
The bowlers had a slightly tougher challenge. England's seamer attack, comprising four black players for the first time in their history, was made to work hard for their wickets. Indeed, all of their first three wickets came courtesy of Graeme Hick's big hands in the slip cordon, including one absolute screamer flying high to his right hand side. Ultimately the two outstanding bowlers were Devon Malcolm and Chris Lewis, the latter of whom really did need a few wickets to build up his confidence with ball in hand. Lawrence did pick up a wicket, but proved to be the most expensive of the English bowlers.
With a lead of 178 already, England's batsmen were tasked by their captain with going out and batting aggressively. They did so, although Gooch himself will be frustrated to have been run out for the second time in the Test. Atherton impressed with yet another half-century, but there will be an element of disappointment that nobody else managed to take on the role of aggressor quite so effectively.
As the other bowlers picked up wickets to complete a routine victory, in particular Malcolm and Tufnell, one got the impression that Lawrence had rather blown his audition. Unfortunately, this means that he will likely not be going to New Zealand. Credit must go to the hostile Malcolm though, as he added eight wickets to his tally for what must be a breakout season for the fast bowler. Clearly enjoying being a part of a five-man attack, he has now gone past 50 Test wickets with a career average of barely more than 30.
I'm also adding a Player of the Season award in the style of the Allan Border Medal - the Barrington Medal.
Drawn or lost match
Best player - 3 points
2nd best player - 2 points
3rd best player - 1 point
Won match
Best player - 5 points
2nd best player - 3 points
3rd best player - 2 points
4th best player - 1 point
Standings
1. Graham Gooch - 16 points
2. Devon Malcolm - 9 points (+5)
3. Graeme Hick - 6 points (+2)
4. Robin Smith - 5 points
=5. Alec Stewart - 3 points (+3)
=5. Phil Tufnell - 3 points
=7. Mike Atherton - 1 point (+1)
=7. Neil Foster - 1 point
=7. Chris Lewis - 1 point
=7. Steve Watkin - 1 point
Despite his brace of run-outs here, Graham Gooch is confirmed as the fourth winner of the Barrington Medal
Two of English cricket's most well-known players have in the last few days announced their retirements from Test cricket. Allan Lamb and David Gower have played 184 Test matches between them, combining for 24 Test centuries, but neither appears likely to add to that tally.
Lamb said that he, like Botham, intended to remain available for one-day international selection with a World Cup around the corner. Gower, however, said that he was "done with playing"; explaining that he didn't much enjoy playing county cricket very much, and didn't see himself getting back into the England side under Graham Gooch's captaincy. Asked whether Graeme Hick's emergence as a Test success was a factor, he confirmed as much. "I'd much rather be paid to watch him bat", Gooch said.
When asked whether Northants teammate Wayne Larkins had also retired from England duty, Lamb looked confused, then said "I guess so, unless they ask him back"
I mean, it's pretty much the right time for Lamby; 60 Tests with a batting average of 33 don't scream recall, no matter how well he's doing in the one-dayers. And Gower retired in real life once Gooch got mad and kicked him out of the side, and I figured that one Test ton in five years would probably be reason enough for Gooch to reach the end of his tether
I mean, it's pretty much the right time for Lamby; 60 Tests with a batting average of 33 don't scream recall, no matter how well he's doing in the one-dayers. And Gower retired in real life once Gooch got mad and kicked him out of the side, and I figured that one Test ton in five years would probably be reason enough for Gooch to reach the end of his tether
Itinerary
18 Jan 1992 - New Zealand vs England - First Test at Christchurch - Match drawn
30 Jan 1992 - New Zealand vs England - Second Test at Auckland - England won by 8 wickets
06 Feb 1992 - New Zealand vs England - Third Test at Wellington - England won by 131 runs
England Squad
Graham Gooch
Mike Atherton Graeme Hick Mark Ramprakash Tim Robinson Robin Smith Alec Stewart
Richard Blakey Jack Russell
Chris Lewis Dermot Reeve
Martin Bicknell Neil Foster Angus Fraser Devon Malcolm Tim Munton Gladstone Small
Phil Tufnell
Ahead of the tour of New Zealand, Alec Stewart quite literally batted his way into the Test squad against Sri Lanka. The other new faces in the squad are Dermot Reeve, who will provide backup for Chris Lewis in the all-rounder's role, Mark Ramprakash, who has impressed with bat in hand for Middlesex, and Tim Munton, who will be a backup seamer. Richard Blakey has also been brought in as the backup keeper, though he's not actually expected to play. The post-Hadlee era of New Zealand cricket has not been an especially strong one, so England will be confident despite having lost their series against the West Indies.
New Zealand vs England - First Test at Christchurch
New Zealand XI Blair Hartland John Wright Andrew Jones Mark Greatbatch Shane Thomson Martin Crowe Chris Cairns Ian Smith Dipak Patel Danny Morrison Chris Pringle
England XI Graham Gooch Mike Atherton Alec Stewart Robin Smith Graeme Hick Jack Russell Chris Lewis Martin Bicknell Angus Fraser Phil Tufnell Devon Malcolm
- - -
New Zealand win the toss and choose to bat
- - -
There was something of a surprise on the England team sheet: another recall for Martin Bicknell wasn't on anyone's radar, but in overcast Christchurch conditions it did make a reasonable amount of sense. Less expected was Martin Crowe's decision to bat first regardless of the overhead conditions. Clearly he trusts his top order batsmen to lay a good foundation for the strokemakers lower down the order.
John Wright, as he was the last time these two sides met, looked to be the key batsman. Even as Hartland and Jones went cheaply, he looked serene - especially against the extra pace of Malcolm. Indeed, it was Chris Lewis who caused the most trouble to the top order; he found plenty of seam movement to keep keeper Jack Russell in the game. He removed both Jones and Greatbatch early on, then broke the essential Wright-Thomson partnership in his second spell. That was when the floodgates opened for the pace of Malcolm to scythe through the lower order, sending Crowe, Cairns, Smith and Patel back for low scores. All out for 210 before the close of the first day's play was not the outcome captain Crowe would have wanted.
The conditions were not batsman-friendly though: Gooch and Stewart both fell early, bringing Robin Smith to the crease to join Atherton. They both dug in against the accurate bowling of Morrison, Cairns and Pringle. Atherton fell for 38, but Smith reached his half-century with Graeme Hick at the other end: even the Worcestershire man was making batting look difficult. Once both fell in quick succession, the collapse from five-down to all-out didn't take long at all; Russell was, as usual, left stranded at the batting crease. Despite a laborious batting effort, England eked out a first-innings lead of 22 in an increasingly tight Test match.
The third innings would be vital, and as often seems to be the case in New Zealand, it was seemingly the best time to bat. Number three batsman Andrew Jones was able to bat for over a day as he compiled a hugely impressive 139 with support from Wright (57) and Greatbatch (96). From a position of strength at 273 for two, the game was New Zealand's to control. They... didn't really do so. Instead they mostly carried on batting, some way past any sort of target that England could reasonably be expected to chase down. Bicknell and Malcolm were able to share seven of the last eight Kiwi wickets to fall, but the question must be asked: why did they keep batting for so long?
Vital for England was to reach the end of day four without loss, which Gooch and Atherton achieved. Without any real pressure to score runs (a target of 393 was never on the table), they could just bat like it was middle practice. It took New Zealand 57 overs to split them, Dipak Patel spinning one back through the gate of the England captain. When tea arrived, England had seven wickets in hand to last them one final session of play. They would need only two: Atherton and Hick became the only two wickets of the innings to fall to seam bowling, but it was too little too late for a New Zealand team that perhaps was a little too unwilling to gamble in pursuit of a win.
I'm also adding a Player of the Season award in the style of the Allan Border Medal - the Barrington Medal.
Drawn or lost match
Best player - 3 points
2nd best player - 2 points
3rd best player - 1 point
Won match
Best player - 5 points
2nd best player - 3 points
3rd best player - 2 points
4th best player - 1 point
Standings
1. Devon Malcolm - 3 points (+3)
2. Michael Atherton - 2 points (+2)
3. Graham Gooch - 1 point (+1)
New Zealand (0) vs (0) England - Second Test at Auckland
New Zealand XI Blair Hartland John Wright Andrew Jones Martin Crowe Ken Rutherford Dipak Patel Chris Cairns Adam Parore Murphy Su'a Danny Morrison Willie Watson
England XI Graham Gooch Mike Atherton Alec Stewart Robin Smith Graeme Hick Jack Russell Chris Lewis Martin Bicknell Angus Fraser Phil Tufnell Devon Malcolm
- - -
New Zealand win the toss and choose to bat
- - -
Again, there were surprises at the toss: New Zealand made four changes to the side that dominated the first Test with Rutherford, Parore, Su'a and Watson coming in for Greatbatch, Smith, Thomson and Pringle, but England made no changes despite not being able to roll over a team that they were expected to dominate. Pundits were baffled by the two batting changes, as Thomson and Greatbatch were two of the mainstays of the Kiwi batting at Christchurch. Ho hum.
After losing another toss and being asked to bowl first, England started well: Angus Fraser, bowling a long first spell, delivered six maidens and conceded only eight runs in ten overs. He just couldn't get that first wicket though, which had to wait until Chris Lewis got Blair Hartland caught behind just before lunch. The key moment on the first day was not a wicket though: it was a vicious bouncer from Devon Malcolm that ruled John Wright out for the series. That's the difference an express pace bowler can make. Malcolm wasn't the pick of the bowlers, bowling a lot of loose deliveries, but he was the most impactful by adding four more wickets to his series tally. The pick, though, was definitely Fraser.
The English batsmen did not quite do the job of asserting themselves upon a match that was wide open though. Instead they crumbled to 97 for five with Atherton (1), Stewart (24), Gooch (30), Smith (5) and Hick (13) all back in the pavilion with no great impact. Who was the saviour? Jack Russell of course, who let loose his inner mongrel to grind out an unbeaten 78. His main accomplice was Martin Bicknell, who scored a surprisingly assured 48, but they couldn't quite lift themselves to parity with the home side. Morrison, Watson and Cairns demonstrated a clear ability to make use of their home conditions, sharing all ten English wickets.
With England behind in the game, Angus Fraser stood up to grab it back. He removed both openers - Hartland and Jones this time - before the Kiwis reached 30, and added to his wickets tally each time he was brought back to the bowling crease. His five for 51 was a real coming of age moment, and thoroughly overshadowed the efforts of Malcolm, Bicknell and Lewis. Phil Tufnell didn't even get to bowl in the second innings, which came to a close before the Kiwis could reach 200. The target of 217 to win would not be a slam-dunk, but it was far less challenging than it could have been.
Speaking of coming of age performances, what about a fourth-innings century by Alec Stewart? His unbeaten 126 came from 276 expertly-handled deliveries, seventeen of which found the boundary. It allowed both Atherton and Smith to focus solely on crease occupation; low-risk cricket from a team that had earnt the right to play it. So uneventful was England's batting effort that there's not much to write about, so I guess I'll just riff on how disappointing Murphy Su'a's Test debut was.
I'm also adding a Player of the Season award in the style of the Allan Border Medal - the Barrington Medal.
Drawn or lost match
Best player - 3 points
2nd best player - 2 points
3rd best player - 1 point
Won match
Best player - 5 points
2nd best player - 3 points
3rd best player - 2 points
4th best player - 1 point
Standings
1. Alec Stewart - 5 points (+5)
2. Devon Malcolm - 4 points (+1)
3. Angus Fraser - 3 points (+3)
=4. Michael Atherton - 2 points
=4. Jack Russell - 2 points (+2)
6. Graham Gooch - 1 point
New Zealand (0) vs (1) England - Third Test at Wellington
New Zealand XI Blair Hartland Rod Latham Andrew Jones Mark Greatbatch Martin Crowe Ken Rutherford Dipak Patel Chris Cairns Ian Smith Murphy Su'a Danny Morrison
England XI Graham Gooch Mike Atherton Alec Stewart Robin Smith Graeme Hick Jack Russell Chris Lewis Neil Foster Angus Fraser Phil Tufnell Devon Malcolm
- - -
England win the toss and choose to bat
- - -
As the third Test arrived, there were changes on both sides. For New Zealand, there were three changes: one enforced and two not. The enforced change was for Rod Latham to replace the injured John Wright; the unenforced changes were for Ian Smith to return in place of Parore and for Mark Greatbatch to replace Willie Watson. An odd decision for sure to weaken a bowling attack that has twice had trouble taking English wickets. For England, Martin Bicknell was left out of the eleven to make room for another recall for the experienced Neil Foster. Gooch said that "while we'd like to give opportunities to guys like Reeve and Munton, we need to win the series first." I definitely didn't try this once before, then baulk halfway through the Test because Reeve was trash.
After winning the toss and batting first, England would have preferred not to lose a wicket in the first quarter of an hour. But so it was, the loss of Atherton bringing Gooch and Stewart together. Both looked comfortable until Stewart inexplicably lost his wicket to the part-time filth of Ken Rutherford - an improbable LBW from a home umpire. Aside from Gooch (92), the England batting was a lot like that: plenty of contributions from the likes of Stewart (38), Smith (42), Hick (51) and Russell (49 - out for the first time in the series) but no genuine big scores. Regardless, England made it to 356 all out and well into the second day.
The Kiwis lost a wicket equally early, the baffling Blair Hartland (baffling because of how he keeps getting selected) edging behind off Malcolm. Rod Latham was at least a little more enterprising: his 69 was the largest contribution of any of the top eight New Zealand batsmen, although Andrew Jones ran it very close through his proven strategy of just refusing to get out for ages. Ian Smith's approach was quite the opposite: he and Chris Cairns took the attack to Malcolm from his lowly number nine position, ruining the fast man's bowling figures, and also eking out an unlikely lead for the home side.
That marginal advantage did not last long against a marauding Graham Gooch though: the England captain was out to avenge his missed century from the first innings by making one in the second, and he made quick work of it. His 124 took only three and a half hours, and for most of it he had Michael Atherton (64) for company. His innings was one thing, but the contribution of Hick was all the more impressive: a masterclass in how to bat with the lower order, he raced to 107 from a mere 123 balls before missing the 124th and being out bowled. By then though, a few tail-end slogs saw England to 341 ahead, and secure enough to push for the win.
Only Day Five left, plenty of runs on the table and a deteriorating pitch. It's the sort of match situation that any spinner worth his salt dreams of - and Phil Tufnell most certainly is worth his salt. Seven of the last eight wickets were his: Greatbatch, Rutherford, Crowe, Patel, Smith, Su'a and Cairns, all for the cost of only 57 runs from 20.5 fantastic overs. Arguably the finest performance by an English spinner since Derek Underwood, and one that cements him as one of the very first names on the team sheet for some time to come.
I'm also adding a Player of the Season award in the style of the Allan Border Medal - the Barrington Medal.
Drawn or lost match
Best player - 3 points
2nd best player - 2 points
3rd best player - 1 point
Won match
Best player - 5 points
2nd best player - 3 points
3rd best player - 2 points
4th best player - 1 point
Standings
1. Graham Gooch - 6 points (+5)
=2. Devon Malcolm - 5 points (+1)
=2. Alec Stewart - 5 points
=4. Angus Fraser - 3 points
=4. Phil Tufnell - 3 points (+3)
=6. Michael Atherton - 2 points
=6. Graeme Hick - 2 points (+2)
=6. Jack Russell - 2 points
To the surprise of many, that Third Test performance has propelled Graham Gooch to his second consecutive Barrington Medal. And honestly, it's hard to argue with someone averaging nearly 60 in an away series win. Devon Malcolm might feel hard done-by after taking 20 wickets across the series though, even if there wasn't that single big haul highlighting it.
Partnerships
1. 190 - Graham Gooch & Tim Robinson vs Australia 1991
2. 154 - Graham Gooch & Robin Smith vs New Zealand 1990
3. 325 - Graham Gooch & Robin Smith vs West Indies 1991
4. 191 - Alec Stewart & Graeme Hick vs Sri Lanka 1991
5. 176 - Graeme Hick & Jack Russell vs West Indies 1991
6. 106 - Graham Gooch & Chris Lewis vs West Indies 1991
7. 92 - Jack Russell & Martin Bicknell vs New Zealand 1992
8. 47 - Jack Russell & Phil Tufnell vs India 1990
9. 69 - Gladstone Small & Angus Fraser vs Australia 1990
10. 29 - Gladstone Small & Devon Malcolm vs New Zealand 1990
Records and stats updated. Tufnell's seven-for was our best analysis so far, but an otherwise disappointing series sees him slip behind Devon Malcolm as our leading bowler by average. Both Malcolm and Tufnell averaging under 30 is very pleasing, as is Jack Russell's batting average ticking back up over 40.
Chris Lewis continues not to actually do much, but he's sort of keeping his place - a batting average of 25 and bowling average of 39 will do, especially given that the only alternative is Dermot Reeve, and trying to give him a debut is basically a guaranteed loss.
Total garbage. I've gone and done a five-Test series with him recreationally, just to see if he's as bad as he seemed in the white text and... yep. One fifty, batting average 15. One wicket, bowling average infinity.
Records and stats updated. Tufnell's seven-for was our best analysis so far, but an otherwise disappointing series sees him slip behind Devon Malcolm as our leading bowler by average. Both Malcolm and Tufnell averaging under 30 is very pleasing, as is Jack Russell's batting average ticking back up over 40.
Chris Lewis continues not to actually do much, but he's sort of keeping his place - a batting average of 25 and bowling average of 39 will do, especially given that the only alternative is Dermot Reeve, and trying to give him a debut is basically a guaranteed loss.
Post automatically merged:
Total garbage. I've gone and done a five-Test series with him recreationally, just to see if he's as bad as he seemed in the white text and... yep. One fifty, batting average 15. One wicket, bowling average infinity.
Mike Atherton Graeme Hick Nasser Hussain Mark Ramprakash Robin Smith Alec Stewart
Richard Blakey Jack Russell
Chris Lewis
Neil Foster Angus Fraser Paul Jarvis Devon Malcolm Tim Munton Gladstone Small
Peter Such Phil Tufnell
There are very few changes to the England squad that returned victorious from New Zealand over the winter. Peter Such returns as a reserve spinner in place of Dermot Reeve (let's just say he performed dreadfully in the tour games in Kiwiland), and Paul Jarvis earns himself a recall in place of Martin Bicknell, who has perhaps lacked a yard of pace against Test batsmen. There is also one more uncapped player in the party: Essex's Nasser Hussain has been on the fringes of the England team for a while, and earns his place as a replacement for Tim Robinson; Alec Stewart will be the reserve opener. This should be an interesting series - especially with the recent World Cup final as a backdrop.
England XI Graham Gooch Mike Atherton Alec Stewart Robin Smith Graeme Hick Jack Russell Chris Lewis Neil Foster Angus Fraser Phil Tufnell Devon Malcolm
Pakistan XI Aamer Sohail Ramiz Raja Asif Mujtaba Javed Miandad Saleem Malik Inzamam ul-Haq Moin Khan Mushtaq Ahmed Waqar Younis Aqib Javed Atta ur-Rahman
- - -
Pakistan win the toss and choose to bat
- - -
England have chosen to make no change to what they consider to be their best eleven, despite the fact that Neil Foster is an increasing injury worry. This means the usual five-man attack of Fraser, Malcolm, Foster, Lewis and Tufnell, as well as the resulting long tail. That could be a problem, because Pakistan's Waqar Younis comes into the series with a well-earned reputation for being irresistible against tail-enders. There are fault-lines elsewhere in the team, but in Waqar Younis they have a man who can defend any score on his day.
Indeed, Waqar would end up with plenty of runs to work with after a toothless display from the England seam bowlers on the first day. The only three wickets to fall before the second new ball went to the spin of Phil Tufnell: particularly unforgivable on the first day of a home Test series. Fraser finally found form on the second morning, taking three middle-order wickets to allow Tufnell to complete his five-for against the tailenders. Pakistan's 425 looked like it could be even more when Ramiz Raja breezed to his 150, but it is still considerably more than Graham Gooch's men would have been prepared to concede.
Gooch took on the responsibility of overturning as much of the deficit as he could before the end of the second day, making a composed 78 by the end of the day with the loss only of Atherton. One of the great cricketing truisms though is that one must restart in the morning, and Gooch was not able to - he fell to Younis from the second ball of the third day. Stewart, however, continued his impressive start to his Test career with a fine 97; his unexpected LBW to the bowling of Mujtaba making it the first 50-plus score he'd not converted to a century. Despite pre-game fears, the lower-order even provided some resistance: led by a calm 59 not out from Russell, England eliminated most of the runs they had trailed by at the loss of the fifth wicket. Or at least they did until Mushtaq Ahmed removed the bottom three batsmen in the space of five balls.
It was crucial that the English bowlers went on the attack, and so they did - reducing Pakistan to 54 for two before the close of the day's play. Such a positive start made it all the more frustrating that their hopes were thwarted by a maiden Test century from the unexpectedly good Mujtaba, whose partnership with Saleem Malik put Pakistan firmly back ahead in the game. Pakistan declared overnight with their lead over 350, leaving England with a stern task to draw (forget about pushing for the win in) the Test match.
This... did not go well. England batted for only half a day, and only three men made double figures: Gooch, Stewart and Gus Fraser with 10 not out from number nine. The worries about Waqar Younis were well-founded, but now Aqib Javed and Mushtaq Ahmed can be added to the list of concerns as well. That's pretty much an entire bowling attack.
I'm also adding a Player of the Season award in the style of the Allan Border Medal - the Barrington Medal.
Drawn or lost match
Best player - 3 points
2nd best player - 2 points
3rd best player - 1 point
Won match
Best player - 5 points
2nd best player - 3 points
3rd best player - 2 points
4th best player - 1 point
Standings
1. Alec Stewart - 3 points (+3)
2. Graham Gooch - 2 points (+2)
3. Phil Tufnell - 1 point (+1)
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
England vs Sri Lanka 
