Who is England's Glenn McGrath? Can Ian Bell return to the side?
Tuesday 26 July 2016 20:36, UK
England have levelled the four-Test series with Pakistan after a thumping 330-run win at Old Trafford.
There were plenty of talking points from the Test, so we got the views of Bob Willis on The Verdict...
Anderson's return
He's just a superb tactician - he very rarely bowls a bad over, never mind a bad spell. He is fast-becoming England's equivalent to Glenn McGrath and could end up with a very similar wicket haul. He controls the ball on a piece of string; can move it so late, and his line is immaculate. The batsmen have nowhere to hide.
Since 1996 there has only been one fifty-run opening partnership for Pakistan in England. It is an area they're going to have to look at very closely.
Root's runs
He is England's best player. The word 'great' is often bandied around, but if you average over 50 through 44 Test matches, then you are in that category. He is a remarkable talent, still very young, and he thinks he can still get better. I look forward to when he plays any better than this Test.
It looks nasty. There wasn't any kind of attempt to get back to the end of his marker and try to bowl another delivery. Quite rightly he left the field immediately. It's a sad thing for that to happen to him, having just come back from injury, but I'm afraid it goes with the territory - if you bowl fast, you will pick up injuries. I would have thought it's unlikely we'll see him again this series. I don't think you get over an injury like that inside three weeks.
Third Test selection?
You could argue for Adil Rashid as a straight swap for Stokes, but I don't think England will go down that route, as their strength in depth is in seam bowling. I would have thought that Jake Ball and Steven Finn would again be in the squad vying for that spot, with Ball maybe having overtaken Finn in the pecking order. It was interesting though that Cook at the post-match presentation made a point of mentioning Mark Wood and his comeback from injury. There may be a hint there and he could be in the mix.
Could Bell come back?
Far better than Alex Hales, James Vince and Gary Ballance is Ian Bell. The selectors are wrong if they think he's had his time as class will always out. Sure, he's had a wretched year, but it's not so long ago that Cook had an equally poor time of it.
Moeen's impact
He is buying his wickets a little bit at the moment. The bat-pad dismissal of Mohammad Hafeez was a genuine dismissal, but the others of Younus Khan and Yasir Shah were to appalling shots. Pakistan's batsmen can't see where they're going to score against the seamers, so they sound the bugle as soon as Moeen comes on. I feel a little bit sorry for him as a result, as he is not getting a long bowl in a containing situation. I cannot see Moeen picking up wickets in this manner against India on their home turf. They won't play in such a reckless way and will just pick him off, so he'll need more overs under his belt before England go on their winter tour.
Classy Cook
He hit his fastest fifty in this game. It's amazing; his strike rate is going up and up. So often we saw Cook just go at roughly one run per over, grinding it out, and we were always worried that if he lost his opening partner, the innings could stagnate. There isn't any chance of that now with Root at number three. They play so well and comfortably together, that this is sure to be just one of a number of huge stands for the pair. He was embarrassed by his team's performance at Lord's, and as Bumble likes to put it, he will have been pleased about their 'bouncebackability' here.
Cook's decision was vindicated, in his eyes anyway. Pakistan's batsmen were humiliated, and the bowlers had a rough time of it too as England batted again.
Woakes 'a delight'
He is now vying with Stokes as England's leading all-rounder now. It was an inspired move to put him in as night-watchmen, as he wasn't going to stagnate, as some do, the next day. Warwickshire followers have always known this lad has tremendous batting talent. He has all the shots in the book, and also showed us at Lord's when England were crumbling against Yasir Shah, the simple nature of his technique. Plus, his bowling seems to come very naturally to him. He has a beautifully clean, repetitive bowling action. A delight to watch at the moment.
Watch England's third Investec Test against Pakistan at Edgbaston from 10am on Wednesday, August 3 on Sky Sports 2.
