The statistics show Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes need a rethink – here’s my easy solution
. But for the good of the team and the player himself it would be wise for the Bazball brains trust to have a rethink.here in Pakistan came to a swift end on a chaotic second evening in Rawalpindi when he was dismissed for one by Noman Ali during a passage of play that saw England’s hopes in this decider start to circle the drain.
For a player who is occupying such a key position in the batting line-up, it just isn’t good enough. Indeed, it makes, those six centuries since he was brought back into the team at the start of the Bazball era, seem like outliers.Ben Stokes The time has come, though, to have another think about a position that has troubled England ever since Jonathan Trott played his last Test almost a decade ago.
Harry Brook could do it but why move him from the No 5 position from which he has had such a fantastic start to his Test career. Jamie Smith’s emergence means that England have another batter who can either perform rescue acts from lower down the order or take the game on if England are on top – a role Stokes has fulfilled on numerous occasions throughout his 11 years in the team.
For New Zealand, though, England would also need to bring in another spare batter given that Smith is set to miss part of that three-match series when he returns home for the birth of his first child. Somerset prodigy James Rew, 20, is one player who is highly rated and on England’s radar.
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