Jos Buttler and Sam Curran found a way to beat Namibia (Picture: (AP)
Even in cricket’s most truncated international format England have played a shortened version so far in this World T20, their players facing less than half the allotted overs in the group games. Little of that is their fault but it does make it difficult to know who is shooting cannons and who is firing blanks as they enter the high jeopardy stage of the Super Eight later this week.
The first of those three matches will be against the West Indies, the hosts, on Thursday followed by South Africa a day later before finally taking on co-hosts, USA, on Sunday.
Three games in four days, a frenetic whirl that is the complete opposite of England’s protracted yet truncated opening gambit.
Will they be ready for it, their A-game purring beautifully? I’m not so sure. So far they have duffed over two Associate teams way out of their depth in this tournament; conceded a tricky total that rain rendered redundant against Scotland; and been hammered by Australia.
As form guides go, it’s a mixed picture to say the least.
The quality of those opponents, especially the three Associate teams, mean they won’t really know if their bowling tactics are sound or indeed which batsmen are in good nick. In two of the three matches against minnows, they blasted away with the 90mph pace of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood.
Against Oman, who were dismissed for 47 in 13.2 overs, the battering ram approach worked like a dream but was much less effective against Scotland, though Wood and Archer got their lines wrong in that match bowling too wide of off-stump.
Against Namibia on Saturday, England dropped Wood and the all-rounder Will Jacks, opting instead for two left-armers of less pace (than Woods) but increased trickery in Sam Curran and Reece Topley.
Sam Curran made an impression against Namibia (Picture: Getty Images)
The data tells us left-armers bring advantage due to their awkward angle and the pair’s economy rate in the game was impressive. Yet neither took a wicket against a Namibian team who’ve been poor all tournament, even if they did sign off by clobbering Adil Rashid all round Antigua.
Tailoring the bowling mix to each opponent as well as the conditions will be crucial if England are to reach the semi-finals. Their first two Super Eight games will be at the Daren Sammy International Stadium in St Lucia, a venue with the truest pitches of the tournament so far.
But will express pace be rewarded there (in a Test there five years ago Wood cranked it up to 97mph and took five for 41) or will Jos Buttler want the cocktail of variations offered by Curran, Topley and Chris Jordan?
West Indies, England’s first opponents, like to hit sixes. In the series last winter, their batsmen took a liking to Curran, though he probably bowled in a different role (and time of the innings), which can make a difference in a batsman’s attitude towards you.
Yet Curran has the priceless ability to raise his game for the big occasions (he was man of the tournament when England won in 2022), something lacking in a bilateral series.
Until now, the bowler-friendly nature of most surfaces has meant a hard length and a straight line (rather than a potpourri of slower balls, wide yorkers and bouncers) has been the percentage call, though that is not the case in T20 generally where mixing it up is standard. Assessing the conditions will therefore be vital, something England should be better at than most having toured the region just seven months ago.
Jos Buttler and vice-captain Moeen Ali must refine their strategy (Picture: Getty Images)
England’s batting, considered by many to be their strength, has not really fired yet. We know that opener Phil Salt can biff it both sides of the wicket when the ball is pitched in his half but Namibia showed him to be less effective at smashing boundaries when the ball is banged in short of a good length. Future opponents will have taken note.
Since becoming captain, Buttler, still England’s best ball striker, has cut a curious figure. Normally you can tell when a batter like him is in form as there is an ease and economy of movement at the crease and a telling sound off the bat. But with Buttler the travails of leadership seem to inspire and restrict his batting in equal measure so you can’t tell whether it will be feast of famine.
One thing that England can take comfort from is Harry Brook’s innings against Namibia, where he scored 47 off 20 balls. Brook missed out on England’s recent Test tour of India due to family matters, taking the opportunity away from the game to get very fit.
Harry Brook’s runs were vital for England against Namibia (Picture: Getty Images)
The effects are obvious though what he has lost in weight he appears to have gained in resolve, especially with that knock against Namibia.
On a tricky pitch that even made Namibia’s bowlers seem useful, it looked a turning point. Prior to that, Brook’s approach when batting, especially in white-ball formats, was one of the cocky boy racer flooring the accelerator at the earliest opportunity. Here, in league with Jonny Bairstow, who initially took the aggressor role, he proved a skilful navigator.
Yes, even in a T20 reduced to ten overs there is a need to manage risk and he did so with a deft touch, showing that a scorching run-rate of 235 isn’t solely the province of boundary hitters – there being clever placement of shots for twos among his six boundaries.
Brook’s coming of age, and it felt that momentous at least in terms of big tournaments, will help England’s cause, though I reckon captain and coach still don’t know what their best team is for any given situation. Of course these things can fall into place very quickly after a win. If they do, there is no reason why Buttler’s side cannot become the first team to successfully defend a World T20 title.
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