In the coming weeks, the England selectors will be dissecting the drama from the recently concluded series win over India. For some, a ticket to next month’s tour of Sri Lanka is a given. But for others, it’s going to be a nervous wait.
National selector Ed Smith will be getting out the red wine when Jos Buttler and Sam Curran’s name are mentioned. But it won’t go down well when Keaton Jennings future is being discussed.
Here are the series ratings:
England
Cook – For the majority of the series, Cook struggled to churn out any runs. But when he announced he was retiring, the pressure was lifted. In the end, it was a dream send-off for one of England’s greats. 6/10
Jennings – If Cook wasn’t retiring, Jennings would be staying at home for the winter tour. However, Cook’s absence may now have given Jennings extra time to prove his worth. Throughout the series, he played numerous poor shots. The worst being the no-shot at the Oval. 2/10
Moeen Ali – The Ali of old returned for the final two games of the series. As always, he couldn’t stay out of the action. Despite playing three games less, he scored 44 runs fewer than a certain under-fire opener. 7/10
Rooooooot – As a captain, he outperformed his counterpart, Virat Kohli. His field settings were his stand out strengths. The runs didn’t flow early on but he was back to his best in the end. 8/10
Bairstow – Not the best of series for the ginger Yorkshireman. The team management messing around with his batting position didn’t help. Nor was giving Buttler the gloves. 4/10
Stokes – The best cricketer in the world. He may not have scored the big runs or taken a big haul of wickets. But, in typical Stokes style, he was always involved. Starting with Kohli at Edgbaston, he constantly made vital breakthroughs and scored tough runs down the order. 8/10
Buttler – Man of the summer for England. Ed Smith is taking pictures of his wife off the wall and replacing them with Buttler as we speak. 349 runs (down the order) at an average of nearly 40 is top draw. 8.5/10
Rashid – He didn’t do much right nor did he do much wrong during this series. England did play with ten men most of the time, even then India still lost. Ball of the series to Rahul at the Oval. 4/10
Curran – What a breakthrough summer for the Surrey lad. 272 runs and 11 wickets during the series. And he was dropped at one point! He is a must for SL. 9/10
Broad – Not always consistent, but still able to take crucial wickets. 7/10
Anderson – When he makes the ball talk, he is unplayable. Even when there’s not much happening, his skill to hold up an end stands out. The greatest fast bowler England have produced. And the best exponent of the Duke ball. 8/10
Others: Pope (4), Malan (2) and Woakes (8)
India
KL Rahul – Aside from his 149, Rahul struggled to find his feet in England. Nonetheless, he still performed better than his senior partners. 5/10
Dhawan – The definition of ‘home track bully’. In India, he averages 56, but on the road, he averages in the 20’s. 1/10
Pujara – Played one of the knocks of the series at Southampton. 6/10
Kohli – From a batting point of view, he was outstanding. As a captain, his decision-making proved to be very costly. Kohli’s 100 at Edgbaston was one of the best knocks seen on these shores. But then he let himself down by not picking Jadeja earlier and making questionable bowling changes. Batting= 10/10. Captaincy= 2/10
Rahane – He had numerous starts but he simply couldn’t convert it into a big score. 4/10
Pant – The youngster has promise but requires patience with bat and gloves. 4/10
Pandya – Like Martin Johnson said of the England team in 1986, ‘Can’t bat, can’t bowl and can’t field’. Enough said. 2/10
Ashwin – In truth, after a brilliant start at Edgbaston, he struggled thereafter. 4/10
Shami, Sharma, and Bumrah- The best seam attack India have produced in a long time. It ended badly at the Oval, but for the majority, they outperformed their counterparts. 8/10
Others: Jadeja (9), Vihari (6), Vijay (1), Karthik (1), U.Yadav (5) and K.Yadav (0)
