Image Credit- Getty
Although it appears to be much like the previous period at first glance, Trent Bridge is witnessing the beginning of a new one. The winning England lineup at Lord’s has only one alteration, but it’s a big one: James Anderson is leaving the team after 21 years and 188 appearances. However, if you believed that the future began right now, then the recent past is reaching out to you.
With a combined age of 69, Mark Wood and Chris Woakes were England’s winning combination in the second half of the historic Ashes series last summer. Their combination in the third Test at Headingley was especially potent, offering raw pace on the one hand, sharp swing and nibble on the other, and cool-headed management of a nerve-wracking run-chase on the fourth afternoon.
Now here they are again, the bowling assault of England, which for the first time since the West Indies at Edgbaston in 2012 will be without both Anderson and Stuart Broad in a home Test. Paradoxically, the selectors removed both players from that 2012 match with an eye towards the future as well, evaluating the potential for attack leadership in Steven Finn, Tim Bresnan, and Graham Onions—all three of whom retired before either of the key protagonists.
Here they are once more, England’s bowling onslaught, which will be without both Anderson and Stuart Broad in a home Test for the first time since the West Indies at Edgbaston in 2012. Paradoxically, the selectors also looked ahead, considering Graham Onions, Tim Bresnan, and Steven Finn, who all retired before either of the main protagonists, as possible attack leaders. As a result, they excluded both players from the 2012 match.
But, this week for the West Indies, it’s all about the batting, thanks to a sharp bowling assault that prevented England from sweeping the match at Lord’s. It’s concerning that it was difficult to assign a lot of blame during the first Test. Their lynchpin, Brathwaite, played a fallow game, which did not help, but the moments of poise they displayed—from Mikyle Louis’s rookie season to Alick Athanaze’s evident skill—were too frequently marred by errors that more than anything else spoke to a lack of experience at this level.
Gus Atkinson not only achieved the fourth-best stats ever by a Test debutant at Lord’s in a single Test appearance, but he also outperformed James Anderson’s 188 Test-match analysis. If he believed that the new bowling coach for his team would be difficult to follow, then he’s inadvertently put more pressure on himself. Fortunately for Atkinson and England, his phlegmatic demeanour appears to be matched by a similarly straightforward methodology.
It’s difficult to picture Atkinson deviating from his best work, even if his later comebacks don’t live up to this initial hype.
The West Indies really need their older combatants to step up if they are to win this series. Kraigg Brathwaite achieved just that in Headingley in 2017 as Shai Hope’s unsung hero, scoring 134 and 95. Two years prior, he did the same thing domestically, where a meticulous century in Barbados prepared his team for their series-decider in Grenada.
Despite his unwavering character, he has only scored one half-century in 16 innings since his most recent Test hundreds, which came against Zimbabwe in February 2023. Perhaps the carefree manner in which he was dismissed at Lord’s in the first innings after hacking outside off at Atkinson’s second delivery would provide him with the motivation he needs to intensify his crease occupation.