Ollie Pope may be the hero England need
Picture this: Ollie Pope walks out into the eye of the storm against India at Headingley, having seen England’s top order torn to shreds for the umpteenth time by the visitors’ irresistible bowling attack. Pope, who has returned from an injury lay-off himself, needs to ensure that England get to safety while also trying to establish a position of ascendancy.
He tries but his shortcomings are mercilessly exposed as he joins a long list of English batters sent packing to the pavilion. And Pope, for all the expectations that have been pinned on him, fails to be England’s savior.
Imagine another scenario where Pope, in his sheepishly shy manner, strides out to the center, confronts an almighty Indian assault and stamps his authority. Not only does he thwart whatever the visitors throw at him, but he also shows the entire world why he has been touted for greatness since his Test debut, which lest one forget, was against India in the summer of 2018.
All of a sudden, Pope, quite literally, becomes the Three Lions’ messiah – something that was expected of the likes of Dom Sibley, Jonny Bairstow, Rory Burns and Zak Crawley. Normal service resumed then, eh?
For a large chunk of Pope’s international stint, he has looked every bit the player who can waltz into tempests and calm them down almost instantly. While a lot has rightly been moaned about the techniques of Messrs. Burns, Crawley and Sibley, with people like Sunil Gavaskar also terming them “ludicrous”, Pope has always been looked upon as someone boasting the class and the technique to succeed.
Comparisons with Ian Bell, especially when Pope unfurls the cover drive or the gorgeous flick on the leg side, haven’t been too far away. To an extent, Pope has even been the breath of fresh air in a batting unit that has been reeking of staleness and too much archaism.
However, despite the apparent talent, Pope, much like his batting contemporaries hasn’t been able to leave a mark on international cricket – something that an average of 31.50 in Test cricket testifies to.
Throughout his career, there have been instances when Pope has looked a million dollars, only for him to throw away good starts. In his most recent Test assignment against New Zealand, he seemed one of the few batters in pristine touch. Unfortunately, he couldn’t make it count, with his familiar frailties rearing up again.
Ever since his debut, Pope has seemed a batter possessing a tendency to fall across his stumps. To be fair, that particular propensity also allows him to access the leg side better. Against good bowling attacks, though, it could prove to be a death knell, for bowlers are accustomed to honing in on the pads.
At Lord’s, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj portrayed that they are capable of the same. More importantly, the aforementioned troika boasts the ability to straighten deliveries off a similar line and length, meaning that Pope’s proclivity to fish outside off stump could also be a potential wicket-taking avenue for India.
Also Read: The Mohammed Siraj era of fast bowling has officially begun
Apart from that, Pope doesn’t have a lot of runs behind him this summer, irrespective of the format.
In the New Zealand series, he only scored 84 runs at an average of 28. Alarmingly, he crossed the 15-run barrier on all occasions but still failed to manage more than 23 in each of his essays, indicating that he is prone to lapses in concentration.
Thus, the above points to Pope enduring a fate similar to what Burns, Crawley and Sibley have been treated to.
Ollie Pope has been labelled as an excellent prospect for England
Yet, there is something special about Pope – a trait that hasn’t been ubiquitous and offers glimpses only intermittently. When it does, though, it feels like Pope has the potential to be as extravagant, flamboyant and impactful as Joe Root, the highest accolade any English Test batter can currently receive.
Furthermore, Pope, three years after making his debut, is still not certain of his spot in the side. With the English batting line-up in turmoil, he might view this as the ideal window of opportunity to cement his place. Not only would it represent a tangible return for his undeniable talent, but it would also offer him the perfect platform to define this series and, of course, the upcoming Ashes tour.
Yet, as things stand, there are plenty of rough ends that the youngster has to smoothen before becoming the solution to England’s batting woes. And as unfortunate as it may sound, there hasn’t been a lot of evidence to suggest that Pope reviving the English batting unit from the dead is anything but conjecture.
Hence, the second scenario mentioned, which talks about Pope grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck and turning it England’s way, might not come to fruition, despite him seemingly being on the fringe of doing so.
The first one, on the other hand, is the fate that this English batting unit seems destined for. And unless there is some divine intervention on Pope’s part, that worrying trend could assume monumental proportions.
But with England having all but exhausted their plausible red-ball batting options, Pope could well be their last ray of hope, which for a 23-year-old who has played only 19 games of international cricket is a massive responsibility in itself.
Now, he has to be the batter who crafts an enormous turnaround in fortunes – all while trying to regain his own feet in international cricket. To that end, Pope may not be the hero England had envisioned at the start of the summer but the hero they perhaps need at this juncture.
That, apart from being a glowing assessment of what Pope can produce when on song, is a damning indictment of the levels of desperation English cricket is brooding over.
It was never meant to be this way, or at least that’s what England would want to think. However, it is now. And if Pope can’t provide the batting sanctity (pun intended) England crave, they might not be left with a lot of hope.
Also Read: England's love-hate relationship continues at Lord's