Ashes 2013: Andy Flower gives his full backing to under-fire Stuart Broad over refusal to walk

The latest debate has been fuelled by Stuart Broad’s decision not to walk after being caught at slip in England’s second innings at Trent Bridge. Broad, on 37, went on to make 65, a difference of 28 which proved vital in a pulsating contest England won by 14 runs. The decision of the umpire Aleem Dar to give Broad not out was not reviewed by Australia because they had already used their two permitted referrals.

Andy Flower, England’s head coach, supported his player yesterday. “When I played cricket I didn’t walk if I’d edged it, so I’d be a hypocrite to say that all other players should walk,” he said. “Most players leave it to the umpires to make the decision and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.”

When Flower was playing for Zimbabwe he was involved in a heated incident during a match with England 12 years ago. On 99, the England wicketkeeper James Foster went up for a catch but the appeal was turned down. Foster and Flower were involved in an ugly exchange of words.

That was a one-day international in Harare, not the heat of an Ashes  battle. Broad has been attracting singular criticism, although both Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin declined to walk in Australia’s second innings. Clarke asked for his decision to be reviewed after being given out, a decision which was upheld, and Haddin,  on what was the last ball of the match, was sent on his way only when technology proved that he had inside edged the ball.

Darren Lehmann, Australia’s coach, perhaps encapsulated the view of both teams. “It’s dealt with as far as I’m concerned,” he said. “ The DRS [Decision Review System] has improved the  decision-making process. Both sides have the same issues. We’ve got to get  better at using it, basically.”

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Ashes 2013: The complete package - how James Anderson became England’s go-to man

It was clear at Nottingham that Anderson is Cook’s go-to man, the fast bowler he believes will produce a moment of inspiration or supreme skill when his team needs it most. Cook trusts Anderson implicitly. He knows he is the man who can make him look good as a supreme captain. Between the pair a field and plan  are set, Anderson bowls to them and they produce results. It sounds easy but consistently bowling to a plan is a talent very few bowlers possess.

And this is why I couldn’t give a damn about the rankings and who people think is the best. The table is a bit of fun but the conclusions the mathematicians reach are largely irrelevant. I am sure in their calculation Anderson gained more points for knocking over New Zealand’s top order in seamer-friendly conditions at Lord’s in May than for dismissing Australia’s lower order at a steaming-hot, pressure cooker Trent Bridge on Sunday. We know what was more valuable and all that is important is that James Anderson is British and he  continues to win games of cricket for England.

Of far greater interest is what actually makes Anderson the world-class performer he is. Fast bowlers need a number of assets and characteristics to compete in a game that is largely geared to favour batsmen. It is, for example, extremely advantageous for a fast bowler to be tall, fast and intimidating. Yet these are not the resources that stand out in Anderson’s profile. At 6ft 2in he is not small but many of England’s other bowlers – Stuart Broad, Steven Finn, Graham Onions, Chris Tremlett and Boyd Rankin – tower above the 30-year-old. Neither is he lethally quick. Anderson generally checks in at between  80 and 85 mph. He doesn’t snarl like Merv Hughes either.

Although Anderson is a wonderful athlete it is his personal rather than physical qualities that make him stand out. Cricket history states that the great Sydney Barnes was an unbelievably skilful bowler yet it is hard to believe he possessed greater qualities than Anderson.

Nowhere were Anderson’s skills highlighted more than during a Sky Sports Masterclass filmed last year. Now I thought I had pretty good control of a cricket ball but during this session Anderson was producing staggering precision – attention to detail I struggled to comprehend. The fact that he was able to control which way the new ball swung by a simple, last-minute movement of the wrist; that he could deliberately hit the seam of the ball on an intended side and also release the ball with the seam wobbling, a skill that means the ball could move either way, was breathtaking. It was fascinating and illuminating to watch a master showing and explaining his craft.

But a fast bowler would be ridiculed and hopelessly exposed if he did not have a big heart and an unbreakable desire. Bowling is an unbelievably tough job, especially in the climate the first Ashes Test was played in. Anderson will have pushed himself as hard as he did at Trent Bridge on numerous occasions in the past and had very little to show for his efforts. But the reason why you go through the tough, unrewarding days is because you believe that somewhere along the line you will get what you deserve, and Anderson received just that in Nottingham.

The lesson to be learnt for many aspiring young fast bowlers and coaches is that Anderson’s rise to the top has not happened overnight. I clearly remember him making his England debut in a one-day  international against Australia at the MCG in December 2002. The Ashes were already lost and England were on the wrong end of a mauling from  Adam Gilchrist and Ricky Ponting, who both scored hundreds in a total in excess of 300.

Anderson went for 46 in six overs but even then there seemed a spirit in him. He was not overawed by a huge crowd and great players. Gilchrist became his first international wicket when he bowled him for 124.

He then spent the next five years on the periphery of the Test side and with coaches trying to change his bowling action. I recall interviewing him at New Road, Worcester ,when he was at his most frustrated. We just sat talking bowling for an hour or so, and I take no credit for what has happened since.

At the time Anderson was obsessed with taking wickets and he chased them recklessly. To him they were all that counted. It was the only way he felt he would force his way in to the England side. I told him he was going about things the wrong way, and that what he should attempt to do was bowl consistently well and to trust the game. The number in the maiden column was just as important as the number in the wicket column. The aim should be to bowl with consistency so that even on a wicketless day he was still doing a job for the team. It is not a coincidence that Anderson now consistently concedes fewer than three runs per over, offering his captain control as well as a cutting edge.

As impressive as anything is his adaptability. As he proved this week he is a threat in any conditions and on any type of pitch. This is achieved through conventional or reverse swing, by subtle changes of pace and angles or by simple seam movement. Basically, he is the complete package.

The England team know what an asset they have and, when possible, will handle him like a Ming vase. Without him this Ashes series could take a different road to that many predicted.

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Round-Up: Warwickshire lose title hero Wright to injury for six months

The 27-year-old seamer, who earned an England Lions call-up in May, was unable to bowl in the second innings against Middlesex at Uxbridge last week – when Warwickshire earned only their second win of the season – and faces a six-month rehabilitation.  

Warwickshire could still mount a late resurgence in defence of their title, although anything less than a win over Nottinghamshire would surely leave them too far adrift of First Division leaders Sussex and anxious about being dragged into a relegation struggle. 

They won the toss and elected to bat at Edgbaston but on a slow pitch needed 72 overs to claim a first batting point before losing Chris Woakes and Rikki Clarke in quick succession to be 213 for 6, the latter falling to a stunning one-handed catch at midwicket by James Taylor.  Earlier, Uxbridge double centurion Varun Chopra made only 10 and Ian Westwood, dropped on 32 and 50,  passed 6,000 career first-class runs but fell for 68, before Laurie Evans (85) led a recovery to 254 for 6 at the close.

Veteran Murray Goodwin continues to suggest Sussex might have been premature in dispensing with his services after 12 years. The 40-year-old Zimbabwean, who averaged 1,200 first-class runs per season in his stint at Hove,  was released seemingly on the strength of one lean season in 2012, when he managed only 360. Yet he has rediscovered his form emphatically since joining Glamorgan, for whom he completed his third century of the season against Lancashire at Old Trafford.

Gloucestershire supporters have received an apology from captain Michael Klinger for the state of the pitch after his side were bowled out for 96 in the first Twenty20 match to be staged at the Cheltenham Festival on Sunday. “No one expected the wicket to be of such a poor standard,” Klinger said. Tonight, his side meet Northamptonshire in another Twenty20 at the College Ground.

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Ashes 2013: Jimmy Anderson torments the Australians – and then delivers the final thrust

It would have, he said, “The Prado looking like some big American college building with sprinklers watering the grass in the bright Madrid summer morning...

“It would have had the change when you leave the green country behind at Alsasua; it would have had Burgos far across the plain and eating the cheese later up in the room; it would have had the boy taking the wicker-bound jugs of wine on the train as samples; his first trip to Madrid and opening them in enthusiasm and they all got drunk, including the pair of Guardia Civil; it should make clear the change in the country as you come down out of the mountains and into Valencia in the dusk on the train... It should have the smell of burnt powder and the smoke and the flash and the noise of the traca going off through the green leaves of the trees... and the mounted head of the bull Gitanillo had killed.”

That was Hemingway after watching a few bullfights. Heaven knows his exhilaration had he seen the English matador James Anderson deliver the moment of truth to Brad Haddin in the old Plaza de Toros otherwise known as Trent Bridge. That would surely have been grounds for a number of wicker-bound jugs of the good wine.

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Most of us just sat about eating Cornettos before that final session

I owed the team those runs. I’ve felt in good form all year, but I haven’t had the scores to show for it and I had a relatively disappointing year in 2012. I was flying in 2010 and 2011, but then I had a long lay-off ahead of going to the UAE and struggled against Saeed Ajmal, who is right up there among the toughest bowlers I’ve faced. Maybe I lost a bit of confidence as a result and it has taken a while to rediscover my best form.

It’s not as if I felt I had anything to prove. Maybe, if I had not enjoyed a good series in Australia in 2010-11, I might have felt that way. But I’ve had good innings before. I scored a century against India at Trent Bridge a couple of years ago that helped set up a victory and I’ve helped us fight for draws in Cape Town and Auckland. But, whatever the merits of other series, for anyone in England or Australia, the Ashes is always the biggest series you play so to contribute to a victory is a special feeling. It’s definitely the most important innings I’ve played in an Ashes match.

As a game it was up there with Edgbaston 2005 for drama. There were so many momentum swings; so much drama. From a personal perspective, it’s more satisfying to have played a large part in this result. When you look back on your career, you want to know you’ve scored your runs in the biggest games, under the most pressure. I did that at Trent Bridge.

I was at the other end when Stuart Broad survived ‘that’ appeal. I honestly didn’t know he had hit it and I’ve always thought Aleem Dar is an exceptional umpire. At the time I put the Australian reaction down to frustration. Broad didn’t mention the edge and I didn’t know about it until I saw a replay back in the dressing room. The fact is that almost no batsmen in world cricket ‘walk.’ It’s within everyone’s right to wait for the umpire’s decision and we have seen the batsmen of both sides do that in this game. I can’t see it causing any lingering problem between the teams.

You honestly don’t always know when you’ve edged it. I didn’t feel anything when I was out. I heard a nick, but I didn’t feel anything, and it was the same for Joe Root when he was caught down the legside. He heard something, but didn’t feel it and, had he reviewed, he may well have been successful. There was no sign of an edge on Hot Spot.

The Australian bowlers all like to have a chat - that’s a polite way of putting it - but, at this stage of my career, I barely even notice. Maybe, when I was younger, I wasn’t prepared for it, but now it just washes over me. I never respond. The whole purpose is to make you lose concentration so if you allow yourself to become distracted by it, you’re letting it affect your game.

We have a great bowler of our own these days. Jimmy Anderson’s career record might not show it - that can happen if you start your career early and learn your trade at the highest level - but he is well on his way to establishing himself as a great bowler. We’ve known for a few years that he was a match-winner in typical green, English conditions, but he has proved he is on dry, sub-continent style pitches where he gains reverse swing, too. I really can’t remember the last time he bowled badly with a red ball. He instils a sense of calm among the other bowlers and with his skill and fitness is a huge asset to us. I’m glad he’s on my team; I wouldn’t want to be facing him at this stage of his career.

It was pleasing to see how well he was supported in the field. Even in those last few minutes, Jonny Bairstow and I pulled off a couple of diving saves in the field that ensured we kept the batsmen under pressure. We made them fight for every run and in the end the pressure told.

We were amazingly calm. It can get very tense in those situations but, after lunch on the final day, most of us sat around eating Cornettos before going out for that final session.

Teams tend to work on remaining calm on the pitch and, in a way, that is easier as you have your job to do and you can lose yourself by concentrating on that. But it’s in the dressing room where things can become tense and, if that environment is wrong, other things fall apart. We were excellent in that respect at Trent Bridge. That bodes very well for us for the rest of the series. We know we’re going to be tested again and again, but we’re proved we can withstand that and come through it as the winning side.

To read Ian Bell’s columns in full thoughout the Ashes series, visit the leading cricket website espncricinfo.com

 

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Ashes 2013: After a perfect start, the only problem is actually coming up with something to follow it...

In the long period of assessment and prediction before the first ball was bowled at Trent Bridge (the second greatest ground anyone?) it was  generally recognised that the upshot might depend chiefly on two factors. The first was whether England were as good as generally thought, not least by themselves, the second was whether Australia were as bad as they themselves might have feared.

Those questions went some way to being answered in Nottingham: maybe and definitely not. If England prevail at Lord’s for the second time in  succession, after failing to beat Australia there for 75 years until 2009, they will take a 2-0 lead in the series. Australia would need to win the next three to regain the Ashes.

But that is to leap too far ahead for now. What five days in Nottingham did, as if it needed to be done, was to place Test cricket in a showcase that could sit proudly alongside one holding the Crown Jewels.

At lunchtime on the final day, BBC’s Test Match Special was receiving messages from people who were listening to events unfold in some of the more unlikely places around the globe,  including China and the Arctic Circle, rapt as the game reached its dramatic conclusion. On all parts of Planet Cricket the match had been enthralling. The decision by the television rights holders, Sky, to establish a special Ashes channel is looking inspired.

If a marketing company had brainstormed a promotional tool for Test cricket, it could not have emerged with a match quite as constantly engrossing. One side gained an advantage only for the other to hang on in there and then the other sneaked ahead again. The tension, the to-ing and fro-ing, the ebbing and flowing endured over all 14 sessions for five days and 14 runs was the eventual margin. It was actually only the 11th closest in terms of runs in Ashes history but that hardly does it justice.

Perhaps still stunned by what he had witnessed, Andy Flower, England’s head coach, was more measured than might have been expected even from such a calm head. “Obviously they’d fought back brilliantly and it was a great game,” he said. “Well done to them for getting that close. But I always believed that we could create enough chances to win that game. It’s great for all of us to be involved in such a great Test and I’m sure it will be a great series one way or the other. It was a brilliant game to be involved in.”

England announced an unchanged squad of 13 yesterday for the Lord’s match but that does not make the  selection of the final XI any more straightforward. That too will probably be unchanged.

Although Steve Finn was disappointing at Trent Bridge, it would be odd to omit a Middlesex bowler on his home ground for either of the two northerners, Tim Bresnan or Graham Onions. Finn was stoutly defended by Flower for the two breakthrough wickets he took in Australia’s first innings but his struggle for length throughout the match was reflected in the fact that Alastair Cook, England’s captain, was so loathe to bowl him by the end.

Perhaps nobody should have been surprised. Finn has been out of form for much of the summer but a man of 6ft 8in in height whose chief weapon as a fast bowler is bounce was being expected to ply his trade on a low, slow, arid strip of turf. It was a big ask and if Lord’s is similar then someone who can churn out over after over aiming for the top of off stump may be a wiser option.

Flower also defended Stuart Broad’s decision not to walk of his own accord when he edged the ball in England’s second innings and was given not out. It was against the general flow of public if not player opinion but brutally candid. “When I played cricket I didn’t walk when I’d edged it so I’d be a hypocrite to say that all other players should walk,” he said. “Most players leave it to the umpires to make the decision and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.”

It is pretty certain that the bowling attack will not stay the same throughout the two back-to-back series. England do not have an over-abundance of bowling reserves and Chris Tremlett, as he was three years ago, is being groomed for the trip Down Under this winter. If David Saker, the bowling coach and a huge fan of Tremlett, likes what he sees in the England nets in the next two days then he may be called to arms sooner.

Flower denied all knowledge of what the pitch at Lord’s may be like but it would be a surprise to turn up to find that it is anything other than bone dry, slow and likely to encourage both reverse swing and spin. England have made their bed and for now are wallowing in it.

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James Lawton on the Ashes 2013: James Anderson torments the Australians – then delivers the final thrust

It would have, he said, “The Prado looking like some big American college building with sprinklers watering the grass in the bright Madrid summer morning...

“It would have had the change when you leave the green country behind at Alsasua; it would have had Burgos far across the plain and eating the cheese later up in the room; it would have had the boy taking the wicker-bound jugs of wine on the train as samples; his first trip to Madrid and opening them in enthusiasm and they all got drunk, including the pair of Guardia Civil; it should make clear the change in the country as you come down out of the mountains and into Valencia in the dusk on the train... It should have the smell of burnt powder and the smoke and the flash and the noise of the traca going off through the green leaves of the trees... and the mounted head of the bull Gitanillo had killed.”

That was Hemingway after watching a few bullfights. Heaven knows his exhilaration had he seen the English matador James Anderson deliver the moment of truth to Brad Haddin in the old Plaza de Toros otherwise known as Trent Bridge. That would surely have been grounds for a number of wicker-bound jugs of the good wine.

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