The Bayliss conundrum

Trevor Bayliss could be forgiven for a somewhat resigned look as he answered questions from the media after England’s defeat in the first Test against Pakistan.

How would he know which batsmen might be line to replace those who failed at Lord’s? How could he know if there are better spinners available to England than Moeen Ali or Adil Rashid? What’s the point in asking him about wicketkeeping options?

Because Bayliss, through no fault of his own, knows little about county cricket. He has never played it, hardly watched it and admits to not having seen several of the contenders to England positions play a game.

It does not mean his appointment was an error – England’s results in the last year or so suggest quite the opposite – but it is a major weakness. It is compounded by the England’s relentless schedule, which hardly allows him a chance to plug the holes in his knowledge with scouting trips (he quite reasonably – essentially, even – took a brief holiday after the World T20), and the fact that that Alastair Cook, his Test captain, plays Division Two cricket with Essex and rarely comes up against most of those in contention. As a result, what have traditionally been the two most powerful voices in selection – the captain and the coach – are severely compromised when it comes to expressing opinions over new options or form players.

So it is not surprising that this England team management is pursuing a ‘continuity of selection’ policy. Anything else would largely be guesswork.

And while there are obvious benefits in that policy, there are also times when it unnecessarily limits the talent pool available to the national side. Was talk of recalling Jos Buttler (who has still not played a first-class game since he was dropped in October) ahead of the Pakistan Test series based on his ODI form? Or the possibility that he is one of the few players Bayliss knows?

While the England set-up is blessed by the knowledge and experience of Paul Farbrace, a man who tends to spend his days off nipping to a county ground to catch the latest action, he isn’t officially a selector. Which leaves Bayliss hugely reliant upon the opinions of the other selectors Mick Newell and Angus Fraser, who also directors of cricket at Nottinghamshire and Middlesex, and James Whitaker, the chairman of selectors and the one man with the freedom to watch players in both divisions. Andrew Strauss remains occupied more with strategic direction than specifics of selection.

Whitaker is an assiduous fellow. Whatever you think of his opinions – and there …

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