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Westwood’s revival answers Warwickshire’s time of need
- Updated: August 24, 2016
Warwickshire 315 for 7 (Westwood 127) lead Durham 207 by 108 runsScorecard
Ian Westwood had the right to imagine that all eyes at Chester-le-Street were upon him. They weren’t but perhaps in a perfect world they would have been. After all, he had answered Warwickshire’s call in times of need.
It was Westwood who roused himself from an immensely dispiriting season to summon his first Championship century since April last year. And it was Westwood, an unsung professional since his county debut 15 years ago, who will probably prove to have laid to rest Warwickshire’s vague fears of relegation in the process. He deserved his day in the sun.
But enough of Westwood; you probably want to hear about Ian Bell. England certainly did. Trevor Bayliss, England’s coach, had reportedly explored whether theoretically he retained ambitions for a Test recall and, whatever the extent of his interest, the national selector James Whitaker was watching his every move – while also keeping an eye on the one-day international. Male ECB employees multi-tasking: whatever next?
As Westwood and Bell slowly amassed a position of strength, the bird life at Emirates Riverside seemed to capture their mood. Westwood, dropped for a large chunk of the season, had not made a fifty all season. He was the pigeon with the broken wing which now rests permanently by the sightscreen at one end of the ground and which has perked up a little since the groundstaff started feeding it a few weeks ago.
As for Bell, the swallows flitting across the ground just as Warwickshire took the lead begged a question. Gliding gracefully as summer entered its final month, it will not be …
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