Rob Key has a big decision to make around the positions of Matthew Mott and Jos Buttler. Key needs to work out what is required to make England a threat again; is it just a lack of quality players in these conditions, or is it the dynamic of the captain and the coach? I’ve got the sense that Mott and Buttler are working better together, but sometimes you have to send a bolt through the group.
My belief is that England’s issues with these conditions run a bit deeper than just the coach and captain. They made some mistakes. It was a curious decision to bowl at the toss. I am sure the dodgy weather played its part but on a dry pitch like that against India’s spinners, surely you bat first. Perhaps England were stuck in their ways because they chased so well against India in Adelaide two years ago. Just as at last year’s World Cup, they have never quite located their best team and got off to a slow start in the tournament too, which does fall at the door of Mott and Buttler.
But there are three key issues in these conditions for England. First, they are not a great fielding team, and do not have enough athletes. They had a couple of good moments but are way below South Africa’s level. With the bat they lack the power game on slower pitches, and with the ball they are a bit predictable. It’s a bit unfair to compare them to Jasprit Bumrah, the best in the world, but how many of our seamers have slower balls that completely deceive the batsman?
The tournaments come thick and fast but now is the time to rejig the team. A lot of these players have been in the setup since the white-ball revolution in 2015 – but that is nearly a decade ago! Chris Jordan, Moeen Ali, Mark Wood and Jonny Bairstow all might have reached the end. Adil Rashid had a fine tournament, but we need to think about life after him, too.
It is not total panic stations as they have enough good cricketers coming through to ensure that remain a competitive white-ball team. They do need a chance, though. Will Jacks was dropped midway through the tournament and Bairstow backed despite looking past his sell-by date and struggles against spin. Jamie Smith needs to play more. They would love a really good left-handed batsman, but I’m not sure who that player is at the moment.
I would encourage England to make a cultural decision to look ahead to the World Cups in 2026 and 2027, and the exact skills they are going to need. They will be looking at 30 or more players, and they must decide which of them have the game to thrive in those tournaments. Otherwise they will continue to struggle in conditions like these.