England's day in the dirt during the second Test against West Indies at Trent Bridge is the start of life without James Anderson but they must develop ruthlessness in all facets, says chief cricket writer Stephan Shemilt.
Now a former England player, Anderson had the luxury of a seat in the dressing room, rather than a day in the dirt, as his old team-mates were slow roasted by Kavem Hodge in the Trent Bridge sun.As a newly appointed consultant, Anderson has been teaching Ben Stokes how to bowl the wobble seam and throwing the ball for Brendon McCullum to edge to the slip fielders for catching practice, the latter lacking the accuracy of his bowling.
Where would the great pair have taken England on Friday? A question impossible to answer, but it is not too much of a leap to suggest even two GOATs would have found it a slog. It might be a stretch to say the attack has been refreshed when it contains 35-year-old Chris Woakes and 34-year-old Mark Wood, though Shoaib Bashir only made his first-class debut last June and Gus Atkinson is England’s new-ball bowler despite opening on just three previous occasions for Surrey.
Stokes said he couldn't answer the question without sounding "ageist" and admitted that all who remain in the squad are in contention for the Ashes tour. Pace is not lacking for Wood, who England would quite happily cryogenically freeze for the next year and a bit to ensure he is on the plane down under. His bowling at Trent Bridge was electrifying, the fastest ever recorded by an England bowler in a home Test.Such was the fire and brimstone wrought by Wood, Hodge pleaded for mercy by telling the bowler he had a "wife and kids" back in Dominica.
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