‘Don’t get too funky with selection’ – Gough wants Broad, Woakes in XI
Darren Gough, the former England seamer, has advised the management to keep selection simple for the second West Indies Test at Old Trafford, saying Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes should be brought in to the XI.
The decision to drop Stuart Broad, the veteran paceman, who is just 15 short of 500 Test wickets, from the XI in Southampton hasn’t gone down well after England lost the Test by four wickets on Sunday. Jofra Archer went wicket-less in the first innings, although he was the pick of the England bowlers hitting back with three in the second, while Mark Wood took a total of two wickets in two innings.
That has led to calls for Broad, who said he was angry and frustrated to be left out of the team, to be returned to the XI for the second Test in Old Trafford. Gough, for one, believes Broad should be brought back in along with Chris Woakes, the other paceman in the squad, resting one of Archer and Wood for every game hereafter.
“I think Broad’s coming back in,” Gough told Sky Sports’ The Cricket Debate podcast. “I would rest Wood and Anderson at Old Trafford and bring in Broad and Woakes. That would be my plan then, with back-to-back Test matches, you bring Anderson and Wood back [for the third Test]. I’ve said from the start – rotate Archer and Wood.
“We got a bit carried away, seeing Wood bowl really quickly in South Africa. We’ve seen Archer do it, but it’s very hard to do it every single game.
“Broad, Woakes and Anderson are the reliable three, while Archer and Wood will blow away the opposition on their day. Pick the right player for the right conditions, and don’t get too funky with selection. Stick to the plan and England will come back in this Test series.”
— Jofra Archer (@JofraArcher) July 12, 2020
Gough also said that it was Jos Buttler’s last chance saloon – he hasn’t reached 50 in his last 12 innings, and scored 35 and 4 in the two innings in Southampton. “Buttler has got two Test matches to save his career, for me,” he said. “He’s a terrific talent, lots of kids look up to him and he has all the shots.
“But, in Test cricket, you can’t just keep getting out and that’s what he keeps doing.”
