Alastair Cook could have been forgiven for scratching his head with confusion when he woke on Tuesday morning. With his team 1-0 up and sure of a series win, he might have expected some plaudits and praise. Instead, despite having come close to a three-day Test win against an opposition that had the better of the Test series in New Zealand only weeks ago, he found his tactics criticised and condemned.
Nothing illustrates how far this England team have come since New Zealand beat them in England in 1999 to sentence them to bottom place in the Test rankings. Success is not just expected from England now, it is demanded, and with style.
In the end, England won by 247 runs in almost exactly 10 sessions to wrap up a 2-0 series victory and largely vindicate their approach. Graeme Swann claimed a ten-wicket haul to emulate Derek Underwood, the last spinner to take ten wickets in a Test at Headingley back in 1972.
Only 11 overs were possible on the fifth morning in between the forecast rain. When play did start after a 45-minute hiatus, it did not take England long to remove the only remaining specialist batsman. For the fourth time in the series, Stuart Broad dismissed the New Zealand captain, this time clinging on to a sharp caught-and-bowled chance as Brendon McCullum mistimed a drive off the bottom of the bat. The dismissal meant McCullum scored only 31 runs in the series.
But the wicket came at a cost to England as Broad appeared to cut his knee diving for the catch - blood was visible through his trousers - and left the pitch for treatment shortly afterwards.
England might have had Tim Southee on 26, as he edged one from Swann that did not turn, but Jonathan Trott, at slip, could not hold on to the chance in his left hand. To rub salt in the wound, Southee slog-swept the next ball for six.
It was far from the only aggressive stroke he played. Despite a man waiting for the stroke on the midwicket boundary, Southee pulled Steven Finn's first ball for six and drove Broad for a thumping straight four. Doug Bracewell also pulled Finn for a six in an eighth-wicket stand of 56 in only 41 balls.
Swann made the second breakthrough with another delivery that slid on with the arm and again took the edge of Southee's bat. This time Trott clung on to another tricky chance by his left boot. It made Swann the first spinner to claim a five-wicket haul in a Test at Headingley since John Emburey did so in the Ashes of 1985.
But just five more deliveries were possible before the rain - for a while spitting - grew harder and the umpires led the players from the pitch for an early lunch. After a long delay, play resumed at 3pm. Just eight balls later Bracewell was given out to an inside edge but it was overruled using DRS, with replays showing the ball had deflected off the pad, not the bat. But, in Swann's next over, he had the same batsman smartly caught by Ian Bell at silly point off bat and pad. It gave Swann a ten-wicket haul for the third time in Test cricket and his first in England.
Neil Wagner and Trent Boult resisted for another eight scoreless overs but the return of James Anderson brought immediate rewards. With his third delivery, he drew Boult into a push that took the outside edge and carried to Matt Prior. It gave Anderson his 307th Test wicket to take him level with Fred Trueman's tally. Now only Sir Ian Botham and Bob Willis have more than Anderson for England.
The results means England go into the Ashes with four wins in their last eight Tests and unbeaten in that period. But they can take more than victory from this game. The re-emergence of Finn as a bowler of pace and hostility and proof that Swann has rediscovered his best form following elbow surgery means England go into the Ashes with a balanced, settled attack capable of troubling most line-ups on most surfaces.
There are one or two issues with the batting - the survival of Nick Compton at the top of the order will remain a debating point - but, with Kevin Pietersen back in the nets and Joe Root emerging as a fine player, England can feel pretty well prepared for the Ashes.
Their tactics in this match were questionable, however. Had they enforced the follow-on or declared their second innings earlier - even a lunch-time declaration on day four would have given them a vital extra half-hour - they might have secured victory without gambling on a break in the clouds. As it was, they endured a nervous day watching it drizzle and hoping to squeeze in any more play. Ultimately they required about 90 minutes play on the final day, into which they squeezed 22 overs.
Perhaps England betrayed some of their anxiety on the final morning. Andy Flower, the England coach, could be seen having an animated conversation with the groundsman minutes after the rain stopped. It would be unwise to try speculate in too much detail as to Flower's intentions, but it seems safe to assume he was making the point that, if the rain was only to relent for short periods, England needed play to resume as soon as possible. As tends to be the case, Flower got his way despite a counter-argument from his New Zealand counterpart, Mike Hesson.
In different circumstances, criticism might instead have been directed at Yorkshire rather than England. On most Test grounds in the UK, the floodlights could have been utilised for play to continue on the fourth day, but there are no floodlights at Headingley. It is also worth noting that, in a summer where every other Test will be all but a sell-out - even the Lord's Test against New Zealand - this match has been played, at times, in front of vast banks of empty seats. For all the rich history and fine atmosphere, the future of Test cricket in Yorkshire remains precarious.
England extend NZ dominance
Boult doubtful for Champions Trophy
New Zealand's need to regroup after their Test defeat against England before the Champions Trophy has been made doubly difficult by the possibility that they will lose Trent Boult for the tournament because of injury.
Boult has carried the fight for New Zealand with 19 wickets at 25.47 in five Tests, home and away, against England, but his side strain is not responding to treatment and he will have a scan in London on Wednesday to assess the damage.
"He's not looking great," New Zealand's captain, Brendon McCullum, lamented. "He is still not moving that freely which is a shame because he's been a revelation for us this season."
Until a fateful Sunday at Lord's, New Zealand had pressed England all the way, but their capitulation for 68 in only 22.3 overs against Stuart Broad and James Anderson was an experience from which they never recovered.
"Right up until that point our self-belief was very high and that ripped our hearts out and just started to create some self-doubt among us, which is a horrible thing in this game," McCullum said. "That's what unfolded in this Test. We still had periods where we dominated but they didn't last long enough and the periods of England dominating seemed to last a lot longer.
"We saw in this Test match England flexing their muscles and us not being able to respond. It's incredibly disappointing. If you look back on the last five Test matches we've played some good cricket and taken some strides forward but it's fair to say this one was a step backwards."
McCullum has seen enough to favour England in the Ashes later this summer. "England are red-hot favourites at home, their ability to swing the Dukes ball is huge," he said. "Any team that plays at home is familiar with the surroundings."
There will be no overreaction to New Zealand's batting failures if McCullum gets his way. He insisted that he retained faith in the potential of the group that, until the past ten days, had begun to promise a brighter Test future.
"If you fast forward 18 months, we've got the makings of a very good cricket team," he said. "I'm a big fan of protecting the people who have performed for a period of time and that's what we've seen from this group of players. We've got the right mix and the right balance in this group and we need to keep improving as a team and smooth out some of our rough edges."
He dismissed suggestions that New Zealand, six down overnight, were caught on the hop when they did not bother with morning nets before the Test resumed under sullen Leeds skies. The forecast had left Leeds on the edge of a bank of heavy rain but it only suffered light drizzle and a delayed start and a couple of interruptions were not enough to halt England's charge to victory.
McCullum, one of the not-out batsmen overnight, fell early to a superb return catch by Stuart Broad, who dismissed him in all four innings in the series. After that, Tim Southee and Doug Bracewell chose to counterattack - Southee seems to know no other way - and then Neil Wagner and Boult sought to block. As rain was a constant threat, it seemed an idiosyncratic approach towards trying to save a Test.
New Zealand's emphasis now turns to the Champions Trophy. They have eight squad changes but the first player McCullum needs to consider when it comes to reintegration is himself. Having stepped in as wicketkeeper because of an injury to BJ Watling, he now has to decide whether to continue in the role or hand over the gloves to Luke Ronchi.
"I've always said I'd never have any regrets through my career and that doesn't change," he said.
"Obviously I wasn't as fluent as I would like to be, like when I was 21, and I wasn't able to contribute with the bat as much as I wanted, but it was a decision we made and I'll stand by it. It didn't affect my batting, I'd love to say it was an excuse for why I didn't get runs but I can't claim that.
"The keeping role is something we need to talk about in the next 24 hours before we start to nail down the one-day team. It's definitely up for discussion. Luke is definitely going to play as an opener. We need to work out what's comfortable for both of us and the team."
England must end insularity to become great
If England had indicated a greater arrogance born of their total control of the match, there would have been no need for today's weather-led nervousness
It was a tortured process but we got there in the end. A surprisingly generous weather God and two empathetic umpires saw the second Test match to a conclusion. From it came embarrassment for New Zealand and the satisfaction of a job extremely well done by England.
It was a close run thing and might easily have not worked out so well. The splendid umpires, Marais Erasmus and Steve Davis, of no-nonsense South African and Australian hue respectively, had kept the players at it through murky light on day four and annoying drizzle on the final day. Only clearly unfair conditions took them from the field of play.
There was much to admire in England's performance, not just here but at Lord's too. The hiccup a couple of months back in New Zealand has been sorted. England are firing much as they should and thus will worry the heck out of Michael Clarke and the boys, who had watched in Dunedin and Auckland and thought there were lines to breach.
Outside of Alastair Cook and Graeme Swann, who both played some sublime cricket, it was fresh faces that caught the eye. Joe Root for his original talent. Johnny Bairstow for his intent and Steve Finn for being a no frills old-fashioned fast bower when England needed just that. The balance in the attack is one of its strengths. That, and the way in which the bowlers sustain their attack on the stumps.
Afterwards, when asked about Jonathan Trott's indifference on Sunday afternoon - he scored 11 from 69 balls - Cook made reference to the "one percenters". His implication was not to dwell on minutia at a time of celebration but to recognise and learn. Fair call, let's do that for a moment.
The captain will now appreciate that there is more than one way to skin the cat. He might have enforced the follow-on on Sunday afternoon but, reasonably enough, he chose not to. He should have declared earlier that he did on Monday afternoon, to give himself the best chance of finishing the game before the predicted rains came. He would not wish to be a slave to the forecasters - Michael Fish put everyone off forever - but if they say it will rain in Yorkshire in May, they are probably right.
First the follow-on. Three good reasons persuaded Cook to bat again. Firstly, protection of his bowlers from burn out. Four man attacks and seven tests, six of which are back-to-back, mean careful player management. Secondly, modernism - the international captains of the moment love to squeeze every drop of hope from the opposition's portfolio of response.
Richie Benaud will not refer to a "declaration" in instances where the game is shut down by the batting side, rather he talks of "closure". And thirdly, ensuring further deterioration of the pitch by batting on it yourself while natural wear and tear takes its course and while the New Zealand bowlers run all over the bits that Swann aims at. There is a fourth reason and not such a good one.
We will come to it later.
There is no doubt that Steve Waugh's decision to enforce the follow-on at Calcutta in 2001 - a decision that famously backfired - changed the Australian approach. Waugh liked the term "mental disintegration" and applied it to his tactics as much as to vulnerable members of the opposition. Back then, the game was in thrall of the Australians and most captains followed their lead. Michael Vaughan was not one. He made Ricky Ponting's fine team follow-on at Trent Bridge in 2005, a brave move that worked out well in the end - though not without Shane Warne's Herculean effort to embarrass him.
| There should have been no need for Andy Flower's animated exhortations to the groundstaff, desperate appeals and pleading looks to the sky | |||
The key is flexibility: repeat, there is more than one way to skin the cat. Cook opted for safety first and then a crushing of the enemy spirit. When interviewed on Monday evening Trott called it the natural course of the match, which is as he knows it but not necessarily how it must be.
The great sides have options and they create, even reinvent. Cook had bowlers who were fresh enough and who do not play another Test until July. It was a good time for him to see another place. Mind you, this is not an argument you would win with England's captain and fair enough. His team won the match by a mile and everyone had a good workout. The excellent quality of most of the cricket confirmed they are clear favourites for the Ashes. We can hardly quibble.
But "closure?" We can quibble with that. The perfect time might have been at lunch, with the lead at 429, though there was a case to allow Root and Bairstow such abandon. The time at which the two tyros - high, happy and unbeaten - had hurried the lead to 450 was the next time to pull out. The opportunity to outwit nature and New Zealand on the same day was spurned by this caution.
If this sounds pedantic, it is only to make a point. If England are to become the best team in the world and to play a brand of cricket that leaves some sort of legacy, they have to move out of insularity and into some rarified space. Witness the unambitious fields that were placed once the hardness had worn off the ball. The reason for setting a mammoth target is that it is not attainable and therefore aggressive plays are at your fingertips for the remainder of the match. Yet England had sweepers out, protecting the boundaries and, for a time to Ross Taylor, placed only one slip.
If England had shown greater urgency, had imposed themselves without apprehension, had indicated a greater arrogance born of their total control of the match, there would have been no need for today's weather-led nervousness. No need for Andy Flower's animated exhortations to the groundstaff; no need for desperate appeals to the umpires and pleading looks to the sky; no need to crank up the bowlers on a cold, damp day.
Maybe, in a reversal of Australia's Calcutta experience, the captain will be once bitten and now shy. Maybe the follow-on floodgates will open again, though more likely he will tell Trott to press on next time for in truth, Monday's declaration procrastination arose out of Trott's tardy fare on Sunday afternoon. There was an excuse for Nick Compton's go-slow - 7 from 45 balls - but not for Trott, who was chained by self-absorption.
Finally then to Compton: the fourth possible reason for not enforcing the follow-on. It is a worthy policy of both selectors and team management to back the ones they choose. It will go against their grain to leave Compton out at Nottingham against Australia so surely, here at Leeds in a match with only one winner, the opportunity to see if he might let go a bit, might break free of the tension that has engulfed him, was a temptation. It maybe that his painful inability to do so has made their decision easier. Of course, a good batsmen has not become a bad one in a fortnight. Somerset will have the benefit of his rehabilitation and which of us dare say it will not be complete in time for him to have another crack at the dream that must now haunt him.
Meanwhile, it's Root to open, Kevin Pietersen to return and Bairstow to stay at No. 6. Simple really.
Go Joe.
Cook, Flower claim tactics 'vindicated'
Alastair Cook and Andy Flower insisted their tactics had been "vindicated" after England won the second Test against New Zealand by 247 runs to clinch a 2-0 series victory.
While Cook admitted he endured some nervous moments waiting for the rain to clear, he also defended his decision not to enforce the follow-on and to delay his declaration until after lunch on day four. By then England had a lead of 467 and meteorologists were warning that the fifth day could be severely curtailed by rain.
So it proved, too, with only 45 minutes possible before lunch and play not resuming until 3pm. But it was long enough for England to claim the final four wickets they required to secure victory.
"The result definitely vindicates the decision," Cook said. "There is absolutely no doubt about that at all. To win by 250 runs is a good win and in just over three days cricket effectively, it is an outstanding performance. You are judged as a captain on results. In this game we have won by 250 runs.
"I would not say it was a sleepless night but we were praying for an opportunity to get enough time to go out there and win the game. Clearly, I woke up this morning and the first thing I did was look out the window. We knew rain was about but we thought there would be a few windows of opportunity."
While there was much to celebrate for England - the form and fitness of Graeme Swann, the hostility of Steven Finn and the batting of Joe Root and Cook - one or two areas of concern remain.
The form of Nick Compton, 39 runs in four innings this series, was a disappointment and debate over his position will continue. With Kevin Pietersen back in training and likely to return to the middle order for the Ashes, moving Root to open is one option that is sure to be discussed in the coming weeks.
Neither Cook nor Flower would commit to Compton's selection for the Ashes, but Cook did admit that changing such "an important position" ahead of such high-profile games would constitute "a risk".
"He's struggled in these few Tests, certainly," Flower added. "The Ashes is quite a long way away. Let's allow the dust to settle on this series. Then we'll chat about the line-up and the conditions and the opposition.
"He's got to go away, get back into form and score some heavy runs for Somerset. He goes back into a couple of one-day games. Hopefully the one-day games will be good for him. He can go out and enjoy hitting the ball. That will be the catalyst for him going into the first-class game feeling confident."
| "He's been really dedicated and disciplined in his rehabilitation and he seems in better physical condition than he has been for a while." Andy Flower on Graeme Swann | |||
Flower, in particular, appeared to take exception to the line of questioning from some media following the game. Talking to the BBC, he said: "I thought it was a very good performance by our side. We won by over 200 runs. Cook scored another hundred.
He has 25 Test hundreds; more than Viv Richards or Greg Chappell. Swann is back in form and his elbow has come through surgery recently.
The two young Yorkshire guys have had a great game. Finn on a flat deck has bowled outstandingly well. Those are all things that I'd prefer to focus on than some of the negative things you mention."
But both Cook and Flower admitted there were some areas where England could have performed a little better. While Cook referred to criticism of Trott's sedate progress on the third evening, 11 in 69 balls despite England beginning their second innings with a lead of 180, as "nit-picking", Flower accepted that "he could have been more urgent".
"We had a great example of running between the wickets and the right sort of balance between defence and attack and urgency from the two young Yorkshire guys in the first innings," Flower said. "They batted beautifully. Trott could have learned a little from those two. But the following morning he put us in a great position to win the game."
Flower and Cook justified the decision not to enforce the follow-on, believing the wicket would only deteriorate as the match progressed. "We chose to bat again and get well ahead of them," Flower agreed. "We thought we would have enough time on a wearing pitch to take the last 10 wickets and that's how it proved."
The start of the final day was noticeable for Flower remonstrating with the groundstaff to remove the covers more quickly.
"I shouldn't be out there doing the officials' job," Flower said. "It wasn't raining so I'm not sure why the covers weren't being removed. I don't understand why it took so long to get the game started, regardless of the position that we were in. The officials have a responsibility to get the game going when conditions suit and it wasn't raining. The lack of activity was baffling."
But in general, Flower was in the mood to celebrate the encouraging performances of Swann and the two young local batsmen, Root and Jonny Bairstow.
"Swann bowled superbly in the first innings; the ball came out of his hand absolutely beautifully," Flower said. "I didn't actually think he bowled as well in the second innings. I don't think he was quite comfortable with the ball. But he still took 6 for 90 and turned the match our way. I'm very encouraged by the way he's bowling and very happy for him that his elbow has come through surgery as well as it has. He's been really dedicated and disciplined in the way he's rehabilitated his elbow and he seems in better physical condition than he has been for a while.
"Root looks an excellent cricketer. His decision making in the middle; his balance has been excellent so far. It was great to see him get a hundred on his home ground and it was nice to see the enthusiasm and passion the Yorkshire supporters showed Joe.
"It was also great to see Bairstow bat with him. I know how happy Jonny was for Joe to get that 100, which was really nice to see. They are both good young men. Very different characters. But hopefully they will both have very successful England careers."
Play began 1145
Nz 190/7 (McCullum c&b broad 1, 162/7)
(Southee c Trott b Swann 38 (218/8)
Play resumed at 1500 BST after rain delay
WICKET Bracewell c Bell b Swann 19 (NZ 220-9)
TA Boult c †Prior b Anderson 0 (220)
ENGLAND WIN BY 247 RUNS & THE SERIES 2-0!
TA Boult c †Prior b Anderson 0 (220)
ENGLAND WIN BY 247 RUNS & THE SERIES 2-0!
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