The Hindu : Sport : Vaughan under pressure as series begins

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Thursday, May 15, 2008
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Sport

Vaughan under pressure as series begins

Ted Corbett

England’s most successful Test captain seems to be struggling for runs

LONDON: Michael Vaughan is, beyond doubt, the greatest modern England Test captain. His 22 victories in 45 Tests are better than such giants as Len Hutton, Peter May, Ray Illingworth and Mike Brearley, his cool nerve won back the Ashes and his absence in the return series 16 months later was one cause of a 5-0 drubbing, and the good judges all praise his tactical moves.

Yet, as he begins his 46th Test in charge at Lords against a weak New Zealand, Vaughan is in danger of losing his job, as vulnerable as any Premier League manager in the relegation zone. He is simply not making enough runs.

He still has a Test average of 44, and at Lords he averages 54.12, including five of his 17 centuries. All of the England batsmen bat above 50 at cricket’s HQ but Vaughan has been the least convincing in the last year. The sight of him trudging back to the pavilion, helmet in hand, trying to wipe away his worries by running his hand across his hair and wearing the expression of a man who has, as they say in his home county of Yorkshire, lost a pound and found sixpence, is too frequent.

Lords is his opportunity to make good. His driving force must be to set up a 50th Test in charge at his Headingley base camp against South Africa on July 18 and go on to break Mike Atherton’s record of 54 Tests as captain during the winter.

Nowadays, it is customary to blame the former coach Duncan Fletcher for everything from the midday temperature to the rate of income tax but it was his idea to get Vaughan to widen his stance and make a series of trigger movements as the bowler approached. Vaughan is 33, late to shuffle technique again. The shadow of his sometime deputy Paul Collingwood may also bring a touch of nerves to his melancholy.

Unknown quantity

It is difficult to see the New Zealanders, with their own record-breaking, sensible and influential captain Stephen Fleming retired, and only one Test century between the likely top six batsmen, having any influence on this game. There is one surprise in prospect. Aaron Redmond, their opening batsman, has already made 146 and 74 off the England youngsters this weekend and he will expect to outdo his father who made a century in his only Test and quit because he could not get used to his contact lenses.

England has gone into early May games at Lords without a spinner but Matthew Hoggard was left out on Tuesday and sent back to Yorkshire. He was left out of the side for the second and third Tests in New Zealand and was within four wickets of drawing level with the tally put up by the immortal Brian Statham.

This decision gives English fans their first chance to see the much improved Stuart Broad in a Test although the professionals are complaining that this slim youngster lacks an essential piece of equipment for a fast bowler — a broad backside. No pun intended, of course.

The teams (from):

England: Michael Vaughan (captain), Andrew Strauss, Alistair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Tim Ambrose, Stuart Broad, Matthew Hoggard, Ryan Sidebottom, Monty Panesar, James Anderson

New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (captain), Aaron Redmond, Jamie How, James Marshall, Ross Taylor, Iain OBrien, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum, Mark Gillespie, Chris Martin, Tim Southee, Jeetan Patel.

Umpires: Steve Bucknor (West Indies) and Simon Taufel (Australia). TV umpire: Nigel Llong. Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka).