“We know that he is capable of great things in the test match cricket”; Captain Joe Root is confident that retired Dawid Malan can bring experience and insight into how to deal with top flight pressure from England against India; Watch the first day starting at 10 am, Wednesday on Sky Sports Cricket
Joe Root says Dawid Malan’s experience of playing in pressure situations in international cricket can help England’s higher order.
Joe Root believes that retired Dawid Malan can help bolster England’s beleaguered first rank due to his experience playing in high pressure situations.
The 33-year-old southpaw was added to the England squad for Test 3 against India and is expected to go straight into the XI at No. 3, with Haseeb Hameed advancing to open at Emerald Headingley.
Malan boasts a modest 27.84 average in 15 events to date, but has excelled in cue ball cricket on the international stage, as well as performing well during the 2017/18 Ashes series in Australia, scoring a century in Perth and averaging 42.55.
“Dawid would obviously offer us a lot of experience in the top three,” Root told reporters. “Not necessarily … in test cricket, but now he has played a great deal of international cricket and faced pressure situations.
“He’s played a lot of red ball cricket over the course of his career and he’s also had great success. He’s played in a massive series in Australia on the road and been our top run scorer, so we know he’s capable of doing greats. things in the test match cricket.
“It’s coming from behind, it’s just a score in the county cricket championship, but it’s a big one (199 for Yorkshire vs Sussex), as well as some brilliant scores in high pressure cricket in the shorter format.”
While England are hoping their batting lineup will be strengthened with the addition of Malan, they lost another seam bowler with the news that Mark Wood will miss Headingley’s test due to a sustained right shoulder hit at Lord’s.
England is already without Jofra Archer, Stuart Broad, Olly Stone and Chris Woakes due to injury and while Root admitted the situation is frustrating, particularly with the added complication of coronavirus protocols, he has had little trouble trying to stay optimistic.
“I’m playing for England and I’m playing test cricket. It’s pretty easy to stay positive in that regard, I’m living my childhood dream,” he said.
“I’m constantly trying to remind myself of that too, when we’re having a difficult day or when things don’t always go our way. When I was 10 I couldn’t think of anything else I wanted to do.
“Living that childhood dream is one way you can keep motivating yourself to take on the next challenge and the day after. I’m a tragic cricket at heart. I love the game, I love hitting. Every chance to do that. ‘ I’ll try and take it. “
Craig Overton and Saqib Mahmood compete to replace Wood in the England XI in Leeds.
It would be a test debut for Lancashire fast pitcher Mahmood, and Root has no doubt that the 24-year-old is ready to step up if he gets the nod.
“I feel like Saqib couldn’t be in a better place to potentially play test cricket,” he added.
“You see how he has progressed in the last few years, in all formats. The opportunities that he has taken this year, when they have been given them, have been exceptional.
“He’s been an outstanding bowler. He came out of that one-day series (against Pakistan) as probably the most experienced player and the sailor that Ben (Stokes) came to under pressure.
“It just shows how far he’s come and it’s great to see that strength in depth and its development as it has over a period of time.”
Watch the first day of the third test between England and India at Emerald Headingley starting at 10am, Wednesday at Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event.
