England’s coach, Andy Flower, has singled out the batting performances of Eoin Morgan and Matt Prior following the team’s 354-run victory over Pakistan in the first Test at Trent Bridge
Andrew Miller02-Aug-2010England’s coach, Andy Flower, has singled out the batting performances of Eoin Morgan and Matt Prior following the team’s 354-run victory over Pakistan in the first Test at Trent Bridge, saying that the composure and determination that the pair displayed in their respective centuries were the defining moments of a “fascinating” Test match.Although the Man of the Match award went to James Anderson for his career-best haul of 11 for 71, England’s margin of victory – and the finality of Pakistan’s collapse to 80 all out on the fourth morning – disguised the extent to which they were made to toil for the ascendancy. In a match that featured 24 single-figure dismissals but only four fifties, the achievement of Morgan and Prior in reaching three figures was especially notable.”They were outstanding knocks, both of them,” said Flower. “Obviously you get ebb and flow in every game but I thought it was a fascinating game for people to watch, and those types of pitches and the swinging ball make it a fascinating battle between bat and ball. I enjoyed watching it myself and the spectators must have loved it.”Both men came into the match with points to prove, albeit for differing reasons. In Morgan’s case, the onus was on him to capitalise on the absence of Ian Bell and push his credentials as a Test-quality batsman, following a pair of inconclusive displays against Bangladesh earlier in the year. Prior, on the other hand, needed to reaffirm – to the wider public more than anyone else – his status as England’s No. 1 batsman-wicketkeeper, after losing his place in the limited-overs squads to Craig Kieswetter.In both respects, Flower was mightily impressed. “I thought Morgan’s composure, initially when the ball was moving around and then capitalising on the spin in the afternoon, was almost a typically perfect Test innings,” he said. “I thought the tempo with which he played his shots and innings was ideal. Prior’s knock was superb as well, in fact I think that is the best I have ever seen him bat.”When asked if he believed that Prior’s omission from the one-day set-up had made him all the more determined to succeed, Flower was unequivocal. “I am sure it did, and perhaps there is a lesson there: you should not need spurring on to perform at your peak level for England. He is determined and that is part of the reason why he has been successful at international cricket. That sort of determination is exactly what we want from our players.”Prior’s confidence and class with the bat will inevitably refuel the debate about whether England should play four bowlers or five during this winter’s Ashes, but Flower insisted that the ability of his wicketkeeper was not the sticking point in that particular selection issue.
“The other allrounder has to be good enough at his job to bat at No. 6 or 7,” said Flower. “Matt Prior plays as a keeper-batter but the other guy needs to be good enough at his job to perform as an allrounder. Obviously [if we found one], that is what we would do, but we are not looking for vindication. We make our decisions on what we feel will give us the best chance of winning.”In the conditions that were presented to England at Trent Bridge, however, a three-man attack would have been sufficient to wrap up victory, seeing as their fourth bowler, Graeme Swann, contributed two wicketless overs out of 83 in the match. And while Flower knows as well as anyone how dramatically Anderson’s performances can fluctuate, he was rightly full of praise for a man who, on this occasion, got absolutely everything right.”It was a superb performance,” said Flower. “We know what Jimmy can do when the ball swings, and that was a very good thing for his confidence. But it’s like that for any bowler. If Murali came across a glass-like pitch he would be less effective than he is when he bowls at Galle. That is the same for any bowler. They have conditions that suit them more one day than the other.”Of course, Anderson will not be counting on such overhead assistance in Brisbane come November, but Flower believes his strike bowler is making significant strides in his development. “It is important to learn to adapt to those different situations, and yes, he is learning, certainly. He is a better bowler than he was and he will continue learning. He is a very experienced bowler now and we do rely a lot on him regardless of conditions.”Anderson’s main ally in Nottingham was the lanky Steven Finn, who mopped up five key wickets in the course of the match, including three in the space of his first 19 balls. He is a cricketer who has exuded an air of calm right from the moment he was thrust into a Test debut in Chittagong in March following a last-minute injury call-up, and on his return to the England set-up after missing the ODIs for a course of “strength and conditioning”, he even extended that trait to his batting, as he held up an end in a 49-run tenth-wicket stand that allowed Prior to reach his hundred.”I was very impressed with him for a number of reasons,” said Flower. “Firstly the way he started his very first spell. He was bang on the money six balls out of six, and at the end of that first over he got the wicket. And considering that was his first over back from his break – a break that had been given a lot of publicity – it was a very mature way to handle it. And I thought he batted with a lot of nous and composure. Those things all bode well for him.”He is very mature for a young man and that will stand him in good stead because he is going to have some serious challenges in the future,” Flower added. “He keeps things nice and simple, he keeps things in perspective, which a great position for him to be.”Looking ahead to Edgbaston, a ground on which Stuart Broad claimed career-best figures of 8 for 52 for Nottinghamshire last week, it would be easy for England to assume a sixth-consecutive Test victory is now on the cards. However, as Pakistan’s captain, Salman Butt, was at pains to point out, it was only two Tests ago that his team bounced back from a similarly heavy defeat against Australia to square the series with a thrilling bowling display. And with the experienced Mohammad Yousuf now set to bolster the middle-order, England know their work is far from done.”I think it is always useful to remind sportsmen about complacency, because sometimes it is very easy in our cosseted world not to appreciate how lucky we are or indeed how hard you have to work for success,” said Flower. “It is quite an easy mistake to make so we do have to remind ourselves of that constantly.”What we are looking for is for our guys to be ready to play at 11 o’clock on Friday, and to play somewhere near their potential,” he added. “I think our team is feeling reasonably confident at the moment but we are only one Test into a four-Test series and we all realise that this game ebbs and flows very quickly. You have to respect the game and respect the opposition, and there is no complacency whatsoever in our camp.”