Former fast-bowler Stuart Broad said England are right in arriving late in India ahead of the Test series opener, saying such arrangements led by captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum are taken to have more control around the team schedule in a heavy cricketing calendar.
The England team are set to host and follow through on a training camp in Abu Dhabi before arriving in Hyderabad on January 25, three days ahead of the series opener against India.
“The decision to fly to India only three days before the first Test next month is not England minimising preparation — Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, as coach and captain, are controlling it.”
“In cricket, when you tour a country, arriving weeks early, the warm-up pitches, quality of the nets, the matches you play, and your travel schedule are seldom arranged to help you. So McCullum and Stokes are taking ownership of this period leading up to the series opener in Hyderabad on January 25 rather than leaving it in someone else’s hands,” wrote Broad in his column for Daily Mail on Sunday.
Broad made note about how the training camp in Abu Dhabi might help England have a great preparatory environment ahead of Tests against India, especially given the English side’s embarrassing 3-1 defeat in the previous Test series in India in 2021.
“At a 10-day Abu Dhabi training camp, McCullum can choose the net surfaces, control the middle practice, ramp up a day’s training and minimise flying.”
“I’ve been to countries where you are due to train in the afternoon only to get there and discover the nets have been watered and covered. That’s no good. In Abu Dhabi, England will feel like the home team.”
“Ultimately, we will only know if it’s right or wrong on the result. If England get bowled out for 80 and concede 500, Abu Dhabi will have been a failure, but if Ollie Pope gets 270 and Jack Leach takes a 10-for, it will have been a success. This is neither a lack of match-readiness nor disrespectful to India.”
The upcoming series is set to be coach Brendon McCullum’s biggest challenge so far, especially in terms of following through with their ‘Bazball’ approach and learning to continue with it in spin-friendly sub-continental conditions.
(with inputs from agencies)
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