It was once sacrilege to argue against specialists in the Test team. Bits and pieces/multi-dimensional cricketers were for one-day cricket while genuine all‑rounders at Test level were as rare as shooting stars.
Yet now there are obviously too many specialists in the England side. Look at the one-dimensional cricketers at the top of the order, Alex Hales, James Vince, despite bowling 24 balls in Test cricket, and Gary Ballance, who has propelled two overs, are there simply to score runs and then field as best they can. And they are struggling in their specialist subject.
Go further down the lineup and the business of run-scoring seems more straightforward, albeit against a slightly older ball. That was the case again on Thursday. Jonny Bairstow at six, Moeen Ali, a magnificent seven, and Chris Woakes at eight hauled England out of a potentially embarrassing situation: 110 for five became 328 all out.
This is a familiar pattern, of concern since England are becoming dependent on a late-innings rally, and it gives rise to continuing debate about how they should line up.
Surely the one easy conclusion is that when Ben Stokes, another all-rounder – yes, he justifies that description as do the aforementioned trio – returns to fitness he should replace one of the specialist batsmen rather than a bowler?
But there are other issues relating to the best balance of an England team, which is evolving so encouragingly without being reassuringly consistent. How best to maximise the talents of Bairstow and Moeen in particular? Are they batting in the right place? Is it mere superstition-blinkered conservatism or solid common sense to leave them where they are or should they be promoted?
The nettle was grasped with Joe Root. He has been elevated to No3 and a double century later it seems a good idea to have one of the best batsmen at three to dictate the flow of the game. There was no need to fear that change.
Moeen’s situation may be easier to assess than Bairstow’s. Since the Lord’s match, when he naively declared English batsmen should use their feet to Yasir Shah before gallivanting down the wicket the following day, only to swish at fresh air, Moeen has batted superbly against Pakistan and especially so against their leg-spinner.
This much is certain: Moeen should never be relegated to No8 again for England. At seven he has a phenomenal record. After another silky contribution at The Oval he is averaging 106 in 10 Test innings at seven. It is tempting to leave him there. He has a bit more time to acclimatise before being surrounded by the tail yet he is able to bat without inhibition, partly because he is at seven, more significantly because he has another role as a spin bowler. There will often be a confusion with Moeen since he is a better batsman than a bowler but there is no doubt that he warrants a place in the team.
Bairstow’s situation is odder. The usual source of agonising over batsmen/wicketkeepers is along these lines: how much does the business of keeping limit the ability and energy to score runs? But in Bairstow’s case the opposite is true.
The figures suggest that at this stage of his career Bairstow bats much better when playing as a wicketkeeper. He averages 59 as an all-rounder (in 14 matches), 28 as a specialist batsman (in 17 Tests).
Contrast that with two great players who wrestled – along with their selectors – with the dilemma of whether to play as a specialist or an all-rounder. Alec Stewart, whose preference would have been to play for England as a pure batsman at the top of the order, averaged 46 in that role (in 51 of his 133 Tests), but 34 as a keeper; Kumar Sangakkara averaged 66 for Sri Lanka as a specialist (in 86 of his 134 Tests) and 40 when keeping.
But Bairstow, who has been prolific with the bat for England this year, actively wants to keep wicket. Admittedly his figures could be misleading; the low average as a specialist coincides with his first phase as an England player; he was still acclimatising. But the difference is so stark that it must be significant.
Having a dual role – as demonstrated over the years by Ian Botham, Freddie Flintoff or Adam Gilchrist, whose best tally of runs in a calendar year has been surpassed by Bairstow in this game – can be liberating when at the crease. There is a freedom to give full rein to the inclination to attack and that is when Bairstow is at his most dangerous. Unlike Sangakkara he likes the insurance of a dual role; unlike Stewart he is not a top-order batsman; even without the gloves No5 would be plenty high enough for him.
Hence the obvious way forward must be to allow Bairstow to continue keeping provided he is doing that job competently.
There was also a cameo from Woakes at The Oval, which illustrated the freedom of the all-rounder neatly. He hit eight boundaries in his 45, mostly sweetly timed drives and glides through the off side. These are the type of strokes that James Vince agonises over when playing Test cricket. He can play them; but he sometimes nicks them and now he is not so sure.
By contrast Woakes, liberated by his all-rounder status and his run of brilliant form, does not think twice about what to do. At the moment he just trusts his instincts and the ball races away.
