As a fast bowler breaking through into England’s one-day team just as pitches seem flatter, bats more fearsome, attacking intent ever more focused, Jake Ball could be forgiven the odd weary shrug.
Ball was one of England’s better bowlers in the defeat in Pune, drawing the thick edge over third man that England maintain was a chance to dismiss Virat Kohli early and wrap up the game, and sticking doggedly to his off-stump line through the carnage of that 200-run fifth-wicket partnership between India’s centurions.
After a morning spent practising in the middle against batsmen in “death-mode” before Thursday’s second ODI in Cuttack, Ball was fairly sanguine about the trials of bowling on flat pitches to some seriously explosive opponents.
“You’re in an entertainment industry and fans like to see the ball going for four and six, and that’s what’s happening at the minute. We’re just trying to ruin the party if you like,” he said.
“When you’re looking at 350 and you’re thinking, ‘have we got enough’, it shows how the game has developed and how players have developed. It’s hard at the minute but we’re working on plans and things in the nets and hopefully we can put those into practice.”
Asked about the step up from five years of county cricket to playing the international game in India, Ball picked out the strength in depth of a modern-day ODI batting lineup. “You get good players in county cricket but international cricket it’s the whole way down the order, you’ve got players coming in at six and seven who can quite easily clear the ropes. It’s the mentality of the game, it’s all attacking cricket. Before, you had a bit of a lull between 20 and 40 but now players are just going through and constantly looking to attack.”
Not least Kohli, whose extraordinary short-arm six-whip off a shortish slow ball from Chris Woakes has already been endlessly dissected. “That was a great example of a ball where Woakes will have let that go and thought that’s in a good area and then you see it sailing for six.You just have to hold your hands up and say well played.”
If selected Ball will play just his fifth ODI on Thursday. Stuart Broad, who some believe should be ushered back into this England one-day team before a home Champions Trophy, has been a useful mentor back at Nottinghamshire.
“One thing he says is to stay calm. When you’re out there and the crowd are going and getting on top of you it’s quite easy to forget about your basics and forget about things you do well and trying to think too much about what the batter at the other end is doing. The best thing you can do is take your time, clear your head and make sure you know exactly what you’re going to be bowling.”
